Automotive software development
Automotive software for dealerships, shops, and service teams that fills the schedule.
Get a free quote
Tell us about your automotive project. We reply within two hours.
The challenge
Shops and dealers lose bookings and repeat business to clunky scheduling and disconnected service and inventory systems.
We build booking, service, inventory, and customer software for dealerships and auto shops, so you keep bays full, parts tracked, and customers coming back.
Who this automotive software development page is for
This page is for independent repair shops with several bays or locations, dealer groups, tire and glass chains, fleet maintenance providers, detailing and wrap businesses, and parts distributors in Canada. If your shop management system cannot take an online booking, your reminders are manual, or your parts inventory management software disagrees with the shelf, this is the work we do.
Systems automotive businesses already run, and what we connect to
Custom software rarely starts from nothing. These are the systems we usually find in place, and the integration approach we take with each.
- Dealer management systems (DMS) and shop management software, connected where the vendor offers an API or export
- Parts catalogues and supplier ordering portals
- Vehicle data services for VIN decoding and service schedules
- Payment processors and financing providers
- Accounting platforms for invoicing and parts costing
- SMS and email tools for reminders and estimates
Build, buy or connect: what usually makes sense in automotive
We recommend off-the-shelf software whenever it fits. Custom development earns its cost only where the row says so.
| Need | Off-the-shelf | Custom build |
|---|---|---|
| Shop management and invoicing | Buy. Established shop systems handle labour guides and invoicing well. | Build the customer-facing and multi-location layers around it. |
| Online booking with bay and technician capacity | Vendor booking widgets are often basic. | Build when booking must respect bay types, technician skills, parts lead times and several locations. |
| Customer app: history, reminders, estimates, approvals | Some DMS vendors offer generic apps. | Build when you want your brand, your reminder rules and digital estimate approval with photos. |
| Parts inventory across locations | Single-location inventory is covered by most shop systems. | Build when you transfer between branches, run a warehouse, or sell parts online. |
What a first release usually includes
We scope a first release that a real team can use within weeks, then add phases. For automotive projects that first release typically contains:
- Online booking that checks real capacity per location and service type
- Automated reminders for maintenance intervals, recalls and unfinished quotes
- Digital estimates with photos and one-tap customer approval
- Work-order status visible to the customer
- Sync of customers and invoices with your shop system
What drives the cost
We do not publish prices because these drivers change the number more than anything else. Your quote is fixed-scope and written after discovery.
- Whether your DMS or shop system has a usable API
- Number of locations and how different their services and capacity are
- Parts inventory scope: single shelf versus multi-branch with transfers
- Digital estimate and payment flows
- Native mobile app versus mobile web
- Fleet customer portals with vehicle lists and approval rules
Timelines for automotive software, and what moves them
Ranges below are typical for the scope described on this page. They are not a promise for your project; the right-hand column is what makes a project land at the short or long end.
| Phase | Typical range | What moves it |
|---|---|---|
| Discovery and system access | 1 to 3 weeks | DMS vendor cooperation |
| First release (booking, reminders, estimates) | 8 to 12 weeks | Location count and integration depth |
| Parts inventory or fleet portal | 6 to 10 weeks | Branch count and pricing rules |
Privacy and compliance in Canada
- Customer and vehicle data (VINs tied to a person, plates, service history) is personal information under PIPEDA or provincial laws, including Quebec Law 25 for Quebec shops.
- Reminder texts and emails must follow CASL: consent, sender identification and unsubscribe.
- Motor vehicle dealers and repair shops are regulated provincially, with rules on estimates, invoices and advertising. Software should produce the records those rules require. Confirm with counsel and your regulator.
- Card data stays with the payment processor.
This is general information, not legal advice. Laws and regulator guidance change; confirm your obligations with counsel and your regulator before launch.
Common mistakes we help you avoid
- Online booking that does not check capacity, so the shop overbooks and calls to reschedule
- Reminder rules based on calendar dates only, ignoring mileage and service history
- Building a full shop management system when the DMS only needed a booking and reminder layer
- Parts counts kept in two places
Illustrative example
Illustrative example, not a client story: a three-location tire and service chain takes bookings by phone and sends no reminders. A custom booking site checks bay and technician capacity per location, writes the appointment to the shop system, and sends reminders by text. Digital estimates with photos replace the callback for approval. Later, a parts view shows stock at each branch and allows transfers.
Automotive software we build
How we build automotive software
A simple, transparent process from first call to long after launch.
Free quote & plan
Tell us your idea. We reply within two hours with a clear, fixed-scope quote and a plan, at no cost and no obligation.
Design & build
A senior team designs and builds your product in focused phases, with regular updates so you always know where things stand.
Launch & grow
We launch, hand over code you own, and stay on to improve it as your business grows. We are in it for the long term.
Common automotive software questions
Can you integrate with our dealer management system?
It depends on the vendor. Some offer APIs or certified integration programs, some only exports. We confirm what your DMS allows during discovery and tell you plainly what is possible.
Do you build automotive apps for customers?
Yes. Booking, reminders, service history, digital estimates and approvals, and payments. We usually start with a mobile web app and add native apps when usage justifies it.
Can you build parts inventory software for several branches?
Yes. Multi-branch stock, transfers, supplier orders and barcode counts are common scope, with sync to your shop system or accounting platform.
Do I own the software?
Yes. Everything we build is yours, documented and handed over with no lock-in. You receive the source code, the infrastructure setup and the documentation.
How do you quote?
After a short discovery we send a written, fixed-scope quote for the first release. Later phases are quoted separately so you only commit to what you need next. We do not publish prices because the drivers above change the number a lot.
Related pages
Build automotive software that works
Tell us your idea and get a free, fixed-scope quote. It takes two minutes and there is no pressure.