130 hour restoration detail - Bentley GT (Auto Concierge & Immaculate Reflections)

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Thank you...

:xyxthumbs:

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Originally Posted by Setec Astronomy

I believe you have given the Todd Helmes and the Dave Saunders of the world something to aspire to. In most professions (including this one, I thought) one measure of skill is the abilility to execute quickly, meaning if two detailers got the same result performing the same task, the one who completed it more quickly would be considered the more skillful. Apparently I was mistaken, thanks for correcting my misconception, I will try to remember going forward that it takes 112- hrs to correct a Bentley.

It was a very nice job that you and Bob did, it looks wonderful, the owner entrusted it to the right team!

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The sarcasm is in poor taste. You KNOW every car is different. Whats your issue?

Mike, as this was a tag team detail I'm not at liberty to share the product usage on this car. That is Bob's choice to share it or not and I will be respectful of that.

My apologies if I came off "arrogant" or "elitist" in my replies, upon re-examining it I see it may have come off that way. That was not my intent.

Thank you all for the kind words. This job was a huge undertaking and my thanks to Bob for having me help him on his client's new ride.

I can't believe the turn this thread took. Great work! Compare this to youtube's famous "most expensive detail" wash and wax, and I think your customer got a great deal, even at this forums high estimates for the job.

Crazy awesome turn around. Kudos to you and Bob. :xyxthumbs:

I was rather astounded and confused when I saw Bob post on Autopia.org that Jeff would no longer be working with him on any future projects. At the time, I hadn't seen the thread on this forum.

Now, I think I may understand a bit better what's going on.

It's amazing to me the attitudes that so many members here seem to have toward professionals who provide the highest-end levels of detailing to discerning clientele. These guys are far from the first to post a job that took a large number of man-hours to complete, and yet I've never seen a negative response of this magnitude ever before.

If you take the time to really examine the pictures of the work that was done, you should be able to notice that pretty much every single surface on the vehicle was given attention in one way or another. It's a plain and simple fact of the matter that attention to detail takes time.

Polishing every single obscure portion of a door jamb cannot be done via machine, and in some cases not even with traditional pads or MF towels. Same with dressing certain rubber/vinyl/plastic parts, thoroughly cleaning and restoring suspension and brake components, etc. As best I can tell, all of that was done in this case.

Is a high hourly rate a shock to the system? Sure it is. However when you consider the nature of the work and the physical demands of spending that much time massaging a vehicle to the pinnacle of perfection AND the fact that it takes a certain type of person to do that sort of work (not everyone is equipped to dedicate themselves to the task) it is justifiable when your market supports it. That's how business works; find your competitive advantage or the "value" in your goods or services, and charge accordingly for the exclusivity you offer.

Now, granted, not too many people out there are interested in or willing to spend that much having a vehicle worked on to the extent of what this job appears to have encompassed, and perhaps that's where the source of the angst is coming from (such jobs are very rare and uncommon), but as automotive, car care, and detailing enthusiasts I would certainly think we can all recognize and appreciate what was done here. Perhaps the issue is more jealousy or envy than actual disdain toward Jeff for posting his work?

Anyway, I don't tend to post here these days, but after seeing this nightmare I felt compelled to say something. There are a multitude of approaches to detailing, and a multitude of definitions of "perfect." That should be celebrated, not attacked.

^^ Well said Mr Hahn!

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Originally Posted by jdscooby

Question is, how the heck did that car get in that bad of shape in the first place?

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Whomever owned the car previously looked at the car as a way to get around apparently and that's it! I'll just never understand why someone with the means to buy a car like that doesn't have it detailed twice a year to keep it looking at the very least, decent! Not only that but buying a black car, what are they thinking (not thinking, obviously!) In the early pics it was just disgusting to see the amount of swirls in the paint, those are reserved for people driving around mid 90's Honda Civics that truely are just for getting from point A to B.

Now as far as the 130 hour restoration it took to get it like that, your team performed a miracle thereIm the MAN Just curious, how much did a detail to that level cost the guy?

Impressive guys. Great job at documenting the process to show the progression.