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How much do I charge for polishing?

19stang88

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19stang88

19stang88

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I have a friend of a friend who wants me to polish his paint. He has a thrashed, but restoreable 92 Ford escort GT and a 96 Grand Cherokee Laredo, the paint is a 4 in a 0-10 scale, ten being the highest. Any ideas what to charge for these to vehicles? I am not trying to get into a detailing business, I just want to know what is fair.

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BlueGenCoupe

BlueGenCoupe

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7.40 is minimum wage in Ohio, unless you work at a job where you get tips, and then it is like 3 something. I know because I work for pretty much minimum wage :(

 

 

My god, now I understand why the cost of living in some parts of the U.S is soo cheap!

 

I guess it evens out. Our minimum wage is $10.75, but to buy a home in Toronto your looking at MINIMUM $350,000 and up. Hell you'd b lucky if you could find 700sq/f condo for $350, 000

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BlueGenCoupe

BlueGenCoupe

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I get paid 7.50 an hour at my job, so I would probably charge 10 bucks an hour to detail. Then probably add another 15-20 bucks on for used product.

 

 

Is that even legal in ohio, for an employer to pay an employee only $7.50 an hour?

 

Here in Canada (Ontario) the least you can get paid is $10.75

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dipolley

dipolley

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I just sat down and did the math this weekend on how much a detail could actualy cost with over head (assuming you have a shop), consumables, hourly wage, etc. My math came out to a cost of about $35 an hour. I would say $20 an hour should make it worth your while.

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mc2hill

mc2hill

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I would but I don't want to charge like a professional shop would

 

I understand where you're coming from, but you are performing work at or above the level of the shop. Once you get yourself established you should consider yourself at least equal to them. What you charge then is up to you.

 

I should take my own advice too, as I mainly barter my services (and truthfully get worse end of the deal).

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19stang88

19stang88

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good info. I like the idea of charging for one pass with all the polishing products. I am not going to be aiming for perfection since the customer will just wreck his paint right away. But wash, clay, vrt, 3 stage polish, and all the details for around 120-150 sounds pretty fair for me. i'll definitely post up pictures

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Cook

Cook

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When I started I did details for $100 just to get more people. Then it went to $150. This past year its gone closer to $200, especially with SUVs. Now that Im out of school and working full time, I do it at my leisure. If i dont want to spend a weekend detailing, I wont. If I want some spare money for more detailing products or parts for my truck then I will. Depending on how desperate I am I'll charge $150-200 simply because its easier to have people do it. Most clients I get dont have real high end cars and dont know what I actually do. However, if they have a show car or high end vehicle I'll charge them what its worth.

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1anonly

1anonly

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I go between $200-$250. The Escourt should be 6-10 hours and the Jeep 8-14. Those are rough guesses made from a paint rating of 4/10. The time frame will also change depending on how perfect you want to get the paint. The closer to perfect paint, the more time and money.

 

I would ask the owner how perfect they want it and adjust your rate from there.

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w0lfy

w0lfy

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exterior detail ..... I charge $125 , includes one round or pass with each of Adams machine polishes(if needed) expect MSW of course.

 

*if multiple passes of SSR,SHR & FMP are required then I charge $15 each additional pass (covers my time & material)

 

In the odd chance that I have an extreme deadline & severe correction is needed & i must go to the rotary, woolly & compounding then my price increases to $225

 

I add $15 for SUV's & Vans & $20 for black vehicles

 

my package is much like justins in what it includes , except for how we price extra passes :D

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Justin@SwanCreek

Justin@SwanCreek

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I normally charge $124.97 for exterior details which includes a wash, clean tires and rims, clay bar car, wax, and apply vrt on exterior trims followed up with a complete wipe down with detail spray before the customer picks the vehicle up. I charge an additional $199.97 for doing SSR, SHR, and FMP. So it adds up for a grand total of $324.94. The prices may seem high, but I actually compete with other businesses that offer similar services in my area. So the best way to determine pricing is to goto shops located near you that offer similar services. This way you can base your pricing off of the average price you come up with from the businesses operating around your area. This will ensure you are charging fair and competing prices for your customers, and WILL MOST IMPORTANTLY ensure you are not lossing money in the mid-term.... Hope this helps!

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Kingsford

Kingsford

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Actually he is my friends manger. But I am looking to charge him something fair. 250 seems too high.

 

Well think about how much you paid for all of the products you are going to use on his vehicles. I would charge like 1/8 or like 1/10 of that. Not counting like Porter Cable or Flex, stuff thats consumable. Plus a little extra for the time and work you had to do.

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