Experience the Ultimate Exterior Transformation with SD Select Detailing

At SD Select Detailing, we understand the importance of maintaining your vehicle's exterior to withstand the harsh elements of San Diego's climate. Our Exterior Detailing service goes beyond a regular car wash to provide a deep clean and durable protection, ensuring your car looks its best and maintains its value for years to come. We also offer various machine polishing services or "paint correction" if you are looking to take your car's gloss to the next level.

Deep Clean, Durable Protection

Our Exterior Detailing service is designed to give your vehicle a thorough cleaning and apply long-lasting protection to its exterior surfaces. We take pride in delivering exceptional results that exceed your expectations, leaving your car looking as good as new.

Mobile Exterior Detailing

Our Exterior Detailing Service Includes:

  1. Thorough Washing: We kick off the process with a meticulous hand wash, removing dirt, grime, and contaminants from every inch of your vehicle's exterior surfaces. Our attention to detail ensures a spotless finish that restores your car's brilliance.
  2. Decontamination: San Diego's environment exposes your car's paintwork to various contaminants like pollution, salt, and debris. Our clay bar treatment and iron oxide removal techniques eliminate embedded contaminants, leaving your paint smooth as glass and enhancing its shine.
  3. Wheel and Tire Care: We understand the importance of maintaining your wheels and tires. Our deep cleaning process removes brake dust, road grime, and other residues, while our thick dressing application ensures a long-lasting shine without any sling, giving your wheels a fresh and polished look.
  4. Trim Dressing: Over time, plastic trim components can become tired and faded due to exposure to sunlight and environmental factors. Our acrylic dressing restores their luster and enhances the overall aesthetic appeal of your vehicle, ensuring every detail looks impeccable.

Suitable for All Vehicles

Whether you drive an everyday commuter or a high-end luxury car, our Exterior Detailing service is suitable for all types of vehicles. We use professional-grade products and techniques to ensure your car's exterior is in pristine condition, regardless of its make or model. We give just as much effort and attention to your Honda as we would a Tesla or BMW. From Coronado to Rancho Santa Fe, we have you covered with our mobile auto detailing services.

Wheel Detailing Process - Mercedes

Protect Your Investment for Years to Come

San Diego's climate can be harsh on your vehicle's exterior, with the sun and salt posing significant threats to your paintwork. The average life of clear coat is only 7-9 years unprotected, underscoring the importance of proper protection. Our Exterior Detailing service not only removes contaminants but also provides a layer of durable protection to safeguard your car's paint for years to come, preserving its value and appearance. Exterior detailing can also be an incredible gift for a loved one who might not take as good care of their vehicles, but deserve to keep their car protected.

Give Your Car the Clean It Deserves

Whether you want to refresh your vehicle's appearance, prepare it for a special event, or simply maintain its curb appeal, our Exterior Detailing service has you covered. Trust us to provide the deep clean and durable protection your car deserves, ensuring it looks its best for years to come. Even better than a one time detail is our "maintenance wash memberships" that we offer to customers who have had their vehicles detailed with us in the past.

Contact Us for a Quote

Give your car the clean it deserves and protect your investment for years to come. Contact us today for a quote and experience the transformative benefits of our Exterior Detailing service. At SD Select Detailing, we're committed to delivering excellence in every detail, ensuring your vehicle stands out on the road with its brilliant exterior.

Exterior Detail Porsche Taycan

Other Services

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Keep your aircraft spotless with SD Select's expert plane detailing services in San Diego. Contact us for a custom quote today!

Image Service

Premium yacht detailing in San Diego. We offer exterior cleaning, gel coat polishing, interior care, and more, using top-quality marine products. Mobile service available.

Verified Google Reviews

EXCELLENT SERVICE! Will at San Diego Select Detailing did a full service on my Chevy truck and everything came out awesome! Exterior, Wheels, Interior seat shampoo, dashboard, lights, etc! Amazing service and super cool guy! Would recommend his services to everyone!

Nick Powell

Link to Google Review ↗
These guys brought my Range Rover back to life.  Scratches i didnt think would come out.  Looks great.  Lots of people do 'mobile detailing' which is a glorified car wash.  These guys are on their game w paint correction and scratch removal which is what i needed.  Will definitely use them again.

vito arminio

Link to Google Review ↗
Wow, just wow! I brought my 2008 Ford Escape to Will for an auto detailing, cleaning and full exterior shine and wax and let me tell you my Ford needed some serious TLC. I left the Escape in Will hands and didn't really have any expectation on how well it was going to turn out. Much to my surprise my car looks better than ever! Actually it looks brand new. The interior is back to when I first bought it. It smells fresh and clean and the seats look like they were just taken from the factory. The seats no longer have blemishes or stains, all the dirt and grit is gone from all the nooks and crannies that have built up over time! The outside of the car shines bright! I can't thank Will enough for the tremendous job he did! My warhorse of a vehicle is ready for battle again! Thank you, Will. I'm thrilled about the job you did and would recommend your services to anyone looking to bring life back into their vehicle inside and out! Cheers, keep up the great work!

David Goshgarian

Link to Google Review ↗
Will did an amazing job detailing my car! He meticulously cleaned it inside and out and made it look brand new. He even went above and beyond with cleaning the interior and coating the exterior with a protective sealant. I appreciate him being flexible and professional. This is the best car detail company I’ve dealt with. I highly recommend them!

Phillip Walters

Link to Google Review ↗
I’ve used San Diego Select Car Detailing for the second time, and their service continues to amaze me. They are convenient and flexible in scheduling which I need. They have everything they need, making the process smooth and hassle-free. The work they do is exceptional; my car came out looking showroom-new. Their Full Detail service is a testament to their commitment to quality, with every inch of my car meticulously cleaned and polished.The team’s professionalism and attention to detail really stand out. They treat your car with great care, ensuring the best possible cleaning and protection. It’s clear they take pride in their work, which is reflected in the fantastic results. For anyone in San Diego looking for top-notch car detailing, San Diego Select Car Detailing is my go-to recommendation. The quality of their service has consistently left my car looking its best.

Jonathan Marden

Link to Google Review ↗
Great guys to work with. Got an interior detail and headlight restoration with them first. The results were phenomenal and there are now my go to people for detailing. Just recently got a paint correction due to discoloration on my hood and a fair amount of scratches. I was amazed with how glossy the paint looked. The discoloration is completely gone and the paint seems fully restored. Would recommend them to anyone.

Kobuk Van Houten

Link to Google Review ↗
So stoked to write this review for Will and San Diego Select Detailing! I originally inquired about their Paint Correction service through their website and received a text later the same day with their availability and pricing. Will answered all of my questions and was awesome when it came to coordinating a work space. Before getting started, Will and I walked around the car together and talked about my specific needs and wants. He clearly strives to provide a customized, ultra-professional experience for each of his customers and was great at setting expectations and explaining his process. My car looks incredible and I am so impressed with his artisan-like care and attention to detail. My wife and I couldn’t believe how great the paint looked after a Paint Correction service with Will. Will is very personable, extremely detail oriented and passionate about his work. I would HIGHLY recommend him to anyone looking for a quality Paint Correction or auto detailing service!

Kevin Craig

Link to Google Review ↗
I’ve been using San Diego Select Detailing for a few years now simply because they are AMAZING! My truck looks good as new after every visit.I’m a professional dog trainer, so you can imagine how much dog hair gets accumulated after a while. And of course there will be the occasional potty accident.San Diego Select Detail will not only wash my seats, but they use a treatment to disinfect and get the smell out.There’s no other detail company I can trust to give me the exceptional service I get with San Diego Select.

Carolina Don

Link to Google Review ↗

Frequently Asked Questions

Why Should I Detail My Car?

Perfection & Protection.

Frustrated with everything that the car wash leaves behind?
Does your paint not shine like it used to?
In love with your car and want to preserve your investment for the long term?

That is why we are here. Not only do we leave you with flawless results, but we make sure that your paint, leather, and other materials are protected for years to come. We will treat your car (and you) like one of our own.

Do I need a "Shampoo Treatment"?

The shampoo and hot water extraction is the best possible care for your FABRIC seats.

We will bathe your seats in thick foam shampoo, agitate it with a fabric brush attachment on a drill, and then extract all the grime, dirt, stains and contaminant from the seats with hot water at 210ºF. If your seats need a refresh, this is as good as it gets. Because the service takes 45 minutes on average, and only a small percent of vehicles need it we charge extra for it. Don't worry - its only $50 extra. Totally worth it.

Will My Scratch "Buff Out"?

Do you have any little scrapes and scratches that bother you?

We can handle it.. to an extent. We are polishing experts - so if the scratch isn't too deep, we can get it out. Ever heard of "The Fingernail Test", this is a great way to know if your scratches are fixable. If you feel the scratch will your fingernail and you can feel a groove in the paint, it it probably a little bit too deep ~in the sections where the groove is~

What is a "Clay Bar"?

A clay bar is exactly what it sounds like, a little ball of malleable puddy.

This is used in the decontamination phase of the detail to prepare your paint for protection. Clay Bar Detailing is essential for preparing your vehicle's paint for protection by ensuring it is free of contaminants.

Every exterior detail has 3 phases: 1. Wash 2. Decontaminate 3. Protect. The decontamination stage is responsible for removing from the paint everything that doesn't come off from the wash.

Remember when you bought your car and the paint was smooth to the touch? That is the goal of this stage. Remove all the crusty junk that is stuck to you paint. This way, when we apply sealant (protection) to your paint it will adhere to the paint itself, rather than the junk sitting on the surface. This will give the sealant its longest possible useful life.

Why "Wax" My Car?

For the same reason that you get an oil change. Engines are expensive to replace (8-15K) so we take good care of them. So is your paint - the average paint job costing around $5,000. If you don't protect your paint with some type of ceramic, wax, or sealant, your paint WILL fail.

In San Diego, our biggest enemy is the sun, or the salt if you live near the beach. Next time you are in a big parking lot, look around at the hoods of the vehicles. You will notice around 1/6 vehicles have completely delaminated clear coat.

That means the paint looks like dead skin on the surface and you could peel it off with you fingers. Not pretty. There is a simple solution to ensure your vehicle never ends up like this. Exterior Detailing. Bonus points for a ceramic coating with is the best protection possible.