I brought in my van to get detailed on a Thursday. I needed to get it detailed to sell it; it was a condition of the deposit contract that it was to be detailed by a reputable detailing service.
I found the website for Hilo Diamond Detailing online; they were the only place in Hilo to actually have a website with their packages posted. I was impressed with that. I made an appointment, hoping for the best. They told me to bring it in the morning, which we did at 8:30 AM. Got the van back at almost 6 PM.
I ordered the "flawless" package, which is the highest one that they offer. It sounded pretty comprehensive. Upon receiving the van back after the detailing, I was initially very pleased to see the stains had been removed from the carpets and upholstery. However, since looking more closely at it, it appears that they actually did a pretty half-@$$ job. For instance, there was a lot of off-colored lint stuck all over the seats, which I am going to have to remove myself that wasn't on the seats prior. They only weather-proofed and cleaned the windows on one side of the van. They did no removal of scratches, water spots, or oxidation which was supposed to be part of the package and was one of the specific reasons I brought the van in to get detailed in the first place. I feel the worst thing was they also returned the van in the evening with the interior sopping wet, and had put all the floor mats back in also sopping wet. This I wouldn't have minded if it was earlier in the day and I could have went somewhere to air the van out. But it was evening and I live at an apartment complex so I couldn't let the van dry out. The next day, the smell of "wet dog" was mildly starting to stink up the van, so I had to rush it up to my father's place to dehumidify it immediately, since the buyer has said that she is extremely allergic to mold. I think (and hope) that crisis was averted, but I will see when I show the van to the buyer tomorrow.
My advice to Hilo Diamond Detailing: You should put a dehumidifier in the vehicles after you shampoo the seats and carpets. We live in rainy Hilo and fungi move in quickly on any kind of fuzzy or fabric kinds of surfaces that sit wet...just try leaving wet clothes in the washer overnight and take a whiff the next day. Dehumidifying prior to returning the vehicle would be far more professional and would earn you a better reputation. Also, don't claim you will do something in the ad and then not do it. I had to go buy scratch remover to apply myself since they didn't. One more thing, make sure the guys who do the work on the cars are doing an even job. Now half of the windows have water that beads off and the other half are coated in a blurry film of water when it rains hard. A very blatant "fail" on their part. I tried to call today to see if they could at least clean and weather-proof the other set of windows, but we will see if I get a call back. read more
