[Nikhilb2008]

So, here’s the second post regarding my experience with Keystone and my Civic. I apologise for the length of the post, but it still doesn’t do justice to the effort put in by Nirmal and his team.

I gave my car to Sai colorium for a full repaint. We went with a super white colour and a scratch resistant clear coat.

The paint was done well enough but the scratch resistant clear coat was extremely hard and difficult to polish. Because it was so much harder than the normal clear coat, the marks caused on the paint during the wet sanding process were not eliminated by the polishing done by Keystone.

They tried multiple times, different techniques, different grades of sandpaper, everything! IT was the equivalent of throwing the kitchen sink at the car, but a lot of swirls and micro scratches remained. Due to their aggressiveness, the paint on a couple of panels got burnt and the panels had to be repainted. Please understand, it was not anyone’s fault. They had to keep trying something to remove the swirls.

Finally, after 10 days of efforts, they managed to deliver the car. It wasnt even close to perfect. The issues I had mainly revolved around the multitude of swirls on the paint. Om various panels. The doors, the roof, the boot lid, the hood, the quaterpanels. The reason I took delivery of the car was because of two reasons:

1. My utmost faith in Sai Colorium and Nirmal.
2. I had seen with my own eyes the substantial efforts Nirmal put into my car trying to remove the wet sanding marks. I knew that my average paint job was not because of lack of effort.

I knew that they would not let me down. And I simply had to have the car back on the day I took it because of certain reasons. And it had spent 5 full weeks in the bodyshop!

I spoke with Sai Colorium a couple of days later and Bharath told me that the approach was wrong of all of them since this was the first car on which they were using the scratch resistant paint. Duh! I wish I had known this beforehand. I would not have tried something so new and so difficult to handle.

Bharath suggested a slightly different approach and mentioned something about foam pad and blah blah blah. I just trusted him and Nirmal.

After a month of using the car, I felt the gloss on the car’s new paint and coating was also missing. It wasnt making me happy. The paint didnt seem to have any depth. I shared this with Nirmal too.

I also noticed that the front bumper’s paint was chipping off. Of course, it was due to sand particles or stones on the road, but this shouldn’t happen! Clearly, the paint hadn’t been applied properly on the bumper. Even below the bumper I could see a lot of drip marks and uneven paint as if people hadn’t paid attention while painting this part.

On 15th February, I left the car again at Sai to fix a couple of things: Repaint the bumper, repaint the right side A Pillar where the painting hadn’t been done properly and try to fix the swirls. Bharath said he would work with Nirmal to fix the swirls.

I got my car back on the 19th of February.

I did notice a substantial improvement on the front bumper and the A pillar. The roof also looked slightly better. Nirmal told me that they tried a different approach to polishing these panels and it seemed to give good results.

Due to lack of time, the rest of the car wasnt polished but just washed and returned to me.

On the 24th of February, Nirmal landed up at my house ready to attack the rest of the car. He tried wet sanding and then polishing it again. It made a difference. I can say I was quite happy with the results. He worked with one of his boys for the whole day and he was physically there at my house the whole day to ensure that there was absolutely no mistake. I am not sure of any owner who would stay at a client’s place for a whole day in the hot sun to ensure this kind of perfection.

On the 25th, he landed up with his full team.






They tried yet another technique which seemed to yield better results than the previous day.

They started around 11:00 am and polished the entire car panel by panel.

The polish they used.





Nirmal himself attacked some of the more difficult panels!







After Nirmal was satisfied with the work, he allowed his boys to do the finishing.




The below set of pictures were taken before applying the coating itself.








After this, Nirmal started applying the coating panel by panel. He even covered the headlights, tail lights and plastic trim.

The difference on the plastic is like night and day. I do hope it lasts for a long time!







The end result:





What I would like to say to summarise is this: There are many detailers and brands out there. They all make extravagant promises and market their products very well. Nirmal does neither. His official pricelist is quite realistic in terms of how long the coating lasts.

Theoretically, it would have been easy for him to tell me in January when I collected the car that this was the best he could do because of the new paint and he cannot do more. And he would be totally justified in closing the matter then and there. I was also reasonable and knew that it is just my luck that this scratch resistant paint can’t be polished to perfect and accepted that even though I’m not getting a perfect finish, at the very least, I’m getting a clear coat that will be more durable.

And that would have been that. I would have still written a good review because I really was grateful to him for the effort he put into my car.

However, what Nirmal has done is over and above the call of duty. He knew that I am not ecstatic or delighted. He somehow resolved to make me absolutely delighted and become a brand ambassador for him.

The two days that he spent at my house dealing with the scratch resistant paint must have been physically and mentally very taxing. It didnt help that summer had truly arrived by then with temps hitting 35 deg C.

He personally polished each panel by hand to ensure maximum gloss, minimum swirls and micro scratches.

He gives an all-new definition to the term “Hands-on Boss”. And you can see his boys respect him because what they can do, he can do better!

I have happily recommended Nirmal to people in the past but after seeing his perfectionism in the past week, I am happy to be his unpaid brand ambassador.

The only note of caution to Nirmal would be to take it slow. Expanding too quickly in such a business where even the minor mistake can be a difference between a delighted customer and an unhappy one is going to be tricky. As long as Nirmal continues to personally supervise the work that happens under his Keystone brand, there shouldn’t be a problem.

In Ajmat’s first post, he had voiced a similar concern. Going by the reviews of Sagar, Keystone’s Franchisee for North and West Bangalore, it seems to me that Nirmal is on the right track. He has found a great partner in Sagar. But for South Bangalore, I wish him the best of luck and hope that he finds someone who can continue the perfect work that Nirmal is famous for.

PS: I have no commercial interest in Keystone, though going by my reviews, it might feel like it! It’s purely out of my gratitude to Nirmal that I’ve explained in excruciating detail the lengths to which Nirmal has gone to keep me, a paying customer, happy. It’s not even like Nirmal and I are close childhood friends or anything. I know him purely through TBHP and we catch up during the TBHP meets. Nirmal understood the craziness going on in my mind with respect to my car and instead of dismissing it like most people do, he respected it and took some superhuman efforts to pamper me. For that, he has my gratitude and respect.

Most people dont understand the minds of enthusiasts like us. It helps that Nirmal is one of us!

[Jaggu]

Originally Posted by Nikhilb2008

So, here’s the second post regarding my experience with Keystone and my Civic. I apologise for the length of the post, but it still doesn’t do justice to the effort put in by Nirmal and his team

Wow that is a transformation indeed, i had seen the earlier pics and this is like mirror.

I have seen Nirmal's work on my bike and i can second each word you have written here. Best is he doesn't try to sell anything, i wanted ceramic he said no!

All the very best and i know an appointment for the endy is still pending

[arao]

Thanks Nikhil for such a detailed feedback. It is all the more valuable coming from a top notch service provider himself.

I am based in South Bangalore. Which location of Nirmal's would you recommend for detailing of my ride - I wash it myself and do not have any major issues with the surface (as far as I can see), but the last time it received some professional attention was at 3M about one year ago.

Originally Posted by Nikhilb2008

The only note of caution to Nirmal would be to take it slow. Expanding too quickly in such a business where even the minor mistake can be a difference between a delighted customer and an unhappy one is going to be tricky. As long as Nirmal continues to personally supervise the work that happens under his Keystone brand, there shouldn’t be a problem.

In Ajmat’s first post, he had voiced a similar concern. Going by the reviews of Sagar, Keystone’s Franchisee for North and West Bangalore, it seems to me that Nirmal is on the right track. He has found a great partner in Sagar. But for South Bangalore, I wish him the best of luck and hope that he finds someone who can continue the perfect work that Nirmal is famous for.

[Nikhilb2008]

Originally Posted by arao

Thanks Nikhil for such a detailed feedback. It is all the more valuable coming from a top notch service provider himself.

I am based in South Bangalore. Which location of Nirmal's would you recommend for detailing of my ride - I wash it myself and do not have any major issues with the surface (as far as I can see), but the last time it received some professional attention was at 3M about one year ago.

Sagar is pretty far.

I would suggest you call Nirmal himself and fix up a time slot. He can come home and detail your car if you have a covered parking with an electrical nearby. A well-lit place is also mandatory. Helps them pick out the problematic areas and rectify them.

Worst case(not really worst, but you get it!), you can go to Sai and the Keystone team will do the job there. I however prefer it to be done at home. I'm a bit anal about my car and dont like to stay away from it for more than absolutely necessary.

[Nikhilb2008]

About a month after the polishing done by Nirmal, this is how the car looks after a wash!

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/bangal...ml#post4171690

[raghav.carfreak]

Used this service and rated a very well deserved 5 stars. Extremely professional, value for money, and stellar work. At the end of the day, you get what you pay for.

I've got reviews from friends and family that you can get your car "washed and polished" from your next door petrol pump for a few 100 bucks, but comparing that would be an insult to the amount of hardwork that Nirmal and his team put into their work and the results speak for themselves.

His 3 boys came in at 10.30am in the morning and left by 6.30.
I wasn't at home so dont have work in progress pics, but my mom was overwhelmed with the final results. I'd definitely recommend his services to anybody who is even a little passionate about maintaining their rides
Was a pleasure to use his services. Can't vouch for anybody else, but you've definitely got a long term returning customer in me!

Keep up the excellent quality of work buddy!

Before



After



Pictures dont do justice to the job. But I'm an extremely happy customer!

Moderator's Note:

Post corrected for typos and grammar. Please use a full stop after each sentence and spaces after paragraphs. Improves the readability for the users. Thanks.

[nikhil_pon]

In Bangalore, between Ultimate Detailerz and Nirmals Keystone which one would you recommend.
Also can you please share the average costs spent for detailing cars performed by Nirmal

[theredliner]

I don't know about the detailing capability of these guys, but they have a long way to go in terms of handling customer communications professionally.

I tried to get my steed detailed from them a few months back, so I sent a mail. Didn't get back any response.
Sent a mail again after a few days to a different id, got back a response.
Called the provided numbers, no answer or not reachable.
Provided my number, got a call back. Was promised a call back, but did not get back any.
Even though I had had enough of it by this time, I decided to contact them back one more time valuing the feedback they get and because it was run by a BHPian.
I never got back a response till now even though I responded back to the same ID which had replied previously.

I guess businesses and their professionalism do deteriorate as they grow.

[theredliner]

I have been meaning to update it here and used to forget whenever I logged in.

Nirmal reached out to me after seeing the above post and apologised for the communication issues. I called him and fixed an appointment for exterior detailing and interior cleaning.

I left the car at Sai Colorium as I don't have a covered parking at my place. The car came out looking great with the swirl marks and other water/salt marks gone. I double checked a couple of times if the windows were rolled up on the way back as they were really that clean. The interiors had a fresh feel.

One small negative about Sai Colorium is that they could do with a bit more attention to detail. The dirt in the wheel bolts and a couple of other spots were not cleaned and I had to point it out and get them cleaned. Nirmal was stuck with some personal emergency and couldn't supervise personally, so I wouldn't pin it on him.

Call it my bad luck, there was an issue with the seat leather during cleaning which Nirmal offered to get it fixed at his own cost, though I politely declined the offer as I plan to get it fixed myself as mishaps do happen. I really appreciate this sense of owning up from his side where as most other centres would have washed their hands off pinning the blame on me.

The worst part of my luck is that it had rained heavily the day I collected the car back and the car was covered with a considerable amount of muck by the time I reached home

The car still shines great whenever I wash and wax it now

[suhaas307]

I've been in touch with Nirmal to get my car detailed and ceramic coated for some time now.

We fixed a date and time (happened to be Ugadi this year - 06/04/2019) and there was no hesitance from him or his team in undertaking the task on a holiday.

The Keystone team arrived promptly at 10:30 am and began working on my car. One major USP of engaging Keystone for their services is their willingness to carry out the work at home.

After a gruelling 10 hours, the car was detailed and the ceramic coat was applied. Despite being short staffed, Keystone did a thorough job and I must say I'm quite pleased with the results.

The swirls are gone, and the car looks minty fresh

The next day was a Team BHP quick meet, and as usual, Viddy being Viddy spotted something off about the bonnet, but Nirmal was at the scene later in the day (Sunday) after I'd raised this issue, and was quick to inspect it. As it turns out, it was just a layer of dust accumulated on the bonnet.

I would rate Keystone 5 Stars and would also recommend them without a doubt.

Oh, and did I mention that I had received a set of microfiber towels (via Dunzo) along with these pictures:

[sumathindra]

Originally Posted by suhaas307

After a gruelling 10 hours, the car was detailed and the ceramic coat was applied. Despite being short staffed, Keystone did a thorough job and I must say I'm quite pleased with the results.

That certainly looks neat! How much did it cost you and do they do a water less wash as well? Do they ensure minor scratches are also removed or addressed?

[suhaas307]

Originally Posted by sumathindra

That certainly looks neat! How much did it cost you and do they do a water less wash as well? Do they ensure minor scratches are also removed or addressed?

Not sure if they do waterless wash, but if I recall correctly, it was done the first time I had sought their services 4 years ago. So I think they would do it, yes.

Also, regarding commercials I request you to speak to them and get a quote.

And yes, the car looks very clean and all swirls have disappeared. However, if the scratch is too deep there's not much anyone can do about that.

[androdev]

Crossposting in case it is useful to other members. Keystone folks did a great job replacing the inner door handles on our BMW F10 520D. More details here:

https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/techn...ml#post5032539 (Sticky interior door handles in older BMWs)

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