[rogan200]

I am picking my car up a week tomorrow (30 September), and can't wait! I have it booked in at mikeys that week too. I just need to find a good detailer now too.

I have cancelled the Mini Care option (£200) from my dealer, as i feel the money would be better spent with a professional detailer, but i don't know of one in the Bristol Area - Does anyone have any recommendations - also your thought on what they should be doing to the car would be appreciated.

Thanks, Rogan

[MINI&MERCGUY]

Quote: Originally Posted by rogan200 (original)

I am picking my car up a week tomorrow (30 September), and can't wait! I have it booked in at mikeys that week too. I just need to find a good detailer now too.

I have cancelled the Mini Care option (£200) from my dealer, as i feel the money would be better spent with a professional detailer, but i don't know of one in the Bristol Area - Does anyone have any recommendations - also your thought on what they should be doing to the car would be appreciated.

Thanks, Rogan

Wait a minute - the car is brand new, and you're looking for a detailer!!! Sure what could be wrong with the car and it brand new? Are you expecting it to come off the transporter covered in stone chips and swirl marks?!!!

Bring the car home, wash it, and apply some Autoglym Aquawax. The car will look absolutely identical to the result you will get by sending it to a detailer, and you'll save yourself the completely unnecessary cost!

I know we all like having a spotless clean MINI at all times, but in some cases, common sense and the voice of reason has to intervene!!!

[JpMcC]

Best thing to do is have a look on Detailing World, you should be able to find someone local to you, it'll be well worth paying a pro detailer to prep your car and add some needed protection coming into the winter months.

Quote: Originally Posted by rogan200 (original)

I am picking my car up a week tomorrow (30 September), and can't wait! I have it booked in at mikeys that week too. I just need to find a good detailer now too.

I have cancelled the Mini Care option (£200) from my dealer, as i feel the money would be better spent with a professional detailer, but i don't know of one in the Bristol Area - Does anyone have any recommendations - also your thought on what they should be doing to the car would be appreciated.

Thanks, Rogan

[picard]

personally i would rather do it myself i wouldnt trust some other muppet doing it

[droopy2]

Quote: Originally Posted by rogan200 (original)

I am picking my car up a week tomorrow (30 September), and can't wait! I have it booked in at mikeys that week too. I just need to find a good detailer now too.

I have cancelled the Mini Care option (£200) from my dealer, as i feel the money would be better spent with a professional detailer, but i don't know of one in the Bristol Area - Does anyone have any recommendations - also your thought on what they should be doing to the car would be appreciated.

Thanks, Rogan

Hey Rogan

Time does fly when waiting for you new Mini.

Why dont you detail it yourself you are going to have a great base to work from as it is brand new.
I think you have seen my post on what I did when I got mine and to be honest my OCD is even worse now

This is meant as a guide only........

1: Elite Snow Foam on a dry Mini let it sit for 10 minutes and rinse off.
2: Elite snow foam and wash with lambs wool glove.
3: Rinse then dry with Meguires super absorbant cloth
4: Check the paint work for any little rough bits of dirt etc and if you need to >>>> do step 5:
5: Clay bar (use a fine one) with adams quick detail spray as a lubricant. ( I used the meguires clay bar kit I think it was around £20-00)
6: Rinse and dry as per step 3:
7: Zaino pro with the activator is a very good paint selant / protector 3 coats
8: Poorboys wax for one of the best shines on a car I have ever seen.
9: Wheels I use Muc Off it is non corrosive and deals with brake dust a treat.
10: Poorboys wheel wax /sealant 3-4 coats and hardly any brake dust stiks to the wheels now.
11: for the glass I use adams glass cleaner simply one of the finest products for glass.

It is quite a big job and time consuming but worth every moment when you see the end product.

If you do do it yourself make sure you have plenty of new / clean microfibre cloths

[rogan200]

Quote: Originally Posted by picard (original)

personally i would rather do it myself i wouldnt trust some other muppet doing it

I would like to do it myself, but i'm not entirely sure i can achieve the results i want, and that a professional would get.

droopy2's car did look fantastic after what he did though, so i may give it a go. The main thing is i want to be sure the paint is protected from the elements as much as possible, whilst still giving a really good blemish free finish.

[MINI&MERCGUY]

Quote: Originally Posted by rogan200 (original)

I would like to do it myself, but i'm not entirely sure i can achieve the results i want, and that a professional would get.

droopy2's car did look fantastic after what he did though, so i may give it a go. The main thing is i want to be sure the paint is protected from the elements as much as possible, whilst still giving a really good blemish free finish.

Paint is harder than you would believe these days - one think is for sure, a few weeks of heavy showers will soon wash off any polish or wax you have applied...!

[rogan200]

Quote: Originally Posted by MINI&MERCGUY (original)

Paint is harder than you would believe these days - one think is for sure, a few weeks of heavy showers will soon wash off any polish or wax you have applied...!

Im not scared of maintaining the finish - i just have seen so many cars with swirtl marks etc, and i do not want that to be the case with mine!

[Esuuv]

Robbie Orlando Vs John Cooper - Detailing World

this is mine that was done today - where I live there are trees everywhere, the car doesn't get used everyday so it gets covered in sap - I had a problem with the clearcoat on the Audi I had before this after I went away and the car was used by the local bird population as a toilet and Robbie fixed it, so I gave him a call to see what he could do to protect the paint on the mini from new and make it nice and easy for me to look after.

Top job - would happily recommend him, cost wise, about the same as the treatments BMW offer, except I know this was being done properly........

[ViscountCharles]

I'm going to do the same as rogan - check out Deatailing World, and pay a pro to do it properly. The dealership will be told not to touch the car (employing a couple of east European sponge monkeys and charging me £200 - I don't think so). I regularly wash my current MINI properly, given it the occasional wax, and have clay bar'ed it earlier this summer. But I want a brand new car to look as good as possible - and that means paying someone ele to do it properly.

[maxdude]

Quote: Originally Posted by rogan200 (original)

I am picking my car up a week tomorrow (30 September), and can't wait! I have it booked in at mikeys that week too. I just need to find a good detailer now too.

I have cancelled the Mini Care option (£200) from my dealer, as i feel the money would be better spent with a professional detailer, but i don't know of one in the Bristol Area - Does anyone have any recommendations - also your thought on what they should be doing to the car would be appreciated.

Thanks, Rogan

Hi there, you want to contact Dave at DPN. He is based in Harrogate and a real pro. He fully detailed my JCW R53 back in may, and will use him again in a couple of months.

DPN Professional Car Valeting

[rogan200]

Quote: Originally Posted by maxdude (original)

Hi there, you want to contact Dave at DPN. He is based in Harrogate and a real pro. He fully detailed my JCW R53 back in may, and will use him again in a couple of months.

DPN Professional Car Valeting

I've heard of their great work before, but im based in Bristol at the moment!


I've found a detailer local to me and have seen a couple of cars they've done to an awesome standard. For a bit more (£35) than the £200 mini wanted for the supaguard thing, i am getting a full multi stage wash of the car and wheels, full paintwork preperation / correction, a sealant on paint (similar to zaino pro), wheel sealant, and a top quality wax applied, and glasswork polished. Also a full interior valet, including a scotchguard product on the carpet and seats.

As a bonus, ive managed to get the dealership (reluctantly) to let the car be detailed on their premises (they are providing a covered space to do it), the day before my delivery day. All in all im pretty chuffed!

[maxdude]

Quote: Originally Posted by rogan200 (original)

I've heard of their great work before, but im based in Bristol at the moment!


I've found a detailer local to me and have seen a couple of cars they've done to an awesome standard. For a bit more (£35) than the £200 mini wanted for the supaguard thing, i am getting a full multi stage wash of the car and wheels, full paintwork preperation / correction, a sealant on paint (similar to zaino pro), wheel sealant, and a top quality wax applied, and glasswork polished. Also a full interior valet, including a scotchguard product on the carpet and seats.

As a bonus, ive managed to get the dealership (reluctantly) to let the car be detailed on their premises (they are providing a covered space to do it), the day before my delivery day. All in all im pretty chuffed!

Nice one. Sounds the business. Sorry mate, thought I'd read Harrogate somewhere in ya post!! Must be seeing things!!!

[rogan200]

My detailer has just called to say hes done the job and the car looks fantastic. A few worrying points though:

- He said there were some buffer trails in the paintwork, which he has been removed. The dealers havent been near the paintwork so someone at the factory must have done this. Strange on a machine sprayed car. Detailer says sometimes if they cause some damage or the machine cocks up, they sometimes hand spray to repair. Not what i want to hear on a brand new car.
- There are 2 very small defects behing the aerial on the roof, in the lacquer. Mini will machine these under warranty, but i dont want them near the paint. Probs will have the detailer do it another time if it bothers me.
- There is a pinhead sized brown mark under the lacquer on the O/S front wing. Mini will put this right by respraying the area. Obviously i dont want this doing either. Too much hassle.

Now the above two points are things the detailer and the salesman say have to be looked for, and wouldnt have been picked up if mini had done the valet. I havent seen it yet but will decide what i want doing when i pick the car up first thing tomorrow. My initial plan is to leave it as the car is to be used and the paint will pick up stone chips etc in no time. What do you guys think of these things? I'll post pictures tomorrow.

[Esuuv]

Mine has a few little marks and stuff - one raised patch on the nearside front wing and a mark on the bottom of the drivers door - I could get BMW to sort it, but the car is meant for driving not for just sitting there looking pretty so am not worrying about it - think you should do the same else it'll drive you bonkers (and you dont want to become the guy with the vhite VXR !!)

I have to say it is no where near as well built as my R53 cooper - the trim piece between the boot and the rear window is a mile off straight (i might look into getting this fixed), as is the rear numberplate (this is obviously the dealer not MINI) - and whats going on with the panel covers in the boot - were they trying to save weight or something?

I still love it though !!

[droopy2]

Quote: Originally Posted by Esuuv (original)

Mine has a few little marks and stuff - one raised patch on the nearside front wing and a mark on the bottom of the drivers door - I could get BMW to sort it, but the car is meant for driving not for just sitting there looking pretty so am not worrying about it - think you should do the same else it'll drive you bonkers (and you dont want to become the guy with the vhite VXR !!)

I have to say it is no where near as well built as my R53 cooper - the trim piece between the boot and the rear window is a mile off straight (i might look into getting this fixed), as is the rear numberplate (this is obviously the dealer not MINI) - and whats going on with the panel covers in the boot - were they trying to save weight or something?

I still love it though !!

Mine has a few blemishes on the roof and a few minor dust inclusions under the clear coat on the bonnet but you have to look for those. I will piont them out to the dealer next week when the car goes in for the age old engine rattle issue.....

WD

[ViscountCharles]

Quote: Originally Posted by rogan200 (original)

My detailer has just called to say hes done the job and the car looks fantastic. A few worrying points though:

Now the above two points are things the detailer and the salesman say have to be looked for, and wouldnt have been picked up if mini had done the valet. I havent seen it yet but will decide what i want doing when i pick the car up first thing tomorrow. My initial plan is to leave it as the car is to be used and the paint will pick up stone chips etc in no time. What do you guys think of these things? I'll post pictures tomorrow.

I suspect that almost all cars leave the factory with such defects, and we never notice. It takes the careful eye of the perfectionist (or the detailer) to notice. Did you read the mega-detail done on an Astra Nurburgring over on DW, where the buyer said he considered rejecting the whole car because of a half-mil paint spit?

Most of the minor blemishes described would require the dealer to undertake remedial work which risks doing more harm than good. If the detailer can get them out with standard paint correction techniques then go for it, but if the dealer wants to get out the spray gun then you need to be sure that *you* think it's worth doing.

[droopy2]

Quote: Originally Posted by ViscountCharles (original)

I suspect that almost all cars leave the factory with such defects, and we never notice. It takes the careful eye of the perfectionist (or the detailer) to notice. Did you read the mega-detail done on an Astra Nurburgring over on DW, where the buyer said he considered rejecting the whole car because of a half-mil paint spit?

Most of the minor blemishes described would require the dealer to undertake remedial work which risks doing more harm than good. If the detailer can get them out with standard paint correction techniques then go for it, but if the dealer wants to get out the spray gun then you need to be sure that *you* think it's worth doing.

This is the link it was posted here a while ago. To be honest I thought it was a little over the top wheels off etc washing it every 3 days and 50+ layers of zaino I think it was????

But id did give me quite a lot of very good tips for detailing.

WD

http://www.mini2.com/forum/maintenan...-gone-mad.html

[ViscountCharles]

A *little* over the top? It was grade-A certifiably nuts! But an interesting read nonetheless, showing to what lengths you *could* go to get a car really, really clean and presentable.

[thetope]

i would point out the flaws to the dealer and hint at a few vouchers or free ipod connection or something as a goodwill gesture - as mentioned already trying to remedy them would probably do more harm than good and you can certainly live with the flaws, but just to let them know that these things *are* noticed