How Detailing Your Car Can Help Increase The Resale Value

Feb 17

Used Car Value Determinations

According to Kelley Blue Book (KBB), two primary factors affect a used car's price. They are mileage and the vehicle's condition inside and out.

Mileage:

Mileage affects the amount of wear and tear a vehicle goes through. Less driving usually means fewer repairs that may need to be done on your vehicle. Engine and transmission components do have specific mileage recommendations. Thus, once a driver has driven over the recommended mileage mark, problems can occur. Transmission lines can start to leak, and other components fail. Repairs are often expensive and the last thing a car owner wants to deal with.

It's not always possible or practical to keep mileage down. We all need our vehicles to get to work, run errands, drive our kids back and forth from school, after-school programs, events, and not to mention the long drives to visit family and friends during the holidays or vacations. As a result, our cars may accumulate thousands of miles, substantially reducing our car value.

Vehicle Condition:

Let’s review the five vehicle condition categories that affect the asking price of a vehicle.

Outstanding: Vehicles that have no visible wear. The interior, exterior, and engine show no signs of damage or repair. The paint shines and is free of damage. The engine is also clean, along with a spotless interior.
Clean: This category refers to automobiles that need limited repair, primarily cosmetic issues. The paint might have a scratch or a mud stain on the carpet. The tires may also have a low tread.
Average: Under this category, cars need considerable work before hitting the market. The paint may be dull and scratched, or the interior needs reupholstering.
Rough: This category is for vehicles that need significant work, both inside and out. New paint on the outside is usually needed, along with several interior parts.
Damaged: If your car falls under this category, your car may need major exterior and interior damage repair. These vehicles are usually considered unsafe to drive until repairs are made.

Based on these categories, it is important to properly maintain your vehicle in good condition and repair, if you are planning on reselling it at a fair market value. Therefore, using the services of an experienced detailer to keep your car in the best possible condition can help you retain the value of your car.

What Can Reduce the Value of a Car?

The following factors may reduce the value of your vehicle:

Vehicle's age: The older a vehicle is, the less it is usually worth. Vintage and collector models are exempt from this factor.
Mileage: Extremely high mileage can indicate potential wear and tear on the engine and transmission.
Condition: Any signs of damage on the inside or exterior lowers the value of your vehicle. The condition of the engine and other components also affects its selling price.
Sale Location: Where you're selling your vehicle also matters. For example, you will have a hard time selling a full-size pickup truck in New York City. The narrow streets and lack of parking make the vehicle impractical for most residents.

As you can see, a lot goes into the resale value of a car, but you can certainly help increase its value by having your car detailed.

How Detailing Improve a Car’s Value

Auto detailing is generally known as any work that improves the appearance of a vehicle. It primarily focuses on improving an automobile's aesthetics, including car hand-washing, paint correction, paint protection, wheel repairs, window repair or replacement, and any other work to keep the overall appearance in the best possible condition.

Detailing your vehicle is more than hand-washing it with soap and water in your driveway or using the home vacuum to clean the interior. It will get rid of surface dirt and grime, but the paint won't sparkle, and the interior isn't spotless.

Having your used car detailed before the resale of a vehicle does increase its overall value. As mentioned above, your vehicle's condition is one of the top factors considered when determining its fair market value. Here are a few ways a detailing shop like Auto Cosmetics can help you improve your car's appearance.

Paint Correction

Paint chips and scratches do detract from the overall value of your car. It's worth the investment when it comes to resale value.

A paint correction doesn't mean that you get to choose a new car paint color because the vehicle is not being repainted. Instead, what paint correction does is remove any cosmetic imperfections on your car's paint by eliminating swirl marks, deep marring, and other paint scratches.

We have previously addressed the paint correction process in detail, and we invite you to read it to learn the basics of this delicate treatment.

Car Surfaces Protection

While professional paint correction is an excellent way to restore the appearance of your car's paint, if the paint is not protected, it will remain exposed to environmental contaminants and hazards. Fortunately, there is new technology available in the detailing industry to keep the surfaces of your car (paint, wheels & caliper) protected and looking great.

Applying a professional, high-quality ceramic coating is the best option to protect your car's surfaces. Ceramic coating is made from a clear polymer that bonds with your vehicle's surface at a molecular level. This bond means that the ceramic coating will last for years. Ceramic coating guards against scratches, chemical etching, extreme heat, UV light, and corrosion. Ceramic coating even makes your vehicle hydrophobic, which means that water will bead off of your vehicle.

Having a professional detailer install a ceramic coating on your car can be a great investment.

Wheel Repairs

Your vehicle's wheels get scratched from road debris, or while making a tight turn, you strike the curb. Wheel scratches can also drop the car's resale value substantially. To prevent the decrease in your car's value, you can pay a professional technician to repair your scratched wheels and make them look new again.

Hand Washing Your Car

A hand car wash is the least expensive way to keep your vehicle looking great on the outside. However, keep in mind that most cities have ordinances restricting car owners from washing their cars in their driveways due to water contamination concerns.

Nevertheless, suppose no restrictions are in place, and you decide to wash your car. In that case, you want to make sure you use a soft cloth or microfiber towel to avoid scratching your car's paint. Also, the products you use should be high-quality to get good results. Dish soap can fade the vehicle's paint.

If you are not up to the task, you can hire a professional detailer to hand-wash your vehicle and make it look great.

How Automatic Car Washes Can Damage Your Car

Hand washing a car is a painstaking task. For this reason, many of us must depend on local car wash services to keep our vehicles clean. Automatic car washes are an easy and cheap way to keep your car clean. Pop some quarters into the machine, and you can relax while the automated system does the work.

However, there is a downside to this convenient way to wash your car. Over time, the experience of a conveyor, automatic, or tunnel car wash can do more harm than good. Conveyor car wash services continually punish paints and clear coats with stiff polyester brushes and harsh solvents. If you use these services on a routine basis, the damage may be irreversible.

How Can Automated Car Washes Damage Your Car?

Automatic car washes that are not properly maintained can inflict damage upon customers' vehicles, including breaking off car antennas, side mirrors, and chrome; damage windshields, roof racks, and grills; squirt oil on cars, and scratch the car finishes.
No matter if the car wash has upgraded to cloth brushes, grit and dirt remain embedded into the equipment; as your vehicle runs on the conveyor, embedded debris may scrape the surface of your vehicle.
Abrasions may reach the base metal if the debris is large enough. Clear coats become weakened and allow water to bleed directly into the metal. Not only does the water get to the base metal, but moisture also becomes trapped by the clear coat resulting in rust. Salt and acid from bird droppings, if left uncleaned, can lead to substantial damage.
Car owners have noticed deep swirl marks in the finish of their vehicle. The problems may be caused by incorrectly aligned cloth brushes slapping against the car's clear coat. Dirt and grime create thousands of deep micro-lacerations, damaging the paint. Another cause of the swirl marks may be attendants using an abrasive drying cloth.
Poorly maintained businesses are easy to spot. These types of services are usually dirty with trash inside and out of the facility. Here, brushes may be inadequately maintained with dirt and grime from the previous cleaning.

These are just a few ways an automatic car wash may inflict damage to your car. Therefore, if you love your car, avoid these enterprises if there are better choices available. One tiny piece of grit can cause plenty of surface abrasion, and eventually, your car's paint becomes dull and lifeless. Not to mention the powerful chemicals and extreme water pressure are substantially more abrasive than hand washing.

Tips to use at a Car Wash.

Avoid any conveyor car wash that uses polyester brushes. Cloth brushes are better, but if not kept clean, this equipment leaves scratches.
If the vehicle ahead of you is muddy or extremely dirty, avoid and move on.
Always check the BBB for accusations, especially automatic car washes.
Make certain the cloths used by attendants on your vehicle are soft, clean, and dirt-free.
Inspect your vehicle thoroughly before going through a conveyor car wash. Take photos if necessary.

Key Takeaways

Keeping your car maintained inside and out is a smart choice for any car owner. If you must use an automatic car wash service, be smart about this alternative. Do not assume these businesses will fix the damage to your vehicle. Consider the Cost! Even small dents on a new car can cost hundreds of dollars to fix.

A professional detailing service should be your first and only choice for maintaining your car in good condition and repair.

Kelli Petersen