Great detailer?

[adscab]

Can anyone recommend a kick a$$ detailer in the Santa Monica area? I don't have enough time to get the swirl marks out and do not want to purchase an orbital. TIA.

[Typical Fish]

Wilshire West at Wilshire and Cloverfield. I'll attach an e-mail I sent to my office relating my experience with them...

Hello, all...

I recently used the services of a business right around the corner and thought I would share my experience. My Porsche Carrera had some heavy oxidation on the paint, and in an effort to spruce the old girl up, I took her to Wilshire West Carwash. I was quoted a (what I considered fair) price of $150.00 to high speed polish the paint, in order to remove the oxidation and restore the finish. When I picked up my car, I was literally taken aback by the outstanding job they had performed on the paint; the car looked almost brand new.

Then I noticed that my soft back window on my convertible top had been torn.

I pointed this out to the gentleman who was working (who, incidentally, was not the one I dropped it off to) and he told me that “it must have been this way”. You can imagine where I thought this was going. I was told that my only recourse would be to contact the manager who had taken the car in, and explain the situation to him. Not being very hopeful, I paid for my polish job, and took my car home.

The next day, I contacted the manager and explained my situation. To be frank, I was surprised when he said “Oh yeah, I am sure I would have noticed if it was already like that, bring it in so that we can figure something out”. I did so, and he told me emphatically “Yes, that was our fault, let’s take it over to our bodyman to see what we have to do to get it fixed”. At this point, we both figured that it could be re-sewed without too much trouble. We were stunned to find out that, in order to repair the window, the whole top would have to come off the car, a cost of around $400.00 in labor alone. The easiest thing to do would be to replace the top itself, to the tune of $900.00. The manager’s response at this point was to say; “I can’t authorize that kind of repair, you will have to speak to my superior”.

In all fairness, I fully expected that the best I could hope for them to refund my $150.00 and send me on my way. I contacted Gary Pendleton, the senior manager there, and he told me without hesitation “Hey, it was our fault and I want to make it right; get it fixed and we’ll pay for it. All I can ask you for is that you remember that we treated you fair and that you use and recommend our services in the future”. Again, and in all fairness to Gary and Wilshire West, I was shocked.

Time and time again, in both professional and personal capacities, we are all approached by vendors of goods and services that do little or nothing to earn our respect, let alone our business. My experience with Wilshire West was a refreshing exception to that paradigm, and I hope you will all use them when you need those types of services.

And, in consideration of the numerous internal initiatives being currently discussed, take it as a valuable lesson in how a little goodwill goes a long way in gathering and retaining the bread and butter of any service business; long term repeat customers.

Matt