In the field of car care, the term detailing has become very popular in recent years. However, along with its popularity, confusion has also emerged – although it often seems that everything related to the beauty of cars fits into one word, “detailing”, in reality, these are separate crafts. Here, I will clearly distinguish: what is real detailing and what services exist closely alongside it but do not fall into the Detailing category.
What is real detailing? It is a set of services directly related to the washing, cleaning, renovation, and aesthetic surface protection of car surfaces:
- detailed hand washing of the exterior
- chemical and mechanical decontamination. Decontamination is a process that removes deeply embedded dirt from car surfaces: brake pad dust, asphalt tar, tire deposits, insect residues, and other deposits that cannot be washed off with regular washing.
- varnish correction, which is performed using scrubbing methods and removes such painting defects as: orange peel, varnish streaks (patios), and painting dust.
- polishing
- ceramic, graphene, polymer coatings, waxes, impregnations
- deep, detailed cleaning of the cabin
- leather and plastic restoration
- faded, worn headlight / plastic polishing
- glass coatings to achieve a gooseneck effect
- engine compartment washing
- neutralizing bad odor
- special coating for the protection of textiles, leather, and plastics
All of these services can be called the craft of a “detailer”.
Services that are often associated with detailing, but are not detailing.
1. PPF (Paint Protection Film)
Protective body film that protects against stones and scratches. This is the field of film specialists – different techniques, equipment and different processes than polishing. Polishing is a necessary stage before PPF application, but the dust caused by polishing is the biggest enemy. Like a couple who cannot live without each other, but sleep in separate rooms. So with PPF and polishing, separate, well-ventilated, dust-free rooms are needed. Why do people who provide detailing services also offer PPF services? Short answer. Because PPF naturally complements detailing and logically follows the services performed by detailing, because before applying a protective car film, the surface must be perfectly clean, often requiring polishing and decontamination. This means that detailing studios already have all the necessary base for installing PPF.
2. Window Tinting
Window film installation is a separate craft, often requiring a sterile environment and specific tools. So doing washing, cleaning and polishing in the same room is not a smart solution for achieving a quick and professional result. Unless you work alone and have good control over your work environment. Or if you have other employees, designate separate rooms for this work.
3. Wrap (Car wrapping with colored film)
Changing the color of a car with film is a design and installation job that requires precise surface preparation. Again, dust and moisture are out of the question… But without body preparation, high-quality car wrapping is hardly possible. This means that your premises must be spacious enough to prepare surfaces, cut, lay out, and store the film. And in addition to all this, you must have sufficient knowledge and determination to dismantle the car’s trim parts without damaging them.
4. PDR – paintless dent repair
Paintless dent repair is a completely different profession. It is a metalworking craft that requires extremely delicate tools and years of practice. You need to know how to disassemble a car’s finish in detail. A bunch of different small and medium tools. But the good news is that you can perform PDR next to the car being polished without worrying about dust or moisture.
Why do people call everything “detailing”?
Because often these services are in one studio: polishing, ceramics, wrap, PPF, tinting, PDR – everything under one roof in order to find their client. And from practice I can say that 75% of studios do not perform these services, even if they declare that they do. Most often they call or take the car to a specialist in another field, taking their brokerage fee. They receive income and satisfy their client. Should you do the same? If you are the manager of your studio and have employees, you can afford to generate additional income this way, but if you are a craftsman, I think it will be difficult to coordinate between the client and another master and get your work done.
Conclusion
Detailing is the foundation of a car’s aesthetics, and all other services are additional tools designed to enhance or expand the final result.
If you want to learn this craft, I invite you to purchase my courses and mentorship to achieve impeccable results.
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