how much does a full color/sand detail cost?

[ADHD]

well Ive been to several shops and talked to a couple of pro detailers and got there opinion on my car... Its all about the same... I have alot of fine scratches that the buffer is just not taking out! ive tried several megs compounds and others as well and NO luck...Ive been quoted up to 1300$ for a full color/sand buff detail...Guaranttiing NO fine scratches at all and NO more Orange peel look in the paint!! Ive been quoted as low as 800$..
It sounds great to me to get all the scratches out and No more orange peel look.. but is it worth 800$..or should i pay the reputible expensive guy 1300$????

[N.E.W.car]

Re: how much does a full color/sand detail cost?

Go with the guy who knows that he is doing - because a bad color sanding will probably only be fixed by a re-paint.

You need to get references and look at his portfolio - if he doesn't have references, I don't care if he charges $500 - DON'T GO WITH HIM.

Just my opinion, but a color-sand and buff is somewhat advanced stuff.

[murquiza]

Re: how much does a full color/sand detail cost?

Did you asked how much for a fresh coat of paint? May be it worth it....

[MDetail]

Re: how much does a full color/sand detail cost?

Body shop next to me was charging $300 on a 99 Civic. Their work always came out nice.

[noswirler]

Re: how much does a full color/sand detail cost?

it depends on what your sanding for (orange peel,overspray,scratches,etc.) thats how you price it.remove overspray and fine sratches would be cheaper than say orange peel,or bondo marks or stuff requireing 1500 or lower grit would cost some where around $250-$400 depending on size of vehicle,the easy stuff $150-$250.Dude for $1300 I could do 2 or 3 cars maybe four

[Larry A]

Re: how much does a full color/sand detail cost?

Most shops I know wont do a wet sand and buff unless its there own paint work. They are afraid of buffing thru.

[MDetail]

Re: how much does a full color/sand detail cost?

Most shops I know wont do a wet sand and buff unless its there own paint work. They are afraid of buffing thru.

Yes that was one of the concerns about our neighboring bodyshop. He said no guarantees since they were not the painters, and didn't know what they had to work with.

[pcfxer]

Re: how much does a full color/sand detail cost?

Go with the guy that uses Meguiar's...that should narrow it down. Then choose the guy that knows what he's doing. That should narrow it down quite a bit. If they don't have a paint gauge, walk away immediately! If they don't have Meguiar's frown and make funny faces while the person is speaking to you. Then ask why they don't have Meguiar's and listen carefully as there are some pretty funny explanations.

Post before/after pics.

Oh and from your name, ADHD, I figured that maybe your arm speed is a little too fast so you may consider slowing down first.

[the other pc]

Re: how much does a full color/sand detail cost?

...If they don't have Meguiar's frown and make funny faces while the person is speaking to you. ....

A handy technique for many occasions!


PC.

[Junebug]

Re: how much does a full color/sand detail cost?

Most bodyshops I know of would quote you for wet sanding and buffing out the paint, assuming the paint is original, a good paint man can tell you what is possible and what is not. Price does matter, and the most expensive is not always the best (been there - done that) and as far as products go - at least from what I've seen in central North Carolina - everybody uses 3M. OK, I realize I'm on the big M forum, but hey - that's the truth Ruth, 3M products fill most auto paint stores around here and from what I can tell - other places too. However, I did see Meg's and some Duragloss products at one store the other day. And, for 1300 bucks, you could get a new paint job - at least I could where I live.

[Scottwax]

Re: how much does a full color/sand detail cost?

You should expect to pay around $50-60 an hour and depending on the severity of the orange peel and scratches, you are looking at 12-20 hours of labor. You would also probably have to sign a liability waiver too. On a factory paint job, you can safely remove about .4 mil of clear before you risk compromising the intergity of the clear coat. You would be wise to personally see the before and after paint measurements from their paint thickness gauge.

If your car is a repaint, all bets are off. Even with a paint thickness gauge (which only measures total paint thickness) there is no way for the shop to know if the depth of the clear coat will be like a factory paint job, which is 1.5 to 2.0 mil thickness. It could be more, it could be less and if it is less, proper wetsanding and buffing will probably take the clear below the safe depth of 1.0 mil.

I would think long and hard about getting this done if the car is a repaint and even factory clears coats aren't really meant to be wetsanding so even then it can be risky. In any event, removing clear coat means any future scratches and defects may not be able to be corrected since you won't have enough clear coat depth to withstand heavy correction.

[noswirler]

Re: how much does a full color/sand detail cost?

I cant belive what im rerading here, Guys its not thst hard slow but its not hard at all. Unigrit 2000/3000 and its all good,you will need to use a RB a wool pad and #85, start with a slow speedand work it in good,heres the key wipe off gently

[ADHD]

Re: how much does a full color/sand detail cost?

Most bodyshops I know of would quote you for wet sanding and buffing out the paint, assuming the paint is original, a good paint man can tell you what is possible and what is not. Price does matter, and the most expensive is not always the best (been there - done that) and as far as products go - at least from what I've seen in central North Carolina - everybody uses 3M. OK, I realize I'm on the big M forum, but hey - that's the truth Ruth, 3M products fill most auto paint stores around here and from what I can tell - other places too. However, I did see Meg's and some Duragloss products at one store the other day. And, for 1300 bucks, you could get a new paint job - at least I could where I live.

thanks for everyone help here I really aprreciate it!! as u guys may have seen my car its pretty much brand new! heres a link to my cars thread:

http://www.meguiarsonline.com/forums/showthread.php?t=16086

u can all see the paints condition and advise me what u think i should do???

The shop I think im going to go with uses all 3M materials he said and some wax called BAnnana wax??
Im going to end up going with him cuase hes my daughters friends dad and has an awesome portfolio of cars/boats etc and offered to do it for alot less!!

[Scottwax]

Re: how much does a full color/sand detail cost?

I cant belive what im rerading here, Guys its not thst hard slow but its not hard at all. Unigrit 2000/3000 and its all good,you will need to use a RB a wool pad and #85, start with a slow speedand work it in good,heres the key wipe off gently

The difficulty level isn't nearly as much problem as the amount of clear that needs to be removed for a flawless finish. If you take the clear down to under 1 mil, you lose most of the UV protection, plus the finish can't be corrected again without risking serious damage to the paint. Sometimes it is best to live with minor defects than to risk compromising the paint job.

You also need a paint thickness gauge to make sure you aren't removing too much clear.

[Jimmy Buffit]

Re: how much does a full color/sand detail cost?

I'd suggest you have the technician explain how his Electronic Thickness Guage helps him monitor his progress...

Good Luck!

Jim