By Stephen Weight
As any car dealer knows, the key to getting the best price for a car is to make it appealing as possible. Most car dealers will not even attempt to do this preparation themselves, but will employ the services of a professional car valeter. A car valeter working for a dealer will spend between 6 to 20 hours transforming the car into showroom condition.
If you still are not convinced, look in the pages of any car price guide. The difference between a car in poor condition and one in good condition is at least a few hundred pounds and in many cases can be thousands of pounds.
Obviously the ideal choice would be to use the services of a valeter. Expect to pay between £50 to £150 for a full interior and exterior valet if no paintwork correction is required. Expect to pay an additional £50 to £150 for paintwork correction.
The first thing to do is to wash and rinse off the outside of the car. If possible do this with a jetwash in order to ensure that any grit laying on the car is rinsed off, rather than spread around causing minor scratches. You then need to inspect the car to assess the paintwork condition. If you see lots of minor scratches, or panels that have lost their depth of shine, you should consider having the paintwork corrected.
Paintwork correction involves using a machine polisher to cut away the very top layer of paint in order to get to the good paint below it. Using an aggressive compound, you would expect to remove between 2-5 microns of paint. A human hair is around 50 microns. We would recommend leaving machine polishing to the experts as it is very easy for an inexperienced operator to remove too much paint or burn through the paint. The only fix for a panel that has been burnt through is to have the entire panel resprayed.
Once you are satisfied with the paintwork, its time to turn your attention to the interior. Start by removing all mats, the parcel shelf, the boot carpet, spare wheel etc. Then thoroughly Vacuum the car.
Starting with the Headlining, use appropriate cleaning products to clean down every inch of the interior. Pay specific attention to any nooks and crannies. Most car accessory shops sell a range of brushes that are designed to assist with cleaning the tightest of spots. It is attention to detail such as this that turn an average looking car into a car that will wow any potential purchaser.
Finish the car off with a good quality polish, followed by a coat of wax.
Your car will not only have increased in value considerably, but will also be far more appealing to potential purchasers resulting in it selling faster.
As any car dealer knows, the key to getting the best price for a car is to make it appealing as possible. Most car dealers will not even attempt to do this preparation themselves, but will employ the services of a professional car valeter. A car valeter working for a dealer will spend between 6 to 20 hours transforming the car into showroom condition.
If you still are not convinced, look in the pages of any car price guide. The difference between a car in poor condition and one in good condition is at least a few hundred pounds and in many cases can be thousands of pounds.
Obviously the ideal choice would be to use the services of a valeter. Expect to pay between £50 to £150 for a full interior and exterior valet if no paintwork correction is required. Expect to pay an additional £50 to £150 for paintwork correction.
The first thing to do is to wash and rinse off the outside of the car. If possible do this with a jetwash in order to ensure that any grit laying on the car is rinsed off, rather than spread around causing minor scratches. You then need to inspect the car to assess the paintwork condition. If you see lots of minor scratches, or panels that have lost their depth of shine, you should consider having the paintwork corrected.
Paintwork correction involves using a machine polisher to cut away the very top layer of paint in order to get to the good paint below it. Using an aggressive compound, you would expect to remove between 2-5 microns of paint. A human hair is around 50 microns. We would recommend leaving machine polishing to the experts as it is very easy for an inexperienced operator to remove too much paint or burn through the paint. The only fix for a panel that has been burnt through is to have the entire panel resprayed.
Once you are satisfied with the paintwork, its time to turn your attention to the interior. Start by removing all mats, the parcel shelf, the boot carpet, spare wheel etc. Then thoroughly Vacuum the car.
Starting with the Headlining, use appropriate cleaning products to clean down every inch of the interior. Pay specific attention to any nooks and crannies. Most car accessory shops sell a range of brushes that are designed to assist with cleaning the tightest of spots. It is attention to detail such as this that turn an average looking car into a car that will wow any potential purchaser.
Finish the car off with a good quality polish, followed by a coat of wax.
Your car will not only have increased in value considerably, but will also be far more appealing to potential purchasers resulting in it selling faster.
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