Frequently Asked Questions
Why Absolute Perfection Auto Detailing?
We take pride in our work here at Absolute Perfection Auto Detailing and strive to provide quality work and professional customer service.
We have a passion for auto detailing and continually research ways to provide your vehicle with the best care possible. While other shops look to get vehicles in and out quickly, we look to provide a quality job each and every time.
Is This A Mobile Service?
No. All work is performed by appointment in the Absolute Perfection shop. This enables a more controlled environment in order to produce the best results possible.
101 Industry Court
Goldsboro, NC 27530
Located in Goldsboro, on the corner of William St and Industry Ct. The same road the UPS Warehouse is located.
What Is Detailing?
In a nutshell, auto detailing is a thorough cleaning of a vehicle. Unlike a traditional car wash, care is taken to safely clean your vehicle and extra time is taken to ensure that the entire vehicle looks its best.
Here at Absolute Perfection Auto Detailing, we strive for excellence. Even in our most basic detail packages, time is taken to safely hand wash the paint with quality micro fiber mitts, no damaging scrub brushes on the paint, no harsh chemicals on the paint, and soap that does not strip the protective layer of wax or sealant that is on the paint.
Wheel wells are degreased, tires scrubbed, boars hair brushes are used to properly clean all the crevices on the face of the wheels, and special brushes are used to clean the hard to reach barrels (the inside part) of the wheel.
Door jams are wiped, the interior is given a quick wipe down and vacuum, and the windows are cleaned inside and out.UV protection (dressing) is applied to the dash and dressing is applied to the tires in a way that doesn’t sling once the vehicle is driven.
Compressed air is used to blow as much water out of the cracks, jams, lug nuts, etc to minimize water runoff when driving the vehicle after the detail. A spray wax specially designed for being used as a drying aid is applied by soft microfiber towels to safely dry the vehicle while leaving behind protection and adding gloss to the paint.
And this is only our most basic detail package! Our full detail packages feature a thorough cleaning of the interior and exterior. The paint is washed, clayed, and a quality paint sealant is applied. The interior receives a full steaming to clean out cup holders, nooks and crannies, etc.
Another aspect of auto detailing is machine polishing. This is known as paint correction. Through machine polishing with dual action polishers, clean micro fiber or foam pads, and abrasive compounds and finishing polishes defects such as swirls, water spots, and light scratches are removed and the paint is perfected before applying a coat of wax, sealant, or nano coating.
Without the proper knowledge, machines, and experience, one can cause more issues on the paint as seen in the before section of the hood pictured here. The after side was when we machine compounded and polished the hood to remove the defects left by another detailer.
What Are Some Common Issues In Paint?
Pictured above are two issues on the paint.
The first, on the spoiler, is known as clear coat failure. This is the result of the damaging effect of UV rays from the sun. A lot of people think that once they see this on their vehicle, that it is time to get their vehicle waxed. Truth is, if a vehicle was on a maintenance program with a detailer to have the vehicle waxed every 3-4 months, this clear coat failure may have been prevented. Once a vehicle’s clear coat starts to show signs of failure, the only remedy is a visit to a paint booth to be repainted.
Waxing a vehicle is the process of applying a layer of wax to the paint to provide a temporary barrier against the elements to help protect the clear coat over the vehicle’s life. Some folks believe that waxing a vehicle is removing defects or I have even heard of some that believe that it removes some of the clear coat. This is not the case. There are waxes called cleaner waxes, which help clean the paint, but defects such as water spots, oxidation, swirls, and scratches require compounding and polishing, which in fact actually removes or level out a small amount of the clear coat leaving behind a smooth, shiny, reflective surface that is ready for wax to be applied to.
Today, standard wax is typically not used very much anymore by detailers. Instead synthetic waxes, known as paint sealants are used. Paint sealants have longer durability for protecting your paint’s surface and typically last 3-4 months versus 3-4 weeks with a traditional wax.
Also available today instead of waxes are ceramic coatings. The coating we use at Absolute Perfection Auto Detailing is C.Quartz FINEST. This coating’s durability is measured in years instead of months.
Remember, thinking that it is time to wax your vehicle once the surface has defects in it, is like going to the beach, getting a sunburn, and then applying sun screen to the burn hoping to fix the burn. Care of your vehicle needs to be often and regular.
Quarterly Full Details every year with us is a great way to protect your vehicles surface, helping it maintain value along with refreshing the interior.
The second issue in this picture above is the lines on the trunk lid. The lines are able to be seen in direct sunlight (as in this picture) or in correct lighting. These are known as holograms and are cause when a detailer or body shop uses a high speed rotary polisher as their last step of polishing. Where these machines are great for removing defects in the paint, an additional final polishing step via a dual action polisher should be completed to remove these hologram marks, leaving the paint perfect. The lines are caused by the heat and friction of either the wool or foam pad being used on the rotary polisher. A lot of “old school” detailers use these machines as their final step, leaving behind these holograms, and then trying to temporarily hide them with glaze. At Absolute Perfection Auto Detailing we go through ALL the steps from start to finish getting your vehicle looking great.
What is the difference between carnauba wax and a paint sealant (i.e. synthetic wax)?
Carnauba, also called Brazil wax and palm wax, is a wax of the leaves of the palm, Copernicia prunifera, a plant native to and grown only in the northeastern Brazilian states of Piauí, Ceará, and Rio Grande do Norte. It is known as “queen of waxes” and usually comes in the form of hard yellow-brown flakes. Carnauba wax tends to give a deeper and wetter appearance to painted surfaces. Due to it being an organic product, it can last from 3 weeks to 6 weeks before needing a new application.
Synthetic waxes are man made sealants that are more durable than carnauba wax. Synthetic waxes tend to give off a more reflective glow on painted surfaces. Synthetic waxes can last 3 months to 6 months in most cases.
Sealants serve the same purpose as wax, in that they both shine and protect the surface.
However, sealants are more effective than waxes. Because waxes reside on the surface as a coating, that coating is susceptible to quicker wear and eventual destruction by harmful and abrasive elements. The sun beats away at the wax coating, rain pounds it with various microscopic particulates, and even the wind can push abrasives across the wax surface.
Sealants on the other hand, penetrate the pores as opposed to just the surface. This trait helps a polymer protect the surface from the damaging elements longer.
Absolute Perfection used a paint sealant when “waxing” a vehicle.
What Is Clay Bar?
Clay bars thoroughly remove virtually any type of contamination that may be on top of your vehicle’s paint, glass, metal and plastic surfaces. These contaminates include airborne pollutants, such as brake dust, paint overspray, industrial fallout, and rail dust which all can adhere to your vehicle, and also safely removes stubborn sap, tar, and bug remains. Claying does not remove scratches, waterspots, and swirls from the paint. This would require machine compounding and polishing. Claying allows wax & sealant to bond and adhere much better to your vehicle. If you feel any sort of grit or bumps on your vehicle, it will benefit greatly from a claying service. Any time a vehicle is brought in to Absolute Perfection Auto Detailing for a full detail or an exterior wash and wax, the paint surface is clayed to properly prep the paint so that the paint sealant will bond correctly.
Why Wash With 2 Buckets?
At Absolute Perfection Auto Detailing, all vehicles’ paint are washed with using a two bucket method. A third bucket is used for the rims and tires.
When washing the actual paint, one of the two buckets contains the soap water, the second contains plain rinse water. Each time we are ready to reload the wash mitt with soapy water, we dip it in the clean water first, to rinse out the grit and contamination we just removed from the vehicle.
In addition, we insert a Grit Guard into each of the buckets. The Grit Guard has a radial grid surface that scrapes dirt out of the mitt. Four quadrants at the base of the Grit Guard calm the wash water and hold the grid above the bottom of the bucket. Dirt falls to the bottom and stays there.