Interior vs exterior vs full detail.

The interior package is about everything you touch, sit on and breathe. At Jay's, Interior Restoration starts at from $119 $149 and takes about 2 to 4 hours. It includes:

• Deep vacuum and steam.
• Carpet and seat shampoo extraction.
• Leather cleaning and conditioning.
• Glass.
• Trim and console cleaning.

Choose this if the car smells, the seats are stained, kids and pets have been in it, or you simply spend a lot of time in it and notice the grime. It is also the right starting point for most pet hair, smoke and salt problems, each of which has an add-on.

It does not touch the paint. A spotless cabin under a dirty, dull exterior is a mismatch some people are happy with, and some are not.

What interior detailing does not include

It will not repair torn seats, cracked dashboards or burned upholstery. Those are repair jobs. It also does not treat paint, so if your complaint is how the car looks from the driveway, start with the exterior. If the car has a persistent odour, mention it when you request your quote so the right time is allowed.

The exterior package is about the paint, wheels and trim. Exterior Revival starts at from $103 $129 and takes about 1.5 to 3 hours. It includes:

• Hand wash and dry.
• Iron and tar decontamination.
• Clay bar treatment.
• Wheels, tires and trim dressing.

Choose this if the paint feels rough after washing, if you have road tar or rust specks, if the wheels are caked or if the car just looks flat. The clay bar and decontamination steps are what take a car from "washed" to genuinely clean. Our clay bar guide explains why.

It does not include machine polishing or long-term protection. If swirls or dull paint are your main complaint, ask about paint enhancement.

Where the exterior package fits in the year

It is the natural choice in late autumn, before winter, and a good partner to the spring reset if the interior is already in decent shape. It also suits owners who keep a clean cabin as a habit but let the paint slide, which is common on daily commuters in Burlington and Oakville.

The Full Detail starts at from $176 $220 and takes about 3 to 5 hours. It combines the complete interior and the complete exterior, adds sealant protection and finishes with a walk-around with you.

Choose this if the car has not been properly cleaned in a year or more, if it is spring and winter has left both salt and grime, if you are selling or returning a lease, or if you want a clean slate. Because the interior and exterior share a single visit, you also avoid the cost of two separate bookings.

For most people with a daily driver, this is the best value. It resets the whole car and gives the paint a layer of protection to slow the next build-up.

What sealant protection adds

The sealant in The Full Detail gives the paint a protective layer that makes later washing easier and helps resist salt, sap and bird droppings for a time. It is not a ceramic coating, and it does not replace one. If you want long-term, harder protection, a coating needs deeper paint preparation, which is why it is priced and scheduled as its own full-day service. The guide on ceramic coating vs wax vs sealant explains the difference.

Start with what bothers you.

• "It smells." Interior, with the smoke/odour add-on (+$50) if needed.
• "There's pet hair everywhere." Interior, with pet hair (+$40).
• "The carpets are white with salt." Interior, with winter salt (+$40), or a full detail if the paint is salty too.
• "The paint feels gritty or dull." Exterior.
• "I am selling the car." Full detail. See detailing before selling your car.
• "I want long-term paint protection." Ceramic coating, starting at from $399 $499, a full-day service with decontamination and paint enhancement included.
• "I just want it to look good." Full detail.

Remember the size adjustments too: SUV +$30, truck +$40, van or minivan +$50 and exotic +$60. Sedans and coupes are the base price. Each additional vehicle in the same booking is 20% off.

A quick example

Imagine a commuter SUV that has done a winter of 403 driving. The carpets are marked with salt, the paint is gritty and dull, and the cabin smells a little damp. Interior alone fixes the cabin but leaves the car looking tired outside. Exterior alone does the opposite. The Full Detail with the SUV adjustment and the winter salt add-on solves both in a single visit, which is why it is the usual choice in April.

A sensible pattern for a typical Ontario driver is a full detail in spring after winter, an exterior or protection visit in late autumn, and an interior detail in between if the car works hard. How often to detail your car goes into this in detail.

The interior and exterior wear on different clocks. A family minivan may need interior attention three times as often as its paint. A garaged weekend car may be the reverse. There is no point paying for the full package if only one half needs it, and no point doing only the half if the rest is clearly overdue.

Not sure? Send us a couple of photos and tell us the problem. We will recommend the smallest package that actually fixes it. Use the 60-second quote form, and we usually reply the same day. We cover Burlington, Oakville, Milton, Hamilton and more, and the work is done at your location.

Questions to ask before you book

• What is actually included, step by step?
• Is the price tailored to my vehicle and condition?
• Will I do a walk-around at the end and can issues be fixed on the spot?
• What happens if the weather is bad?

At Jay's, the answers are a clear list, a tailored quote, a panel-by-panel walk-around every time, and a free reschedule or a move to a covered spot if the weather turns.