Are people really this cheap?

**A2D Signature** · 06-04-2016, 07:24 AM

I did my friends headlights yesterday. Wet sanded, compounded, polished, and coated.

I did it for free because we've been friends for about 26 years now.

He went home and posted about it on Facebook saying I do it for a good price and these are some of the responses

Are people really this cheap?-imageuploadedbyagonline1465043027-681185-jpg

Are people really this cheap?-imageuploadedbyagonline1465043046-121634-jpg

**TTQ B4U** · 06-04-2016, 07:35 AM

And they kikely believe wd40 removes scratches within seconds

**RangerDetails** · 06-04-2016, 07:43 AM

Yes people are this cheap. I advertise on several groups on facebook once a week and eveytime I get responses like this. The most common one I get is the toothpaste one. People just don't understand.

**SRConcepts** · 06-04-2016, 07:54 AM

People are very cheap, but you get what you pay for. I remember people coming into the body shop I used to work at asking how much a repaint would cost, and throwing a fit because Maaco, etc. only quoted them a few hundred while our estimates were well into the thousands. Their $8 bug spray or toothpaste solution will wear away in a few washes, your headlight restoration will hold up for a long time to come, just like quality paintwork versus a cheap scuff-and-shoot.

This just gave me an idea- has anyone done a side-by-side longevity comparison of an OTC or homebrew headlight fix versus a true headlight restoration yet? Something like this could be a good marketing tool for a professional detailer.

**RangerDetails** · 06-04-2016, 08:06 AM

Originally Posted by SRConcepts

People are very cheap, but you get what you pay for. I remember people coming into the body shop I used to work at asking how much a repaint would cost, and throwing a fit because Maaco, etc. only quoted them a few hundred while our estimates were well into the thousands. Their $8 bug spray or toothpaste solution will wear away in a few washes, your headlight restoration will hold up for a long time to come, just like quality paintwork versus a cheap scuff-and-shoot.

This just gave me an idea- has anyone done a side-by-side longevity comparison of an OTC or homebrew headlight fix versus a true headlight restoration yet? Something like this could be a good marketing tool for a professional detailer.

Yeah, most people that have been suggested the toothpaste or bug spray solution call me a few weeks later to do their headlight because it didn't hold or just didn't work at all.
I explain to them that the abrasive in toothpaste is made for teeth, not plastic.

The side by side comparison is a great idea.

**Mantilgh** · 06-04-2016, 08:13 AM

The last nice headlight resto I posted on face book was the same.

Random Guy, "Yeah, bug spray will do the same thing. Lol."

Uh, no. No it won't give you crystal clear headlights that make it look like you just bought brand new replacements.

**Setec Astronomy** · 06-04-2016, 08:33 AM

Originally Posted by A2D Signature

I did my friends headlights yesterday. Wet sanded, compounded, polished, and coated.

I did it for free because we've been friends for about 26 years now.

He went home and posted about it on Facebook saying I do it for a good price and these are some of the responses

It's not really a matter of being cheap IMO. It's some combination of this distrust of the "establishment" which in this context is car detailers, the folksy home remedy trend inspired by social media and the internet, and that must people treat their car like an applicance.

Originally Posted by SRConcepts

This just gave me an idea- has anyone done a side-by-side longevity comparison of an OTC or homebrew headlight fix versus a true headlight restoration yet? Something like this could be a good marketing tool for a professional detailer.

As I alluded to above, people who think like those who posted the above comments aren't going to be customers no matter how convincing your side-by-side is, IMO.

**Setec Astronomy** · 06-04-2016, 08:35 AM

Originally Posted by RangerDetails

I explain to them that the abrasive in toothpaste is made for teeth, not plastic.

Toothpaste was a common "rouge" for polishing acrylic plastics (which today's headlights are not); this goes back 50 years or more, so it's not like that idea is out of left field.

**expdetailing** · 06-04-2016, 08:40 AM

Man, if I only knew bug spray worked, then I wouldn't have had to buy sandpaper, a Flex, and some compound!!!!! This ruins my day! Steaming mad!!!

**RangerDetails** · 06-04-2016, 09:52 AM

Originally Posted by expdetailing

Man, if I only knew bug spray worked, then I wouldn't have had to buy sandpaper, a Flex, and some compound!!!!! This ruins my day! Steaming mad!!!

Haha! That is what I tell my clients. "If toothpaste and bug spray was working so well, I wouldn't have spent so much on all my equippement". Pointing at all my stuff.