We do a growing number of electric cars in Glastonbury, and there is a lot of confident nonsense written about detailing them.
Most of the job is identical. Paint is paint, glass is glass, carpet is carpet. But four things genuinely differ, and one of them is a safety rule rather than a preference.
1. Far less brake dust, and it changes the wheels
Regenerative braking means the friction brakes do much less work. On an EV driven normally, the pads may barely be used in ordinary traffic.
The wheels are correspondingly cleaner, and the hot embedded iron that plagues a conventional car is largely absent. That is a genuine advantage.
It has a flip side worth knowing: brake discs that are rarely used develop surface rust, particularly on a car that sits. That is usually cosmetic and scrubs off with a few firm stops, but it looks alarming through an open wheel and it is worth recognising rather than worrying about.
2. Considerably more tyre wear residue
EVs are heavy and they deliver torque instantly. Both increase tyre wear, and worn rubber goes somewhere — as fine black residue on the lower rear quarters and inside the arches.
It is greasier than ordinary road film and it needs a proper decontamination rather than a wash. Included in our exterior detail at $145.
3. No engine bay, but there is a frunk
There is no hot, oily engine bay to clean, which removes one job. What replaces it is a front boot that people use for wet and dirty items precisely because it seems disposable — and which is usually carpeted and sealed, so anything spilled in there stays.
Check yours. It is the single most neglected space on an electric car.
4. Charging cables live in the car
A charging cable that has been dragged across a wet, salted car park and then coiled into the boot puts road grime, and in winter chloride, directly into the interior. A cable bag solves it entirely and almost nobody has one.
The safety rule
We do not pressure-wash directly into charge ports, high-voltage connectors, or the battery enclosure seams, and neither should anyone else.
These are designed to be weather-sealed and are perfectly safe in rain and standing water. That is a different thing from a concentrated jet at close range against a seal, which can force water past it. The consequences of getting that wrong are expensive rather than dangerous, but there is no good reason to find out.
So the underbody flush on an EV is done with awareness of what is underneath — which on most electric cars is a flat battery pack covering nearly the whole floor, with its own sealed edges. Salt still collects around the suspension and the sills and still needs removing; it is done thoughtfully rather than blindly.
What we do not claim
EVs do not need special paint products. The clear coat is the same material as on any other car, and anybody selling you an EV-specific coating is selling you a normal coating with a sticker on it.
Same prices, same services, one price whatever you drive: full detail $275, interior $175, exterior $145.