Should I have them detail my new truck?

Hey guys,

Never bought a brand new vehicle before so this is all new to me... anyway, they're saying my new Taco should be in sometime between the 17th and 21st. The dealer also said that they're going to detail it for me. What's your opinion on this? This is going to be my daily driver and my motocross rig, so it's going to get used. On the other hand, I can be a bit OCD with my vehicles. What are the chances that I'm going to get microswirls with them detailing it? Is it worth telling them not to detail it? I also don't really want to pick up a brand new truck and have it dirty from shipping....

 

When they say detail they probably will just give it the normal exterior wash. It's a brand new truck what would have to detail other than getting dust from transportation of the unit?

 

yeah whats the point in detailing it if its brand new? i think its just the dealer trying to butter you up.
It won't hurt anything to do it, but it sounds dumb for the dealer.

 

All new cars have crazy amounts of gunk that needs to be clayed off with the first true detail it gets while peeling off the vinyl wraps.

I was a lot detailer at 3 diff dealerships in my late teens early 20's.. They may not look dirty but run your hand over the paint and you'll see what I mean.

when they offer to detail it tell them to clay bar and wax it, Expect a 3-4 hour turn around.

And for the love of all things automotive!! tell them to make sure they do NOT armor all the steering wheel, floor mats, pedals, engine bar and anything screen or clear plastic on the dash..

 

Every new truck that comes in gets washed by the dealer, it is how they check to make sure there is no damage in transit. As bigtaco06 said, it really depends on what they mean by "detail". When I was a porter, we washed, vacuumed, and cleaned all of the windows right before new cars were taken by the buyer, there was no reason to do more than that as they are in as good of condition as they will ever be.

 

Vert good chance to get micro swirls if you let ANYBODY wash your truck.

 

Amen!!!

 

if the dealer has an on site certified detailer, use them.

Porters just hand the cars over to a wash bay person or wash it themselves with basic equipment and limited time.

A true *Detail* and not a wash is very different.

Wash:
Soap and water with hand mitt over surface and wheels.
Wipe down interior with some sort of protectant on dash to make it shine
Dry with usually dirty worn out chamois and sometimes wipes around inside door seals and inside trunks or gas caps.
Amore all on rims and tires with quick wipe off.

Detail:
All above stuff with addition steps taken.
Engine bay wash with degreaser.
Clay bar entire top surfaces where needed.
Underside cleaning on a ramp to spray any debris off frame ect.
leather treatment on seats.
Scotch guard on cloth seats or floors.
Full carnuba wax after a cut and polish wax with mechanical buffer to remove any overspray or fallout and reduce swirl marks and orange peel from factory.
Hand detailed wheels and tires to ensure they are not over coated in shine protectant.
Light interior dash treatment wiped down to reduce shine.
Wash inside windows and sometimes wax exterior windows.
All exterior trim cleaned with gloss type protectant.
once washed and waxed dried with a clean chamois and gone over interior and exterior with special bushes to remove wax in cracks and by decals and seams and clear all dust from vents inside.

 

You're gonna be hauling a motorcycle in the back? Out to a dirt riding area?

Look, I understand being uptight about detailing - but no car or truck can keep a show car paintjob under those conditions.

The only point in not having a dealer do the detailing is if you're gonna be garaging it at night and covering it in the parking lot, and then doing your own expert washing and detailing.

Just keep it clean and waxed, and everyone will compliment you on it. Don't bother going for "show car" finish.

 

Yeaaaa, I have my garage queen already.

 

You would be surprised at the level of contamination that is on the paint of most new cars. Even a car fresh from the train will have rail dust and other contaminants embedded in the paint. At the very least, it would be worth doing a wash, decon, sealant.....at that is if the paint is perfect. Then it will be a lot easier to keep clean going forward.

If the dealership is going to use a run-of-the-mill carwash with brushes it will almost certainly introduce marring and swirlmarks into the paint. Even touchless automatic car washes have a higher chance of introducing imperfections into the paint. Unless they are going to do a hand wash with buckets and quality chemicals, I wouldn't let them touch it.

Get in touch with your inner OCD and do it yourself, or get a real pro to do it. My truck is a daily driver. I take it hunting, tow a camper, and have two boys that like to mess up the backseats. That doesn't mean I don't want it to look good and be clean most of the time.

Quite honestly, for $50 and half a days work, you can get better results than any dealership.

Look here for more info on doing it yourself:

http://www.detailedimage.com/Auto-Detailing-Guide/

Most of the stuff on the site you can buy cheaper on Amazon.

Jeff in Flagstaff

 

All the things I listed in Detail are all things I personally did to new cars and some used at different dealerships.

I was paid hourly plus commission and took my time to get it right.

I would typically work with 1-2 others that had similar training as myself so the level of service we offered was available all week.

Of course we did the quick in and out 30 min specials on every car sold regardless as well.

We always used clean wash mitts and chamois as standard so we didn't mess up any paint jobs

 

Every attempt at detailing that I've ever seen a dealer do has been pitifully executed.

Don't let them touch it.

 

Don't let anyone wash your vehicle unless that's their specialty. I know it's going offroad and going to get dirty but don't start off behind the eight ball.

 

I probably would have turned down the detail when my truck was new but now that my trucks earned its trail stripes. Id probably let the dealer do it. I still wont take it to a car was though.

 

Have them do a wash only preferably a hand wash and you do a inspection when your there or when you pick up your new truck.If you notice anything or they suggest they need to attend to something then let them do it.Its for you to decide.Dealers vary in quality detailing satisfaction.I used to be a detailer and also do the up front work/prep on the new vehicles traveling during the auto show season(years 1993-2005).When i purchased my new 2012 June of that year my truck had just arrived at the dealer.The dealer let me take the vehicle home with the protective vinyl on the front end,hood,roof and all the plastic from inside the interior and do the work myself.I just had to remove some glue lines from the protective vinyl wrapped areas with a clay bar and then wax.I took the truck back the very next day to let them know all was good.Its your choice and those TW members who have replied to this post have given you some good advice and some time for you Bobby(rmorse)to think about it and make a decision.Good luck!Its a new truck and a Tacoma!Enjoy it!

 

Thanks for the input, everyone! I'm thinking I'm going to talk to the dealer and find out what the "detail" actually entails, and make my decision from that.

I talked to my friend about it and she called me an idiot....she reminded me that I'm going to be throwing filthy motocross bikes in the bed and I'm going to be going down dirt and rock roads to get to the track. She also reminded me that it's going to be my daily driver and I live right next to DC; it's going to get beat.

 

1) I doubt their definition of detail would be very exciting

2) as far as papers, stickers, plastic wrap, etc. they'll be taking all that off regardless. And likely a wash job and some smelly stuff sprayed in the cab.

3) Regardless of your future use of the vehicle, I'd take it home and do my own prep. Unless you're just going to make it a beater pig sty from the get go, then forget it. Run it through the woods and scratch it up, get in it all muddy and call it a day. But if that's the plan (apparently your chics thoughts?) why bother with the bucks of a new vehicle? Lots of cosmetically challenged, yet mechanically solid rides out there at a lot less cost. Anyway, that's another thread

4) If you want to keep it a bit respectable, take it home. Wash, use an auto nanoscrub (you'll never use clay again!) to clean the already contaminated paint (yes, it is), and put on a couple coats of

$21 Collinite 845 Insulator Wax-Easy to Use Carnauba+Polymer Wax Sealant-High Gloss Shine+Durable Hydrophobic Beading & Long Lasting Paint Protection for Cars/Boats/Trucks/RVs & Motorcycles (16 fl oz)

Collinite 845. It's a very durable finish that will wash up after your forays in the woods, and only need recoating every 6 months or so.

5) do some searches here on tailgate reinforcement. You'll likely want some before loading your bike the first time. If you bust your tailgate, remember, you were warned.

6) consider some wet okole type seat covers if you don't change at the motox venue.

7) Ask the dealer how much the 'detail' costs (he'll likely say it's free to you, but it does cost him something, and you've already paid for it). Tell him you'd rather they do an alignment for you instead. And you want to see the before and after numbers. A high percentage of vehicles roll out with a marginal alignment, and way too many are out of alignment. I know its not a sports car, but why start off with improper tire wear, and you don't need the 'detail' anyway.

 

Interesting points. I had no idea about the weak tailgate; I'm going to go search for it now.

 

I would ask them first, what specifically does their detail consist of?
If claybar, hand-wash, mf towels, and staff that are experienced and conscientious-----do it.
If an automatic carwash, dirty-looking towels and sketchy workers--skip it.

One thing to consider regardless, if possible, is having them not drill holes in your front bumper for the new plates.