How long does car detailing take? A full breakdown
How long does it take to polish a car?
Car Detailing is an intricate service and depending on the selected package, it can range from 4 hours to 7 days. Detailing time increases and become more aggressive the worse the condition of a vehicle is. As well as polishing time, vehicles are first prepared with a safe wash, tar remover and clay decontamination. How long to polish a car can be a complicated question so please see below for more detail.
Ultra Fine Polish
Quicker car detailing options such as ultra-fine polish is recommended for vehicles which are usually new, used but well maintained, or vehicles which have previously been polished. Ultra-Fine polish is generally the quickest service and can typically take around 4 hours on a medium saloon vehicle. When vehicles suffer from deeper swirling and scratches on the paint's surface, they could require enhancement.
Enhancement Polish
Enhancement is a medium compounding stage of polish which is higher in aggression in comparison to ultra-fine polish. This makes the process a 2-stage polish meaning the first stage would be medium compound (enhancement) and the second step would be finishing polish (ultra-fine), the paint would then be ready for protection. This type of car detailing package would usually require approximately 20 hours of work depending on the vehicle category.
Full Paint Correction
One of our most comprehensive car detailing services is full correction. This is a three-step method of restoring your vehicle’s paintwork. The full correction begins with an aggressive cutting compound, followed by the medium compound and finishing polish. This can sometimes be known as a Stage 3 polish, as the paint is restored in 3 stages. A full correction can take 2 days depending on the condition and vehicle type.
Multistage Compound
The multistage compound is used mainly on classic or highly defective vehicles and can contain up to 5 stages of car polish. This service is highly tailored depending on your paint type and a combination of stages is accumulated using a trial-and-error method. This car detailing method can take up to 14 days to complete, but the end presentation would be well worth it. This method of car detailing can sometimes be classed as a three-stage paint correction but this depends entirely on the process required for the car paint to be enhanced.
Paint Protection
In regard to protection services, Hard Wax is usually the fastest service and can take around 1 hour. Carnauba wax is usually more sticky and tougher to work with therefore can take around 2 hours to cure and complete fully. The most time-consuming car protection service is the ceramic coating option. This can take 2 – 4 hours depending on vehicle type. Ceramic coatings can be difficult to work with, but rest assured we are experienced in applying these tricky coatings to all types of vehicles. Car enhancement detailing would always require some form of protection after polishing the car.
Interior, Glass, Rubber and Headlight Restoration
Additional services such as interior detailing, rubber protection and restoration, glass polishing, and headlight restoration would typically add around 3 hours per service depending on the vehicle category. How long a car takes to detail can differ and we would provide estimates on a case-by-case basis.
More detail on how long car detailing takes.
There are other questions which customers may sometimes ask about the various types of car detailing services. These are detailed below
Polish a car by hand - How long will it take?
Polishing a car by hand is usually only recommended if your paint is in very good condition, has previously had car paint enhancement, or if you have some knowledge of car detailing.
How long to polish a car using this method? This way would generally take 2 to 3 hours depending on the vehicle type. Please ensure you do not polish your vehicle by hand in direct sunlight, and use brand-new microfiber cloths and a polishing pad.
We would still generally recommend to machine polish a car rather than polish by hand. Although machine polishers can be intimidating at first, a basic dual-action paint polisher is a safer option with minimal risk in paint damage.
How long does it take to detail an SUV?
A larger SUV generally tends to take a longer time to polish, especially if it has lots of curves, splitters and intricate areas. Please allow up to 50% more time to detail an SUV when compared to a car.
How long does it take to buff a car?
Some general questions in regard to car buffing are generally not understood by non-enthusiasts. Car ‘buffing’ is just the process of using a machine polisher to enhance paint. This word can be used interchangeably with machine polishing to avoid any confusion.
Please get in touch with us if you would like further information or would like to book your vehicle in for car detailing.
