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Breaking down the details – Jonathan’s drive to make cars shine
He drives a bright yellow Ute, is a self-confessed perfectionist, and is bringing the shine back to cars across Perth.
Jonathan Hancock is the man behind AABA Detailing and never ‘tyres’ of polishing, rubbing, buffing, and scrubbing.
He migrated to Australia at the end of 1999 and with the new millennium decided to pursue a new trade.
“I’d been a painter and decorator in England for many years. I saw an advert about car detailing at the start of 2000. Detailing isn’t a commonly used word in England and so I looked into what it meant and I realised car detailing was perfectly suited to me,” he explains.
“I am very fastidious, I will take time to make something look right and I don’t mind hard work. There are quite a few similarities with painting and decorating and car detailing.”
The road to AABA Detailing
Jonathan bought a share in a car detailing franchise business and started polishing and perfecting cars across Perth.
“I was new to the city and it was a great way to get to know the suburbs and meet lots of people. I still have a customer from my very first year in business. I’ve been giving his car a full detail twice yearly for twenty-one years. I’ve seen him get married and have children and now I detail their cars as well,” he explains.
In 2005, he left the franchise and set up his own company AABA Detailing.
“People often ask me why the name AABA? It’s straightforward - in 2005, the internet was in its infancy and so many people used a phone book to look up car detailers so AABA ensured I was at the top of the list.”
Exceptional service – affordable prices
Jonathan offers a range of services to suit different needs and budgets. The most popular is ‘The Full Monty’. People selling their vehicles want it to look immaculate and will have an extensive detail to attract would-be buyers. ‘The Full Monty’ usually takes Jonathan four hours to complete.
Having been in the car detailing business for so long, what are his most memorable moments?
“I usually ask people to clean out any belongings from their car ahead of my arrival. On one occasion, a customer apologised and said she hadn’t had time. She gave me the keys and in the boot, I found hundreds and hundreds of school reports,” he says.
“Another regular customer has two identical Hyundai green cars. Same make, same model. I clean them both at the same time. I’ve never really understood why she has two but they are her pride and joy.”
Always driven to the detail
Jonathan’s work is physically challenging. No two days are the same and each car is different and has varying degrees of mess and dirt.
“Once I was asked to detail a car and as I reversed my Ute into the driveway I could smell lingering smoke. Sure enough, when I opened the door of the car parked in the garage directly behind me, there were cigarette butts and ash everywhere.’’
But Jonathan says it’s these encounters that make his job more enjoyable.
“You can see the difference when a dud of a car is transformed into a stud of car. It’s hugely satisfying when a customer’s face lights up when they see the transformation.”
As you would imagine, Jonathan is a little car-obsessed. If he won the lotto tomorrow he says he’d buy a Bugatti Veyron – a new one - with a cool $5 million price tag. Day-to-day he drives a bright yellow XR6 Ute which he bought when he started the business in 2005.
“My neighbour calls it the big banana, you can certainly see me coming. There were two cars in two different colours on the car showroom floor. One neon orange and one bright yellow. My friend bought the orange and I had the yellow one.’’
Bright yellow? The perfect choice for Jonathan who’s adding sunshine and brightening up the cars of Perth every day.
If you want to book your car in for a detail with Jonathan or one of his team, why not make an online booking today or call him on 0402 148199.