Joe Farro, the proprietor of Inside Out Car Care recently opened a shop in West Ocean City.

By Cindy Hoffman, Staff Writer

(Aug. 17, 2023) The sea air can be hard on a vehicle around here, so proactive maintenance is important to keep it in top shape.

 Joe Farro, who has a car detailing business, Inside Out Car Care in Salisbury, is well aware of that, and so has just opened a second site in West Ocean City, at 12472 Sea Oaks Lane, unit 8, just off Stephen Decatur Highway.

Farro said the paint used on cars has changed. When the EPA took lead out of paint, it made the paint softer.

“Nowadays, you have to protect your paint, because it just doesn’t last the way it used to,” Farro said.

Farro’s staff is certified in paint correction and ceramic coating. He said his team stays up to date on the newest products available to help vehicle paint last longer.

He recommends vehicle owners who want to keep their car body looking nice to consider getting a ceramic coat on their cars.

Farro admitted that he was hesitant to get into ceramic coating at first, as he was worried it might be the next snake oil business, but he has been doing it for six years now and it works.

“Ceramic coatings are made to be a sacrificial layer over the painted surface of your vehicle. The coating is designed to take the brunt of whatever is impacting it, preserving the paint underneath, but it’s not bulletproof,” Farro said.

“The ceramic coating will make it easier to clean and the slick surface will keep it clean for longer. Bugs and dirt don’t hold to the surface as easily, so it will make your paintwork a lot shinier.”

Farro said the ceramic coating is a two-day process.

“This gives me the time to do any correction of the paint. Some cars are dull or you see spider webs in the paint, we have to take those out first.”

He said the prep and correction process he and his team do before adhering the ceramic coating is the most important step.

Farro cautions people who have paint protection plans from the dealership. He said the warranty can only be used once, so he said if you have a five year warranty, don’t address the issues with the paint right away, wait until closer to the end of the warranty, so the dealer has to address all of the issues.

Farro offers different types of ceramic coating at Inside Out Car Care, with one- three- and five-year warranties.

If there are any issues with the paint during this time, Farro said to bring it back and he will take care of it.

“I stand behind it,” Farro said.

He also encourages his customers to come in for a free annual inspection of the ceramic coating.  If there are any issues, he will do a rejuvenation of the ceramic coating at no charge.

This can be done during an annual detailing of the interior of the car, another maintenance need for many people, especially those who hit the beaches regularly.

Farro also does headlight restoration.

He said headlights used to be made out of glass, but now they are made of plastic, which becomes cloudy over time.

“With daylight running lights, the heat from the lights is on the plastic 24/7, which accelerates the oxygenation process of the plastic.

“There is no way to prevent it, it is going to happen.”

Farro uses a five-step wet sanding process to take off the top cloudy layer of the plastic.  Then it is polished back to clear.

Inside Out Car Care is insurance industry-approved for water and mold restoration. Its Salisbury shop just won the best award from “Coastal Style” for Wicomico. He expects to do the same at his Ocean City shop next year. https://waxthatcar.com/