DON'T HAVE THE TIME OR DESIRE

[Bob Hartley]

I don't have the time or desire to clay bar the trac myself. Can anyone recommend a detailer

in Maryland, hopefully close to Baltimore.

 

[EddieS'04]

Im the same Bob. I dont have the patience to clay bar. I did it a few times, on the stang and t-bird in my library. Too time consuming for me. I suppose if I had a classic or antique I would.



To be honest my '04 Trac has never been hand waxed. Only hot waxed at the detail type car washes..LOL I have a good one down the street. They start with the spray(not the drive thru type) then they finnish with clean micro fiber towels. They even clean the fender wells by hand and spray protectant on them. They vacuum and wipe down places inside that I never would (nooks & crannys). They are more than happy to please for $25.



The owner brings your keys to you. Then he wants to check the job with you before you leave. Sometimes he sees something I didnt. Very nice folks.No bad atitude when you find a miss.. Their excelent service is well worth a good tip.



They are not a chain. I hope you can find one like it. Good luck....:supercool:

 

[Korey Kreiter]

30-45 min is too long? Claying doesn't take that long, but when you factor in all the additional steps, a decent detail will take a half day+. This is something you can take pride in if you DIY. A good detail will cost $200+. It's hard to find somone who will know what they are doing, and will do good (rather than harm). Search on Autopia for detailers in your area.

 

[Robert Caffyn]

I've done the clay bar myself twice, it took about an hour or so to do the entire truck. Afterwards, I had my local detailer do the wash, clay bar, machine polish and paint sealer, plus the usual interior, leather, engine bay (not power washed), wheel wells, wax the wheels and detail the interior of the bed. I call it a "car show" detail and all this for only $175.00. I do this 3 times a year and wash and wax(carnuba) every month. I think it looks pretty good. BC :banana::banana:

 

[A K]

Autopia is the place to ask.



I used to detail my own vehicles. I also used to detail others, too. I was an Autopian (I suppose I still am, as I have a large Craftsman roller cabinet filled with microfibers, buffing pads, high end polishes, etc.--that sit unused).



It seemed, however, that one day I lost all urge. My '04 hasn't been washed since summer of '07. Too much time and effort for something one rainfall will ruin.

 

[Matt Alvin]

I am like Eddie...I don't hand wax my cars any more...just my Harleys. I have a great car wash down the road from my house and for $23 or $18 if I have coupon. After going through the machine the illegal aliens wipe down, vaccuum and do the tires...all in 20 minutes or less. I couldn't do that good of job in 2 hours if I tried.

 

[Chris Rice]

We have one car wash in town...it sucked, and they always did a horrible job. They closed down for about a year. New owner now, so I went back. Still sucks! Wish we had a good one. I just use the drive through now. I'm out on dirt roads and driving through bushes too often to spend a lot of time on cleaning it myself, I waxed it once a year ago.

 

[Bob Hartley]

Thanks for the feedback. I really want to get it done professionaly because I'm afraid I'd mess it up, with the clay bar.