How much does it cost to polish a car?

How much does it cost to polish a car?
Sep
05
2022

If you are thinking of having your car professionally machine polished in the UK, you might be confused about the pricing.

The question to this very much depends on what you are trying to achieve and how much you are willing to spend. It can be a complicated question, but we will try to unravel it with some examples.

scuffs and swirl marks in car paint
Scuffs and wash marks like these can make a car look very old and shabby; however, they are not too deep and machine polishing them will reduce them significantly or remove them completely.
Buffer trails
These strange lines are buffer trails, otherwise known as holograms. These come as a result of listening to your mate who knows somebody who can do it at half the price. Machine polishing cars takes a high degree of skill and experience.

The TL;DR

We have a range of services and may be asked to polish a car for several different reasons, but regardless of why, we aim to earn garage rates, which at the time of writing is about £78 per hour.

What this works out at is about £100 per pass with a machine polisher. On an average size car in reasonable condition, we can work wonders with two passes of the buffer. However, we need to prepare the car first (washing in detail, clay, etc) and there is no point in polishing a car and then not protecting it with at least a coat of wax, so the total might cost around £300... on an average car in reasonable condition.

However... If you are reading this and thinking of getting your car polished, there is a good chance it's because you don't have an average size car in average condition. There is a good chance you bought a large-ish executive car like a BMW or Mercedes, or maybe you bought that Porsche or Jaguar you always wanted. There is also a fair chance it is looking worse for wear with a lot of wash marks and a few deep scratches.

cheapest way to get a new car
We'd love to chat to you about making your car like new again. Why not give us a call?

If this is the case, you might want a four-stage polish. You may also need special paintwork correction on some areas. As polishing a car can reveal problems like door dents, you might also allow for some minor repairs into the price. This would put your spend at nearer £500-£800.

And now your car looks amazing and new again, you will want to keep it looking that way, so we will definitely try to talk you into a ceramic coating

It does add up. However, when you compare it to the cost of buying a new car, it makes a lot of sense to restore your old car, or buy a used car and make it like new.

Practical Polishing vs Boutique Car Care

We aren't going to lie, business in the UK has been hard on our industry since 2008, and many detailers have specialized in what might be called 'boutique services', catering to the very wealthy and to enthusiasts who are willing to spend lots of money on their cars to get them picture perfect. They may spend days polishing a car, they may even begin by flatting and polishing the entire car to remove the factory orange peel, so it is smooth as glass. Needless to say, this is very expensive and unless you are showing your car at events, or an Instagram star, it's not really a worthwhile endeavour. 

We wouldn't describe ourselves at the other end of the spectrum, but we aim our services towards the average motorist, so whether you have a Kia, a Volkswagen, or an Aston-Martin, and wish your car looked like it did when it left the showroom, this is the article for you.

A polished and restored Porsche
Some cars are worth hanging on to. Over the years, we have polished very many older sports cars. 

Expectations

Unlike the boutique car care companies, we don't chase perfection. This is very time consuming and costly, and considering most cars don't leave the factory perfect (If you look hard enough) it is an almost impossible goal. And even if we gave you a perfect finish, perfection is very difficult to maintain. 

What you can expect is a massive improvement on what you already have at a reasonable price. 

Just a scratch

You don't need to have the whole car polished. You might not need to have the whole car polished. If you have just one issue that's driving you mad, a scratch on a door or bird mess stain on the roof, then we can deal with just that issue using our paintwork correction service. Prices for this range from £30 for a small area to £110 for polishing a bonnet or roof. 

The caveat here is that not everything can be polished out. If the damage is too deep in the paint, then repair-and-repaint is the only option for a repair. The best thing to do is to video the damage and send it to us on WhatsApp, and we will get back to you with an answer. Alternatively, if you are nearby, pop in and show us.

Polishing new cars

You might be surprised to hear that we polish a lot of brand-new cars. They don't polish them at the factory any more, and I doubt anyone but Rolls-Royce has done that since the 1950s. Your new car has been sprayed by a robot, the paint went on raw and rough (on a microscopic scale) and polishing them will actually make the paintwork shinier. It's a noticeable difference.

However, that's not why we do it. Car Paint Protection Coatings make a lot of sense, they keep the paintwork looking new and make it easier to clean. We need to thoroughly prepare the car's paintwork before we can apply these semi-permanent coatings.

Although we advocate that anyone get a ceramic coating, the best time to do it is when the car is new, so you can seal in the goodness from the beginning. It's also considerably cheaper to polish the car when new, protect the paintwork, rather than waiting till the car is five years old and having to restore it.

To polish a new car and put a 3-year ceramic coating on it would cost £580 for a small car, £905 for a large executive sized car or small 4x4.

Polishing cars to sell them

One of the most common reasons people bring their cars to us for polishing, is that they are selling it, and they want to give it a 'tidy up' so that they get more money for it. We can, of course, do this, and we will take a view on the car with this in mind. You don't want to spend a lot of money polishing up a car for somebody else, so we will strike a balance so that you can get a quick sale and get more money, without spending more than they'll get back.

We should caution you, it's at this point that a reasonable number of our customers change their mind and decide to keep their car. It's worth asking yourself why you are buying a new car, and would you keep the one you have if it looked as good as new?

Polished Jaguar Saloon
The car you always wanted might not be a new car, but that doesn't mean it can't look like it just left the showroom.

Complete Restoration

On the other extreme of things, you might want an older car restored to its former glory. We have restored a few cars that have been very neglected, but more often it's a 10-25 year old car which is just showing its age.

There's usually going to be more to this than just polishing the paintwork. There's likely to be areas that need repainting, dents removed, wheels that need refurbishment, and very often, leather upholstery repaired and recoloured.

We call this Modern Car Restoration. Rather than strip the whole car down, respray, rebuild the engine and replace lots of parts, as you would on a classic car restoration, with modern cars, the engine and running gear is often very solid, and it's just cosmetic damage and signs of wear and tear which need to be dealt with.

Although the costs can add up, it is often worth it for older but desirable cars, especially as projects like this don't have to be done all in one go. As for the polishing part, it is often desirable to keep the original paintwork, and the cost of polishing is far cheaper than a complete respray.

Costs for this kind of polishing work vary greatly depending on the condition of the car, but are generally between £500-£800

This is the kind of work we love to do!

We'd love to hear from you.  Get in touch, request a call back.

Get a free quote WhatsApp!

...or send us a video of your car.

Danny Argent

by
technical writer, education and training.

This blog has been tagged in

#ModernCarRestoration #CarPolishing

Share this blog

Related Blogs

Here are some more of our latest #ModernCarRestoration blogs

The Smart Way to Get a New Car Without the New Car Price

The Smart Way to Get a New Car Without the New Car Price
Aug
27
2024

We all know the allure of a shiny new car. The smell, the pristine interior, the flawless paintwork—it’s enough to make anyone consider trading in their current car.

Read Article

How to make a car shine like glass

How to make a car shine like glass
Feb
10
2024

Ever wondered how you get a really shiny car? There are plenty of products on the market which promise a glossy wet look, but the real secret to a mirror finish is polishing.

Read Article

Wet Sanding

Wet Sanding
Feb
27
2023

Wet Sanding is the method we use to remove light scratches and blemishes, evening out the paint so it can then be machine polished.

Read Article

Rolls-Royce Modern Car Restoration 2008

Rolls-Royce Modern Car Restoration  2008
Feb
21
2023

As our fame spread to the four corners of the globe, this car came to us all the way from Majorca for our modern car restoration services.

Read Article

Porsche Detailing / Restoration 2005-2019

Porsche Detailing / Restoration 2005-2019
Jul
22
2020

This Porsche Carrera came to us for Modern Car Restoration, it had some rust on the rear end and required some quite serious bodywork. But that's not what's interesting about this Porsche!

Read Article

Aston-Martin Vantage Modern Car Restoration

Aston-Martin Vantage Modern Car Restoration
Jul
19
2020

A behind the scenes look at the kind of work we do at New Again in Modern Car Restoration. This car has been sitting in storage for five years and is in need of some attention.

Read Article

How is sports car restoration beneficial?

How is sports car restoration beneficial?
Aug
02
2019

If you are looking for a company specialising in sports car restoration Chelmsford has the perfect option. New Again has been excelling in this area and various others for years. We have some of the most impressive facilities and the best people to ensure ...

Read Article

A word of caution about wear

A word of caution about wear
Jul
15
2019

It's true that New Again can repair all kinds of minor damage and wear, putting it right and making a car look much fresher and newer. But did you ever stop to think what the wear on a car tells you?

Read Article

New Again

Can We Help You?

"We can offer specialist advice on the best car service to suit your requirements"

When bringing your car to New Again, we often ask you to explain exactly the reason for having your car Protected, Valeted or Repaired. Once we understand exactly what it is you are trying to achieve, we will appraise your vehicle using our detailed appraisal check-sheet allowing us to identify areas of concern and tailor specific services that match your requirements and budget.

If you are not sure what service you need and would like to speak to one of our technicians, simply request a callback by filling in the form on our contact page.