Our details start at $200 and go up to $300.  That’s about the industry norm for a quality job–inside and out–every button, every switch, every seal, every map pocket, every nook, and every cranny cleaned to as clean as possible.

If you shop around, you can find services (usually mobile) that will do the job for as little as $135.  Sounds like a great deal, right?  Well, in most cases, you could do the same job yourself in a few hours.

Here’s a few areas that separate professional service from average detail service:

• Carpet and upholstery stains.  Pro shops can remove just about every stain (food, food dye, oil, dirt, cola, tea, coffee, blood, etc.).  Amateurs usually scrub them with carpet cleaner once–if it doesn’t come out, they move on.
• Nooks and crannies.  Pros shops use compressed air to clean deep in vents, cup holders, map pockets, under seats, inside door pulls, inside emergency brake sockets, between seats, etc.  All those places you can’t clean with your vacuum cleaner.
• Dry interiors.  One common mistake amateurs make is leaving too much shampoo in carpets and seats!  Pro shops use minimal amounts of shampoo or use a steamer to ensure that when you pick up your car, it is completely dry.  There’s no excuse for asking a customer to “air their car out” after a detail.
• Dirt and moss in exterior window seals, panel gaps, cowls…anywhere dirt tends to settle and can’t be removed with a car wash.  Every pro shop uses a pressure washer and makes it part of their process to blast into these tight spots where dirt settles and lives on the outside of your car.  I should add emblems as a dirt trap as well.
• Swirl free compounding and polishing.  If you own a dark car in particular, beware economy services that will put harsh swirls in your paint, then fill them with wax.  The car may look brilliant when you pick it up, but when the wax washes away…you will get dizzy looking at your car in the sun.
• “Problem” cars.  Some cars have unique issues including:  excessive pet hair, oxidized paint, water spots on windows, urine stains, food odor, dog odor, tobacco odor, heavily stained wheels, and mold.  Small budget, cheap price simply don’t have the equipment to fix these problems that are expected of a professional.
• Proper engine cleaning.  Engine cleaning is relatively easy to do, and relatively easy to do wrong!  Trusting your engine (and all its sensitive electricals) to an inexperienced detailer could cost you thousands.  And what’s the likelihood they have insurance when it happens?
• The details.  Is the radio blasting?  Your heater on high?  Mirrors rearranged?  Was the spare tire cleaned in the trunk?  Are there smears on the windows?  Does the owner have bad breath?  Was the sunroof not cleaned?  Did they deliver on time?  Did they write down your concerns?  These are the small details that make dealing with a company EASY or dealing with a company a HASSLE.  The established shops get these details RIGHT and that’s why they can ask for higher prices year after year and stay in business.

 
You may luck out and find that one budget service that does the job right.  But more than likely, some significant work will be skipped or ignored and you’re likely to have problems with delivery times, customer service, etc.  You don’t get your car detailed often, so why not pay $50 - $100 extra for a job that goes smoothly and correctly?

We have never encountered a car with water spots that we could not fix.  This includes:  glass (most commonly the driver’s windshield), paint, chrome, and plastic.

Over-the-counter solutions often don’t work.  Don’t assume that your waterspot problem can’t be fixed because your hardware store chemical did not remove them.

We use an acid-based solution with an abrasive pad (don’t worry–we know what we’re doing) to remove water spots from glass, chrome, and plastic.  On paint, we simply buff them out with a compound and a wool or foam pad.

Here’s an A4 with tinted windows that had hard water spots.  We removed them from the windows and the paint (not pictured):

Fixing windshield chips is not just for picky people.  Even if you can “live” with a few rock chips, you have to get them repaired quickly before they spread into cracks that require complete replacement of your windshield.  Changes in temperature cause your windshield to expand and contract.  Even if the outside temperature is quite steady, your windshield goes from hot to cold and cold to hot as you activate your heater and air conditioner.  Every time this happens, you are taking the risk that a small chip will expand.

One of the myths about windshield chip repair is that it makes chips and starbursts disappear completely.  This is not always true.  Depending on the depth of the damage, the size of the damage, and the construction of the glass, some chips can only be improved 50 - 75%.  But the real value of repairing the chip–even if it is cosmetically improved only slightly–is that you are preventing an expense of $275+ in the future.

The newer your car is, the more likely a windshield replacement is to exceed $500 (usually directly out of your pocket, with no insurance help).  Newer windshields are integrating rain sensors and radio antennas.  These can cost $1000+!  Range Rovers have integrated defrosting wires.  Also $1000+!

If you are having your car detailed @ Ace, consider having all of your chips repaired to prevent a future catastrophic crack.  The service starts at $30.  We can do multiple chips for a significant discount.  We only need 30 - 40 minutes to permanently repair these deceivingly simple flaws on your windshield.

About 7 years ago, the use of steam revolutionized car detailing.

It allows detailers to clean fabric seats without the use of chemicals.  The previous method of drenching seats with shampoo, dwelling, scrubbing into a foam, and extracting with a heated extractor often left chemicals in the fabric and water lines and even extractor lines.

Only 20% of detail shops use steamers because of their cost.  We have made the investment in a steamer, and the results are well worth it.

Have a look at the seats in this Saturn SUV.  With shampooing, the seats would be damp for hours and possibly dry with water rings or extractor lines.  With our steamer, the seats are dry and have no “traces” in them.

Have you noticed that German cars and some Swedish companies (Saab) coat their interior plastics with a black rubber that peels away easily?

In most cases, those items (door pulls, consoles, dash inserts) can be repaired instead of replaced.

Here’s how:

1.  Clean thoroughly with rubbing alcohol.
2.  Mask off repair area (twice).
3.  Sand out damage.
4.  Texturize.
5.  Clean again.
6.  Spray black (or dark grey, tan, etc.) plasti dye onto repair areas.
7.  Heat cure with heat gun.

In most cases, the repair cannot be detected, is permanent (longer lasting than the original “Soft Touch” coating, actually), and about one third the cost of replacement.

Have a look at this Saab door panel that we repaired for $50 in 60 minutes:

The Internet has made a massive number of previously difficult do-it-yourself jobs possible. With videos and endless instructional information, we can now do a lot of home and auto repairs ourselves and save a lot of money and time.

However, auto body repair is still not a do-it-yourself project. The equipment is too expensive, the materials too dangerous, and the techniques too complicated for someone to attempt themselves. Have a look at this video to look inside a $30,000 paint booth as the presenter describes the importance of applying paint in the correct stages at correct intervals:

In 85% of cases, the smell can be removed at least 90%, if not 100%.

As a general rule, if the car was smoked in 3 years or less, tobacco odors can be removed with the following process:

1. Spray deodorant on all interior surfaces and into air intake of heating/cooling system (near the bottom of the windshield) while running; run for 15 minutes with air conditioner on. Nok-Out is recommended for this task.
2. Thoroughly clean the entire interior. This involves wiping down the headliner (perhaps the most odor absorbent material in the car), shampooing seats, carpets, and floor mats, wiping down all leather, plastic and vinyl surfaces, and cleaning interior windows. Particular attention should be given to EVERYTHING in the driver’s area–steering wheel, buttons, switches, door pulls, seatbelt, console.
3. Spray deodorant on all interior surfaces. At this point, the odor should be eliminated 80%.
4. For final treatment, place an ozone generator in the center of the car for 1 hour while the car runs with the air conditioner running.

Nine times out of ten, the smoke odor can be eliminated or reduced enough that a new owner does not detect that the previous owner was a smoker. Note: leather-equipped cars are easier to service than cloth-equipped cars.

In the instances of extreme odor, the headliner must be replaced, interior carpets replaced, and even seats replaced until the odor is gone or livable.

You should clean your windows–particularly your windshield at least once every 6 weeks.

We’ll share with you the process we use at our detail shop to get streak free, spotless windows in a minimal amount of time.

Use the same materials, the same technique, and clean in the same order every thime you clean your windows. Work from the back of the vehicle and move forward. Clean the outside windows first, as it’s easier to spot streaks on your final look when cleaning on the inside. Always use a non-amonia glass cleaner rated for automotive glass from an auto parts store and a microfiber cleaning towel (also available from auto parts stores). Spray your cleaner on the center of the glass and use a piece of 0000 steel wool to lightly burnish the window (outside windows only; optionally on interior windows but NEVER on tinted windows on the interior). The steel wool does a superb job of removing bugs, sap, fallout, and other embedded contaminants that don’t get removed with cleaner and a towel.

Lower the windows 3 inches. Clean up the grime that collects in the upper 1 inch with steel wool and glass cleaner. Roll up the windows. Go about cleaning the interior windows with two microfiber towels. Spray the center of the window with cleaner, then use towel 1 to wipe away the cleaner. As the cleaner is evaporating, use towel 2 (dry towel) to polish away any streaks. You may have to repeat this process several times until you inspect and find no streaks.

For water spots, use 0000 steel wool and vinegar as your first step, then clean with glass cleaner and rags to absorb the vinegar, then clean with window cleaner and a clean microfiber as your last step.

Perform this process every 6 weeks (takes about 15 minutes if you have no water spots) and your windows will be flawless even in direct sunlight all the time.

-Ace Car Reconditioning

Something shocking has occurred in Oregon lately.  Our solar system’s power plant, the star at its center, our Sun, has been making appearances in our sky.

Get your sunglasses, thongs, and sunscreen out.  And while your at it, why not UV protect yourself in your car where you spend over an hour a day!

Window tinting is not for the vain.  There are practical reasons to get your windows tinted:

1. Safety. The contents of your car are less visible to thieves.  At night, there’s almost invisible, so if there is a prowler around he will almost certainly skip your car.
2. Skin Protection. It’s amazing that people will put on skin block for a 15 min. walk, but none for a 1 hour drive!  Tint your windows to add 99.5% UV protection and you are creating a virtual UV bubble around yourself when driving.
3. Prevent Damage to Your Car’s Interior. In the sun, dashboards shrink, crack, and discolor.  Leather hardens and discolors.  A $200 - $250 investment in window tinting will keep your car’s interior fresh for years.  You’ll get  more than your investment back when you sell your car in such great condition.
4. Driving Safety. Glare from all directions is a major distraction on sunny days.  With tinted windows, you drive with fewer distractions and drive safely.

Although it may seem teenagers and movie stars are attracted to tinted windows, a handful of practical car owners know that the real benefits are not vain, but very very practical.

At Ace Car Reconditioning in Beaverton, we use top quality SunTek film with a lifetime guarantee enforced at all SunTek installer shops nationwide (if you move out of Portland, there will be a shop to provide you warranty service in your new city).  Your tint job is guaranteed to be finished on time, at a competitive price, and be free of all bubbles, wrinkles, and other flaws.

Do you have minor bumper damage?  Maybe a scrape on one corner.  Maybe a scrape on booth corners.  A small crack or split?  Impressions from others’ license plates while parking downtown?

This is the sort of repair that we specialize in.  Most body shops will talk you into replacing your bumper at an average cost of $800.  But the bumper doesn’t need replacing…most of it is in fine condition.

We have been “spot repairing” bumpers for car dealers for years (they don’t fall for the “you must replace your bumper” routine) and some well-informed private owners as well.

We simply repair and repaint the area that was damaged.  No need to replace the whole bumper, paint the whole bumper, clear the whole bumper, etc.

The repairs go quickly (usually done in 7 hours), are affordable (some repairs for as little as $175!), and permanent (no peeling, hazing, or discoloration).  We use a computer to perfectly match your paint and our clearcoats are top-quality UV resistant PPG clears.

Some examples of our bumper repairs:

If you have a leather-equipped car with 50,000+ miles, it’s very likely that your driver’s seat bolster is wearing thin and losing its color.

This can be fixed quickly and permanently!

The process:

1. Clean repair area.
2. Scuff with 600 grit sandpaper.
3. Use photospectrometer to get a matching color formula.
4. Mix a water-based leather dye according to formula.
5. Apply leather dye with HVLP atomizer.

The repaired area is dry within 15 minutes and ready to use.

Process takes about 1 hour, and you can expect the new dye to last as long as your original dye (50,000+ miles).

Photos of a recent repair on an Infiniti convertible:

Sooner or later you will spill a large amount of food in your car and feel like an idiot.

If you act quickly though, you can clean the food and the odor 100% as if it never happened.

Here’s how:

1. Vacuum up as much solid food as possible as soon as possible.

2.  Spray the area with a fabric/carpet cleaner (Folex, Lifter, Spot Shot are all fine) then scrub with a stiff carpet brush.

3.  Push a rag into the food spill area to transfer remaining food, sauce, liquid, etc. into the rag.

4.  Check your rag for color transfer.  Stop when you get no more color transfer.

5.  You have not removed 100% of the food material and what remains (bacteria) can cause odor and stains.  Spray a live enzyme product (we suggest Just Rite from justrite.com but your local pet supply store has a lot of live enzyme products) onto the affected area.  Do not wipe the area after spraying live enzyme. The enzyme is a live substance that must do its job (break down bacteria) then die.  Just let the affected area air dry naturally over a day or tow.

This is the method we have used successfully at Ace Car Reconditioning, your detail and body shop in Beaverton Oregon, for years, and you should do the same after a major food spill.

Just remember to act quickly before odor forming bacteria can form and stains can develop in your fabric and carpet.

This is one of the most common questions we get.

Here’s how we match paint:

1. Find your paint code. On most cars, it’s on your passenger door.
2. Enter paint code into computer. The computer will tell us what % of blue, silver, silver flake, yellow, black…any color in our paint bank (there are 85+ total base colors).
3. Then we carefully weigh out the paint in the percentages indicated by the formula. If we’re mixing a pint, then we add yellow, blue, black, silver, etc. ounce by ounce as indicated on our digital scale.
4. Stir it up!
5. Spray a test panel and hold it up to the car. Be sure to examine the test panel in natural (outdoor) light! Look from the left, from the right, look down, look directly.
6. Usually we “nail” it on the first mix, but a car’s paint might vary according to which factory it was painted in, when it was painted, how long it has been exposed to the sun…many variables.
7. So if the paint match is anything but perfect, we “tint” it then respray test panels until we have that perfect match.

And car manufacturers (Toyota, BMW, Audi, etc.) don’t make paint. There’s about 6 major manufacturers of paint in the world. The manufacturers use any of these 6 manufacturers from year to year, depending on who they can get the best deal from.

We use PPG, but any skilled painter can get a perfect paint match regardless of the brand of paint he’s mixing.

Need paint or body work in Beaverton, Portland, Hillsboro, or Tigard? Send the photos over to Ace Car Reconditioning at info@acecars.net and we’ll send you back a quick estimate.

Do some research before choosing your shop. It may take an hour or two, but can save you $100s if not $100s.

Ask for recommendations, get price quotes, visit and inspect the shop, and find out what your insurance company will and will not cover.

Get an agreement on labor rate, parts, and supplies. Estimates are free. Stipulate that you must approve all repairs in excess of the original estimate.

Ask specifically if you are receiving manufacturer’s original parts, remanufactured parts (not made by your car’s maker) or salvage parts (parts taken from used or wrecked cars). Do no hesitate to use remanufactured or salvaged parts. If installed correctly, they are indistinguishable from original parts and will save you big money.

Inspect the facility. It should be neat and clean. Consider the service you receive from the managers. Management who take their customers and business seriously care about their reputation and deliver good work on time.

Recommendations are the best way to choose a shop, ultimately. Ask friends and family and read online reviews.

Ever been burned?  Still have the scars?  The Internet now gives you power to:

1.  Avoid unethical businesses.
2.  Warn the public about unethical businesses.
3.  Provide incentives to businesses you work with to treat you well.

Angies list is a online business review directory that does one thing very differently from Yahoo, Google, Citysearch, etc.:  It charges its members to join and verifies the identity of reviewers!  It’s a fantastic resource for auto body repair service, auto service, auto detailing, home contractors, dentists, attorneys, carpet cleaners, home cleaners…any service business!  Their directory has a lot more value than “free” directories because as you know the reviews in free directories are often faked by the business owner him/herself.

Membership fees vary, but are usually around $40 per year.  Considering that the average person spends $2000+ maintaining their homes and vehicles a year, $40 is a fantastic investment to ensure that you get great service for your money.

Wheel damage is everywhere:  scuffed lips, “curbed” faces, peeling paint, etc.

Most people are not aware that most of this damage can be fixed, and simply live with it.

We can do some minor repairs for as little as $100 if you give us more than 1 damaged wheel.  We refinish the wheels just like they are done at the factory:  sand out damage, fill, prime, basecoat, clear entire wheel.  Our repairs cannot be distinguished from new!  With replacement costing as much as $400 a wheel, and shipping taking weeks, the option to repair makes a lot of sense from a lot of perspectives.

Wheel Repair Before

Wheel Repair After

Most car accidents are very minor. Rubbing your bumper against a curb is considered a car accident. Small accidents like this leave the owner in a conundrum because they create scenarios like:

Damage = $725
Deductable = $500

Options:

• Pay $725 cash to the shop and avoid an insurance claim.
• Pay $500 to the shop and have insurance cover the extra $225.

If the damage is within 20% of your deductable, I strongly discourage you from reporting to your insurance company.   In the above scenario, you’d certainly save $225 in the short run, but your insurance company is sure to raise your rates and recover that $225 (and more) in the years to come. Quite possibly, the $225 could cost you $3000+ over your life.

Please consider Ace Car Reconditioning for auto body repair in Hillsboro and Beaverton.

There’s a wide range of prices among body shops, but at a quick glance, their work looks the same.  Why pay 100% more for a quality service when a budget service (MAACO) is just 10% worse looking than the top of the line companies?

Here’s five reasons:

• Body filler often falls off the car because it’s layered on too thick or the metal surfaces were not prepared properly.  By the way, it takes the primer, paint, and clearcoat with it.
• Primer shrinkage.  Bad primer can take months to cure.  It might look find when you pick up the car, but over a period of  4-8 weeks, it can shrink and wrinkle your paint.
• Color mismatch.  Cheap repair requires cheap color match.  Most budget shops make no guarantee of color match.  What you see is what you get.
• Inferior parts.  These might look fine from 10 feet, but take a look and the gaps between panels are inconsistent.
• Clearcoat failure.  Economy clears, clears that are applied too thin, and clears that were applied after the appropriate application window will eventually fade, peel, or chip away.

None of these things may bother you as the owner, but when it’s time to sell, the new owner will deduct these problems from his or her offer.  So the benefit of using the budget repair service is eventually lost when the car is sold!

We have added welding equipment and a frame adjusting machine and are now accepting larger and more complicated jobs including:

1. Quarter panel repair and replacement.
2. Frame adjustment.
3. Complete repaints.
4. Repair of “salvage”-level damage.
5. Classic car restoration.

As always, you’ll get:

• Quality, like-new repairs.
• Rates that beat the big name shops.
• Accurate time and cost estimates that we stick to.
• Rental car assistance.

Don’t run to the dealership yet.

The paint you get from your dealership has two major problems:

1. The applicator (brush) is too large and places large blobs of paint on your car.
2. OEM touchup paint has low pigment count and is often transparent. This is particularly true of light metallic colors.

There are companies that mix a small amount of custom touch up paint for your car and sell you a system that allows you to clean, prime, paint, and clear minor paint damage.

I recommend http://www.autovisuals.com. They’ve been doing this for a while and have a lot of happpy customers. Order from them, and get a result significantly better than using your dealership’s paint.

There are several areas on vehicles that I notice get overlooked by professional and amateur detailers alike. Attention to these easily missed items can really elevate the quality of your work and the impression it makes on customers.

Trunk pulls. This is the area above the trunk latch. It’s out of sight when the trunk is shut, but when opened, it’s fully exposed. Be sure to clean this during the wash, and if residue remains after the wash, clean it out with a detailer’s brush and an all purpose cleaner. No need to buff/polish/wax this spot…just be sure it’s clean when exposed.

Beneath door handles. This area gets scratched by fingernails and is viewed every time the owner opens his/her door. The light scratching can quickly be removed with rubbing compound, and gives the impression of a more thorough car detailing.

Turn signals. Turn signals, through frequent use (tens–even hundreds–of thousands of clicks) accumulate skin and dirt deposits. Simply wipe clean with an all purpose cleaner (diluted Simple Green is fine) and clean cracks and gaps with a toothbrush. The customer will certainly notice when touching a freshly cleaned turn signal.

Underside of rear hatches. SUVs, minivans, and station wagons with hatches have interior panels that often accumulate pet hair, scuffs, and dirt. It’s easy to overlook this area. Look up! Your customer will. Wimply wipe clean with a clean towel and all purpose cleaner.

Shift console When cleaning below the shifter, be sure to shift it into park and reverse to reveal and clean the mechanism you don’t see when the car is parked. About half of all detailers seem to miss this. It gets immediately noticed when the owner starts his/her freshly detailed car, and shifts it into reverse and drive.

Consoles that can be disassembled Many center consoles contain ashtrays and cup holders that can be disassembled and removed. You will find coffee, dirt, and debris in these spots. Disassemble everything that can be disassembled and clean it from above and below. You can count on many customers to check these areas.

Between seats. Crumbs, dirt, and pet hair collect here. Your customer cannot access this area with his/her vacuum. Blast out dirt with an air compressor from these areas, and vacuum it up where it settles. If there are food/beverage spills, wet with all purpose cleaner, scrub with a long handle toothbrush, then blast clean with compressed air. If dirt and spills are excessive, remove the seat, clean, and reinstal the seat.

We now reupholster seats, benches, headliners, and carpets in vehicles and boats.

Have a look at a recent repair of an F150. Its bench had seam failure and the headliner had delaminated and begun to sag.

The headliner was removed, its wrap removed, and a new one applied.

The bench was removed, its cover removed, and a new one applied.

Pictures:

These repairs are permanent and performed with top quality materials. Email info@acecars.net with photos of your auto and boat upholstery needs and we’ll reply with a repair estimate within 12 hours.

Portland Car Detailing - More free videos are here

A full detail, step by step:

• Secure customer’s personals (loose change, sunglasses, pens, notepads, etc.) in Zip Loc bags and set aside.
• Pre-treat door jambs, wheel wells, trunk jambs, frame rails, and grill with mild degreaser/cleaner.
• Pressure wash all door jambs, wheel wells, trunk jambs, frame rails, grill, window seals, door seals, emblems, key holes, door handles, gas filler area.
• Wash car by hand with clean microfiber wash mitt and mild car wash detergent. Scrub license plates clean with appropriate brushes and cleaners.
• Hand clean wheels with industrial strength wheel cleaner and assorted brushes and degreasers. Pressure wash wheels and wheel well with 1500 psi of water.
• Remove large deposits of road tar, bugs, and tree sap using multiple applications of Stoner’s Tarminator. In some cases, lacquer thinner must be used to remove exceptionally embedded contaminants.
• Hand dry vehicle with damp chamois towel. Door seals, window seals, trim pieces, trunk jambs, emblems, and external mirrors must be “blasted” dry with 90 psi of compressed air.
• Polish and wax all painted surfaces with Cyclo polisher, mild compounding/polishing foam pad, and high gloss Klear Kote Vanilla Hand Wax. Minor surface scratches are removed, paint achieves a reflection superior to new condition, and the embedded wax provides approximately 6 - 12 weeks of protection from dust, water spotting, and UV fade if vehicle is washed every 10-14 days.
• Dress tires and wheel wells with high-silicone rubber/plastic dressing.
• Remove floor mats from interior. Blow clean with 90 psi of compressed air. Scrub dry soil with carpet brush and vacuum clean. Spray generous amount of high-foaming carpet shampoo. Scrub with heated steam to bring embedded dirt to surface. Inject high temperature water into carpet followed immediately with high suction steam from carpet shampooer. Allow floor mats to air dry for 1 hour.
• Using compressed air gun (90 psi), “blast” dust from vents, console, dash, under seats, between seats, upholstery seams, in crevices and hard to reach places, between seat cushions, into map pockets, into cockpit switches and controls, steering wheel gaps, trim pieces…anywhere fingers cannot clean. Vacuum out resulting dust and dirt.
• Clean headliner stains with Desiderio vapor steamer. View videos of the Desiderio vapor steamer in use here.
• Clean upper trim parts (upper seat belt anchors, plastic pillar facades) with appropriate cleaners and degreasers.
• Clean leather seats and head rests with appropriate brushes and clenaers. Be sure to clean deep in seams, creases, along piping, and in map pockets. Apply leather conditioner when dry.
• Apply high foaming upholstery shampoo to cloth seats. Scrub into a foam. Extract clean with vapor steam and vacuum suction. Clean all surfaces in trunk area. Remove spot stains as necessary from trunk liner. Lift trunk liner and vacuum/clean spare tire. Push seats forward to vacuum crease where rear seats meet trunk. Wipe clean trunk jambs and decklid.
• Clean lower trim parts (door sills, lower seat sections, foot wells, door panels, map pockets, ash trays, door handles, door pulls, windows switches with appropriate cleaners and degreasers.
• Scrub clutch, brake, and gas pedals clean with appropriate cleaners and degreasers.
• Apply high foaming carpet shampoo to all carpeted surfaces. Scrub with pressure to create foam. Extract clean with vapor steam and vacuum suction.
• Clean exterior and interior glass using Cobra Glass-Specific Microfiber towels and Stoner’s Invisible Glass glass cleaner. Repeat 2-3 times to remove all hazing and streaks. Remove glue, tree sap, and stickers when necessary using lubricated razor and adhesive remover.
• Return customer’s personal items to car.
• Inspect vehicle for errors. Return keys to customer. Allow inspection of vehicle by customer. If work is acceptable, present with receipt and accept payment (cash, check, Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Discover).

Visit our website at http://www.acecars.net for more information.

Thanks for reviewing Portland car detailing.

Have a look at our newly created and uploaded bumper repair video:

Portland Bumper Repair - Watch more funny videos here

At Ace Car Reconditioning in Portland, we specialize in 8 hour bumper repairs. Scuffs, cuts, splits, chips…even full replacements can be completed in 8 hours or less for 30% to 50% less than body shop prices. Consider rapid bumper repair for your car: a convenient, quick, and affordable alternative to conventional auto body repair.

With an average cost of $200-$300, one has to consider the long-term value of auto detailing. Won’t the wax wash away after a few washes? Won’t those freshly shampooed carpets be trampled on soon after the service? The seats, cup holders, map pockets…all will get dirty again.

Are the improvements of a full detail simply temporary? They’re not. Here’s 4 reasons why.

1. Prevention and repair of paint failure. Have you seen a red car that turned pink? A black car that turned gray? Even worse…a relatively young (6-10 years old) car with paint that’s peeling away? Regular waxing can prevent these conditions. Applied once a season (twice in the summer), the UV protection of wax prevents the fading of paint pigments and delaminating of paint materials. Most neglected paints (excluding peeling paint) can be repaired with a combination of buffing, polishing, and waxing. Consider this oxidized Mercedes 300E:

2. Stain removal. Grease, food, dairy, coffee, soda, glue, paint…all the things you transport in your car can potentially stain interior surfaces. Detailers are equipped with chemicals and machinery to remove MOST stains: battery acid, gasoline, and certain food dyes (if left untreated for too long) require replacement of carpets and/or seating surfaces. The water rings and beverage stains in this SUV’s rear seat were removed with a commercial strength steamer. Consistent (every 6 - 12 months) detailing will remove interior stains before they become set and permanent.

3. Prevention and removal of brake dust staining. Brake dust buildup–if not treated–can become permanent. Many cars 5+ years old (BMWs are particularly sensitive to brake dusting) have permanent brake dust staining that cannot be removed. Pro detailers use a combination of industrial-strength cleaners, brushes, and pressure washing to remove heavily caked on brake dust from your vehicle’s wheels.

4. Water Spot Removal. Water spots on paint and glass surfaces are common and very difficult for the do-it-yourselfer to remove. Professional car detailers use a combination of compounds, chemicals, buffing, and polishing to permanently remove water spotting.

Thus, it’s clear that a professional car detailer can make permanent improvements to your vehicle that maintain its like-new appearance during your ownership and preserve its value when it’s time to sell or trade it in. In fact, one could expect a large % of their investment in detailing to be returned to them when their car is sold. View 40+ photos and even a video of our work at Ace Car Reconditioning here.

While it’s true that a do-it-yourselfer can clean a car with items in a common garage, there are issues that require professional equipment and experience. I’ll list some:

1. Carpet and upholstery stains. A combination of a pressure washer, carpet shampooer, steamer, and stain treatment chemicals can remove protein, ink, food, coffee, soda…even urine stains. Crisp, clean looking seats and carpets are essential to good auto detailing. A wet/dry vacuum and over-the-counter carpet/upholstery shampoo simply don’t treat all these issues.

2.Paint overspray, scratches, oxidation, and swirling. The waxes and polishes available to do-it-yourselfers these days are excellent at preserving healthy paint. But if the previously listed problems develop, a combination of claybar removal, wetsanding, buffing, polishing, and waxing–applied with a high speed rotary buffer and orbital polisher–are the only means of restoring the health of your paint.

3.”Nooks and crannies.” These are areas that are simply not accessible with common tools. They include: under seats, between seats, in vents, in seams, around buttons, in crevices, around weather seals, and even in screws and bolts. A combination of specialized chemicals, brushes and compressed air allow auto detail shops to clean items like dirty knobs, vents, seals, and screws as well as access areas between and under seats to ensure a thorough cleaning of a vehicle.

We’ve made an equipment investment of over $30,000 at Ace Car Reconditioning in Beaverton to ensure that if it can be cleaned in a car detail, it WILL be cleaned in your vehicle. Please consider us for your car detailing needs in the Portland, OR area. Vist Portland Auto Detailing to view 50+ photos and a video.