Lightning Auto, Boat & RV Detail

Long-​overdue review. Several months ago Paul and his team came out to detail our boat. It’d been in indoor storage for many months and although not filthy it did need some detailed care.
In the 10 years we’ve had the boat my husband has never once been satisfied with a detail job that we paid for. He’s very meticulous and loves his boat and has always found that he has done a better job no matter what price we paid. Also many car detailers don’t understand what’s needed to detail a boat.
Paul and his team did an amazing job, there wasn’t a single thing my husband could fault him for. We were very happy and will use Paul again.

I have been using Lightning Detail for over ten years. I have gone astray a couple times, leered by an Angie’s List or Groupon «deal» or «special». However, the work was never special or a deal. When I want it done right, I call Paul. Paul and his assistants are always professional, they care about the client and vehicle, and at a reasonable price for the time they put into it. People are amazed that my car has 300k miles on it. I tell them, it’s all about the details … by Lightning!

Absolute Terrible Experience!!!
First off, I am a business owner so I fully understand the importance of customer service. Paul however set a new low for my worst experience with a business yet. After initailly not performing the agreed upon service of cleaning water-​spots off of my Sea-​Doos due to ridiculous excuses that included the Sea-​Doos being on the wrong side of the street, it being too hot and that he needed shade, all items that should have been discussed as requirements prior to service. I, giving Paul another shot, wanted to provide Paul with the ideal cleaning environment for this second time around. Therefore, I brought the SeaDoos to my business’s parking lot, roping off a section near our waterspout that also provided shade. After taking the entire morning to give Paul his necessary working environment, the guy never showed. He never called, he never texted, he didn’t even apologize. Just a defensive text after stating my dissapointment in a voicemail. Highly Recommend to Stay Away!!!

Lightning Auto, Boat & Rv Detail did an amazing job on my car. I have been getting details on my car for many years and this is the best detail yet! I used to have my car detailed at another place in Costa Mesa and they doubled their rate and cut their quality in half! I found Lightning Auto, Boat RV Detail on Craigslist. I am extremely satisfied with the work completed and have already scheduled my next detail in 6 months. I highly recommend anyone who needs a quality detail completed to use Lightning Auto, Boat & RV Detail. One major bonus is they will drive to you! This is a major bonus due to my busy life style.

Hope you feel better paul.

I had Paul come out after reading the good reviews on his web site. We discussed the price and job on the phone understanding that the details would be firmed up once he saw my van. He showed up on time and we confirmed the price and the deal which included not doing the fiberglas top of my van as the clear coat was peeling off.
He finished the job in much less time that estimated. He said it was easier than expected. He did give me a break on the price. But there were still stains that I pointed out to him. He said they could not be removed. I have to take the guy at his word. It is a 12 year old van and I didn’t expect to look like new but I am a bit disappointed with the finish. It bothers me that he finished so quickly and didn’t seem interested in giving it a bit of an extra effort to satisfy his customer. It seemed as if he was in a hurry to get out of here.
He did leave a mess behind. I discovered later that he left wax or polish drops all over the roof and roof racks. The white spots on the black racks look really bad. Maybe he would have cleaned it if I had noticed but I wasn’t having work done up there so I didn’t look. It was only weeks later when I climbed up there to load something that I noticed. Also the sidewalk is spotted with the same residue which shows up quite noticeably when wet.
I can’t help being left with the impression that he was in a big hurry for some reason and the quality of his work suffered because of that.

I highly recommend lightning detail. Paul is always on time and has been doing our cars for over 20 years. Paul is a really nice guy too.

I called Paul to get a quote on detailing my Rv, he quoted me a price based on my description of the amount of oxidation on the fiberglass. I scheduled an appointment and he showed up right on time. Paul and his assistant started immediately and worked non stop until completion which was about 5 hours. They did a awesome job and now my 04 Winnebago looks like new, Paul and his assistant where very courteous and professional. I would definitely recommend Paul and will be using him again.

Paul and his crew were here today detailing our car and we couldn’t be happier! I’m not exactly sure what all was done but whatever it was took out the swirl marks and a lot of the smaller scratches. Our 7 year old BLACK car has it’s mirrored finish once again! The interior looks just as amazing, too!
We didn’t have any issues with price as Paul stuck to his original quote. We will definitely use Lightning again!

The first car Paul ever detailed for me happened to be my first love, a jet black 1996 Acura RL. About 6 months after getting it painted I noticed how hard such a color is to maintain. Paul was able to carve up the paint (singe stage urethane) to the point I was turning heads cruising down Beach Blvd & PCH! As if that wasn’t enough he gave me tips on maintaining the shine on my specific type of paint. Through the years he has done 3 more cars for me (why I haven’t written a review before I don’t know) including my new love & each time I ended up a satisfied customer. Paul is really good at what he does & to top it off he (and his crew) are honest/​friendly people. That’s something I can respect no matter what the service being rendered is.

The actual work they performed was very good and there’s no denying that. My only issue was that the price quoted over the phone was way off. That’s ok too, but when a professional is on site and can thoroughly evaluate the scope of the work to be done and is either inaccurate or chooses not to discuss it with the customer and then pressures them for hundreds above estimate– I take issue. I ended up paying $ 100 over the estimate after negotiating down the final price– after the job was done… They did do a Lot of good work, I just should have been given the option to proceed or decline with a price. Sadly, even with the quality of the job done, I will not use them again and they have lost my numerous referrals due to poor business practice. (One neighbor was actually mad after hearing how it went down). I am not mad, but If you use lightening, just get a final price agreed upon BEFORE work begins and you’ll love the outcome.

Paul is epic!!! We have a black boat with some superficial scratches. We used another detailer and we pretty much could’ve done it better, but Paul made it look brand new. He had a better price and a better personality. He has a team that gets the job done fast so you don’t have to wait around and he is super appreciative of business. He even told us what products to use to maintain our boat so we don’t need to get it detailed as soon. We also have white interior seats that look new too. We really could not have asked for a better job… I will never use another detailer again!

There’s no better guy than Paul. He works hard, knows his stuff, and and is not a greedy person. People that leave him a bad review want something for nothing… that’s all. He can detail my cars, planes and boats anytime!

Paul and his team of detail experts have been detailing my RVs for 6+ years. Since our storage yard does not allow on-​site washing or detailing, Paul graciously arranged for me to bring our 5^th wheel to his home. Paul’s work is true quality! Never a swirl mark, always very focused on doing the best possible job. He not only does RVs, but cars, trucks and boats. While his specialty is black or other dark colors, he will make your vehicle or boat look better than new! Paul is a super person to work with and show his appreciation by always performing excellent work.

I found Lightning on Angie’s List (where they’re incredibly highly rated) and was thrilled by the service provided. They came out on a weekend (thereby waiving the transportation fee – we live in Los Angeles) and were right on time at 7 am. We had 2 SUVs to be fully detailed and when they were finished, it was as though I had just picked up the car fro the showroom. They were that clean. Paul is professional, thorough and friendly. Pricey, but worth every penny!

I have hired Paul and his guys for over 7 years to maintain the beauty of our cars and our 35 foot class a rv. I cannot say enough about them. On time, professional, hard (AND I DO MEAN HARD) working, and an attention to detail I wish everyone in every business would have. We have had vehicles washed, washed and waxed by hand, washed and waxed by buffing, and detailed. ALL GOOD. Never once have I had any problems.
I wouldn’t use anyone else. If you could see our rv you would agree wholeheartedly.

I hired Lightning detail to clean a car for me. I was promised many things for the quoted amount. Upon returning home, I found my vehicle not even washed, it was as dirty as when i left. None of the things they agreed to had been done. The owner has made made many threatening and hurtful calls by phone for payment. I encouraged him to return and do the work he was hired for, as I would willingly pay him. He refused, and has threatened to take me to small claims court for the work he did not perform. He stated he likes taking customers to court. I will have to hire another detailer to help with the car.

This is a followup to my previous post. I can’t justify lowering my rating, but I’ll offer a caveat. For most people, they will give you all you could ask for and I recommend them highly. It’s great that they come right to your home or office, since the other top rated detailer (Steve’s Detailing in Costa Mesa, CA) is a bit of a slog from Culver City. However, I need to add that if you are the Classic Car Show, Q-​tip and toothbrush type, you may find them maybe 95 points on the concours judging scale. They did not open the spare tire well and clean it and the spare, and their under hood detailing needed just one more swipe to take off that «film of oil» look. But their buffing left no swirl marks on our dark green BMW, there was no white wax residue in the seams, the glass had none of that haze that’s left by the industrial rags they use at the car wash, and the wheels came out better than I could ever get them, even with some polishing compound and lots of elbow grease. And the effect has lasted well, taking only a swipe with a soft towel to flick off the dust and jacaranda leaves to look great. Now I hate to take it back to our usual car wash.