What to Do Before Your Detailer Arrives

The list

The five-minute version

Take out anything valuable. Wallets, laptops, sunglasses, cash, documents. Not because anything would happen — because it is your car and we would rather not be moving your things around.
Take out anything you need today. Child seat if you need it in another car, gym bag, work items.
Empty a full boot. If the cargo area is packed, we cannot clean the carpet under it. This is the single most common thing that limits what we can do.
Leave everyday clutter. Cups, receipts, kids' things, the stuff in the door pockets. We handle that; it is part of the job.
Tell us about anything fragile or aftermarket. A loose trim piece, a dash cam, an aftermarket screen, perforated or ventilated seats, unfinished leather, a wrap, a repaint. All of these change how we work on it.
Tell us if there is a specific problem. A stain you care about, a smell, hair, a mark on the paint. We will target it rather than discovering it halfway through.
Sort out access. Key handoff, lockbox, gate code, doorman, or just be there for the first two minutes.

Where

Where we can work, and what each situation needs

We are mobile only and fully self-contained — we bring our own water and our own power, so nothing at the location is required.

Street parking space

Completely normal for us. Worth checking street cleaning times for the day so the car is not towed mid-job.

Tell us the block and the car, and we will find it.

Residential garage

Ideal, especially for anything that needs drying time or a dry cure window.

We need the gate or door code, and to know about height restrictions.

Apartment building lot

Common and fine. Some buildings have rules about contractors — worth a quick check with your building manager.

Give us the space number.

Office parking structure

Works well because the car is stationary all day anyway. We need to know how to get in, and any height limit.

Driveway

The easiest case. Nothing needed from you beyond the car being there.

Somewhere with a height limit

Tell us the clearance. Low-clearance garages are workable but we need to know in advance rather than on arrival.

Timing

How long to plan for

You get a specific window when the appointment is confirmed, but as a planning guide: an interior detail is 2 to 2.5 hours, longer on a larger vehicle or with heavy buildup. An exterior is roughly 1 to 3 hours. A Full Package is 3.5 to 5 hours on a standard car and 5 to 6 on a full-size SUV, truck or van.

Add-ons stack on top. Extraction in particular adds drying time as well as working time, and in San Francisco fog or in winter a heavily extracted interior can want most of the day with the windows cracked to finish drying.

Paint correction is 4 to 6 hours for a one-step and 6 to 8 or more for a two-step. Ceramic coating is 7 to 8 hours or more and becomes a two-day job with correction or on a larger vehicle, plus a 24 to 48 hour dry window afterwards.

For a standard interior or exterior detail you can drive the car straight away. After a coating, keep it dry for 24 to 48 hours. After correction, give any finishing product a few hours. We walk you through the care instructions before we leave.

Weather

What happens if the weather turns

Light rain does not usually affect interior-only work, and we will often still come.

For exterior services, paint correction or ceramic coating, rain is a genuine problem. We watch the forecast and reach out to reschedule before the appointment rather than showing up in conditions that produce a compromised result. Rescheduling for weather carries no penalty.

If you have covered parking, tell us — it often means an appointment can go ahead that would otherwise move.

There is more detail in the rain guide, including what happens when the forecast changes mid-job.

The short version

Valuables out, boot clear, tell us how to get in, and tell us about anything unusual. That is genuinely all of it.

We are open every day, 8 AM to 7 PM. Payment is card, Apple Pay, Venmo, Zelle or cash, taken after the job is finished.

Book now Contact us

Questions

Questions we get asked

What should I take out of the car before you arrive?

Valuables, anything you need that day, and anything large filling the boot. Everyday clutter is fine — handling that is part of the job.

Do I need to be present during the detail?

No. Most customers hand us a key, a gate code, a lockbox code or a doorman's name. We text when we arrive, if anything comes up, and when it is finished.

Do you need my hose or an outdoor tap?

No. We bring our own water and power to every job. For all-day work like a ceramic coating, a power outlet is helpful but not always required, and we confirm that when arranging it.

Can you work in my apartment garage?

Yes. We work in residential garages, apartment lots, office parking structures, driveways and street spots. Give us the access details and tell us about any height restriction.

What if parking where my car is makes access difficult?

Tell us in advance and we will work it out. Tight street parking, a difficult garage entrance or a strict building can usually be handled with a bit of notice.

The services this guide is about:

All services Our process Contact

Back to the full guide library.