[rokut]

Right guys, I'm no detailer and even though I used to take a lot of personal care over my previous cars (before kids!) I can now not prioritise time cleaning my car over time with the family...

I have had company cars for the past few years and tbh haven't really cared too much for them (shock horror!), so now I need to find a decent but affordable method to get the car cleaned. As everywhere in the UK there are loads of 'Hand Car Wash' spots around me, but I don't have much faith in any of them not to bodge something or other.

So does anyone have any recommendations for Berkshire/ Surrey area? To be exact I am based in Warfield, just outside of Bracknell, not far from Ascot one side and Reading the other. Thanks!

[roshambo]

Why not ask a detailer to work on the car regularly at your home? Means you sit with the kids whilst your car gets sorted! Could mean £40+ a go but at least it gets valeted to a high standard. Maybe bimonthly?

Sorry I'm not from that neck of the woods so can't advise anyone as such.

[zofinger]

What would you deem to be an acceptable cost to clean the car? Personally i'd pay someone £50 for a Wash, polish and sealant (3-4hours work?) using my products.

[rokut]

Yeah - this is what I'm thinking - someone decent to do a solid job and give the car what it deserves rather than me rushing or someone in a car wash getting another ticked off for the day. Even if they do have a tagline of 'Best Handjob in Town' (I've seen this up near Atherstone and never fails to make me chuckle...)

£30-£50 would be around what I'm looking for

[UK_]

Only one man for this job - Bradley from Concours Detailing. I also live in Berks and had him to a two day full detail on my new M4 vert as soon as it arrived at the dealers back in sept. Unbelievably dedicated and a lovely chap for less cost than the 'brilliant' Supaguard crap. He also does regular valets.

Pics of the car on his site as well as his other work http://www.concours-detailing.co.uk/portfolio/bmw-m4/
Mention the forum recommendation and I am sure he will give you a discount 😊

[zooberoo]

I take mine to the local supermarket and leave it with the car wash chaps. It costs £7 and every fifth wash is free.

My wife and I used to walk into town for breakfast whilst they were working but now there are three of us we go around the shops with the little one instead.

Once cleaned, it stays in their area so I don't need to worry about some old duffer scraping their Honda Jazz down the side of it.

Win win.

[Mr NSB]

Do it yourself and appreciate the time away from the wife and kids

[rokut]

Originally Posted by UK_

Only one man for this job - Bradley from Concours Detailing. I also live in Berks and had him to a two day full detail on my new M4 vert as soon as it arrived at the dealers back in sept. Unbelievably dedicated and a lovely chap for less cost than the 'brilliant' Supaguard crap. He also does regular valets.

Pics of the car on his site as well as his other work http://www.concours-detailing.co.uk/portfolio/bmw-m4/
Mention the forum recommendation and I am sure he will give you a discount 😊

This sounds great to me, and feel free to correct me if I am wrong but is this Ravi? I have got in touch with Bradley and hopefully he'll get back to me.

Thanks for the recommendation!

[rokut]

Originally Posted by Mr NSB

Do it yourself and appreciate the time away from the wife and kids

I have too much time away from the wife and kid (soon to be kids plural) due to work hours and travel for work as it is, so this is something that's gotta give...

[getcarclean]

I'm new here, but hopefully this isn't against the rules - if it is, I'm sorry!

I created GetCarClean becuase a lot of people were asking these kind of questions - so, relevant to this thread - you can find a car wash in bracknell on our site

again, sorry if this is against the rules!

Please let me know any feedback!

[Meds]

Apologies for straying off course, but if anyone has any recommendations for valet services in and around Watford, Hertfordshire I would greatly appreciate it as I'm in the same boat as the OP.

[SkyJawa]

Originally Posted by zooberoo

I take mine to the local supermarket and leave it with the car wash chaps. It costs £7 and every fifth wash is free.

My wife and I used to walk into town for breakfast whilst they were working but now there are three of us we go around the shops with the little one instead.

Once cleaned, it stays in their area so I don't need to worry about some old duffer scraping their Honda Jazz down the side of it.

Win win.

Wouldn't trust these muppets with a pushbike, just as bad as mechanical car washes. Use dirty cloths, don't care if they drop them on the floor then carry on using them on you car....

There was an article on fifth gear or similar about car washing, and these sort of car park washers did not get well rated.

I'd rather spend 15 mins myself to douse the car in snow foam and blast off as a quick wash. Gets the worst off until I have the time to clean it myself......

[Edinburra]

Originally Posted by zooberoo

I take mine to the local supermarket and leave it with the car wash chaps. It costs £7 and every fifth wash is free.

My wife and I used to walk into town for breakfast whilst they were working but now there are three of us we go around the shops with the little one instead.

Once cleaned, it stays in their area so I don't need to worry about some old duffer scraping their Honda Jazz down the side of it.

Win win.

How very dare you call my wife and her "Shopping Trolly" an old duffer. Just how deep would you like the scrape to be?

[....,,,,..,,..]

If you don't want to spend ages doing your car all the time the options are.

Detailer and Gtechniq type product, then just wash n dry.

Clean yourself, spend ages the first time. Then just regular washing and spray with Aqua wax or Sonax BSD.

Both Aqua Wax and BSD can be bought in bulk containers.

Get some sealant / rim wax on your alloys and they keep themselves clean (well just a quick wash gets the muck off lol).


Do not use imigrawash, a lot of stuff is not alloy or paint friendly.

[bobo13]

Any good car wash places or detailers in East London/Essex area?

[....,,,,..,,..]

Originally Posted by bobo13

Any good car wash places or detailers in East London/Essex area?

Try Topaz.

http://www.topazlondon.com

They also are users of XPEL, self healing paint film.

http://www.topazlondon.com/services#...rotection-film

Looks good for a new car.

[simon the pieman]

Originally Posted by Mr NSB

Do it yourself and appreciate the time away from the wife and kids

Amen brother

[Ice Man]

Originally Posted by zooberoo

I take mine to the local supermarket and leave it with the car wash chaps. It costs £7 and every fifth wash is free.

My wife and I used to walk into town for breakfast whilst they were working but now there are three of us we go around the shops with the little one instead.

Once cleaned, it stays in their area so I don't need to worry about some old duffer scraping their Honda Jazz down the side of it.

Win win.

Noooooo !!! It makes me cringe seeing peoples cars washed at supermarkets. so little care is taken with barely any water and filthy sponges and cloths inflicting all sorts of damage to the paint work

[Steve_M_Sport]

Originally Posted by Brigand

Clean yourself, spend ages the first time. Then just regular washing and spray with Aqua wax or Sonax BSD.

Both Aqua Wax and BSD can be bought in bulk containers.

Great tip about bulk buying of Aqua wash which is called Express wash for 5 litres. I've just ordered some from Amazon for £35.99 delivered . Much better value than Halfrauds even with their 3 for 2 offer.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B..._detailpages00

[Nick the Greek]

Personally I always use a topless car wash...

[....,,,,..,,..]

Originally Posted by Steve_M_Sport

Great tip about bulk buying of Aqua wash which is called Express wash for 5 litres. I've just ordered some from Amazon for £35.99 delivered . Much better value than Halfrauds even with their 3 for 2 offer.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B..._detailpages00

The main thing to watch out for is degradation of the product over winter months if kept in garage etc.

However getting these bulk is a bit of a no brainer, flog a couple of bottles to your mates for £5 and recoup your expenses

[Russbmw]

I do detailing at weekends. Click on my signature.