Automotive refinish technician vs mechanical detailer

The differences between automotive refinish technicians and mechanical detailers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 2-4 years to become an automotive refinish technician, becoming a mechanical detailer takes usually requires 1-2 years. Additionally, a mechanical detailer has an average salary of $41,030, which is higher than the $40,513 average annual salary of an automotive refinish technician.

The top three skills for an automotive refinish technician include R, PPG and dealership procedures. The most important skills for a mechanical detailer are customer vehicles, CAD, and solidworks.

Automotive refinish technician vs mechanical detailer overview

	Automotive Refinish Technician	Mechanical Detailer
Yearly salary	$40,513	$41,030
Hourly rate	$19.48	$19.73
Growth rate	2%	1%
Number of jobs	66,119	24,721
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 40%	High School Diploma, 40%
Average age	42	40
Years of experience	4	2

Automotive refinish technician vs mechanical detailer salary

Automotive refinish technicians and mechanical detailers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Automotive Refinish Technician	Mechanical Detailer
Average salary	$40,513	$41,030
Salary range	Between $27,000 And $58,000	Between $30,000 And $55,000
Highest paying City	-	-
Highest paying state	-	-
Best paying company	-	-
Best paying industry	-	-

Differences between automotive refinish technician and mechanical detailer education

There are a few differences between an automotive refinish technician and a mechanical detailer in terms of educational background:

	Automotive Refinish Technician	Mechanical Detailer
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 40%	High School Diploma, 40%
Most common major	Automotive Technology	Drafting And Design
Most common college	-	-

Automotive refinish technician vs mechanical detailer demographics

Here are the differences between automotive refinish technicians' and mechanical detailers' demographics:

	Automotive Refinish Technician	Mechanical Detailer
Average age	42	40
Gender ratio	Male, 98.0% Female, 2.0%	Male, 91.7% Female, 8.3%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 11.1% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 22.5% Asian, 3.3% White, 58.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%	Black or African American, 10.0% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 18.7% Asian, 5.1% White, 61.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8%
LGBT Percentage	4%	2%

Differences between automotive refinish technician and mechanical detailer duties and responsibilities

Automotive refinish technician example responsibilities.

Inspect cars, service and repairs specializing in BMW repairs, manage shop, price and order parts, customer service
Implement PLC programming and troubleshooting procedures while also initiating and executing process improvements and conducting parts research when necessary.
Disassemble components and repair or replace damage parts of engine, transmission, a/c and various other assemblies.

Mechanical detailer example responsibilities.

Manage document collation for field distribution of MEP plans to shop and field.
Heat treat of metal.operate CNC lathes, CNC mills, CNC grinders.
Do mostly foreign and domestic cars, SUV and commercial diesel truck.
Maintain equipment, rebuild spindles, install motors, gearboxes, perform preventative maintenance.
Provide professional automobile detailing services with a variety of cleaning techniques and products to ensure the desired level of superior cleanliness.
Operate and troubleshoot production line machinery and computers.

Automotive refinish technician vs mechanical detailer skills

Common automotive refinish technician skills

R, 38%
PPG, 17%
Dealership Procedures, 15%
Painting Process, 15%
Coats, 15%

Common mechanical detailer skills

Customer Vehicles, 18%
CAD, 17%
Solidworks, 13%
Shop Drawings, 12%
HVAC, 9%
Plumbing, 8%

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Automotive Refinish Technician
Automotive Refinish Technician vs Mechanical Detailer

Updated January 8, 2025

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