ARI (Auto Repair Software) Reviews

Summary: It solves three huge issues-

1. it provides each customer with a clear and easily understandable estimate and invoice

2. it provides our staff with a clear picture of what each car needs

3. The information in ARI is transferable to similar estimates, saving us dozens of hours each week.

Positive: ARI allows me to give my customers and my staff a clear picture of what each car needs to be excellent. It has saved me countless hours with its easy to use inventory and estimating system. it also alleviates the pressure of communicating with each customer about details i can easily incorporate into each estimate.

Negative: Not much...referring to models without a superlative in their model subtype as "base" when you are working on a Mercedes S600 or similar expensive car would be nice.
I also wish the program was compliant with Florida's right to an estimate law. i have bene told it does not meet the state's criteria, so I have to get each customer to sign a form that the state of Florida requires.

Summary: Just basic shop management and service intervals. Also helps with invoice and revenue numbers. I definitely am a lot more productive. Business increased.

Positive: The software is user friendly. Easy to navigate. The clock in feature and vin decoder are amazing but what I really love is the online payment option and the fact that a client can electronically sign estimates is great.

Negative: To be honest. There isn’t anything I dislike about it. I’ve used other shop management systems in the past but I truly enjoy this platform and that’s why I stay a subscriber

Summary: Overall I’m pleased with it, but time will tell! The two hundred dollar cost for pro version is a bit steep but if it all works with Quick books and has reasonable customer support it’s worth the price.

Positive: So far I love the versatility . I am not using nearly all the functions! Invoicing off my phone is kind of a pain (iPhone SE iOS 12.3.1) . Tablet or desktop version is better... I also like the ease of emailing invoices!

Negative: I install a lot of used parts ( junk yard vehicles/ salvage auction stuff). Some of my customers own the vehicles I pull parts from so I just charge labor. So on the parts list I can’t just initially add a part without putting in a price. I have to add part, hit save then go to parts list and tap item and edit it to zero and then hit back. It’s really kind of a trite beef but a real pain some times. I also don’t like that if I give a discount it still shows up as income/profit.

Summary: Speed of estimate approvals much improved. Less time on the phone and easy implementation of the device

Positive: ARI has streamlined our process and allowed us to go completely paperless.

The transparent interaction with the customer really helps get the repairs sold.

Negative: Inventory reporting exports need to be more detailed. Need to be able to export by vendor.

Summary: ARI is helping us save the planet! We are essentially 100% paperless after switching to Shop-Ware. We are able to do everything with the use of a desktop computer, laptop, cell phone, or tablet. We no longer have to worry about keeping the technician's paper work orders in the correct orders in racks in the shop because we can switch things up with a simple "click and drag!

Positive: ARI is browser-based, so I can access it anywhere! This is super helpful so that I can check the status of things even if I'm out of the office at an appointment or even taking the day to work from home. I don't need to feel guilty about taking a day off of work or even a week for vacation when I know I can check in and help out if needed.

Negative: It seems like every time an update is pushed out, the system crashes the next day or there are other features that stop working because a new update was pushed out. This is very frustrating!

Summary: Comprehensive, easy to maneuver system that gives us all the information we need throughout the day.

Positive: Very easy to use, has excellent training resources, and the response time from the software development team is amazing. It's almost like they can read my mind as to what needs to be changed and added!

Negative: We also integrate with 360 Payments and it would be great to be able to have a customer make a parts deposit via text link on an estimate. A "Favorites" for analytics would be great for organizing often viewed stats and graphs, along with the ability to toggle between bar graph, pie chart, and line graph.

Summary: The problem of transparency in the industry that is typically not seen as trustworthy. Trying to track KPI's and learn about how the business is performing is also a challenge that we are able to overcome with ARI.

Positive: It's easy to use and easy to access. Also, from a manager's position, it's easy to keep track of the workflow.

Negative: I want an option to revert an open Work Order to an Estimate.

The numbers in Reports - Technician Report do not match the numbers in the Analytics - Technician Report Card.

I need Technicians and advisors separate or advisors taken out of the Reports - Technician Report.

Add in a Service Clocks tab under Reports.

Add in a delete option for Shift Clocks and Service Clocks.

In Analytics, I want the option to export data to excel.

In Analytics, I want the option to change graphs between line, bar, pie.

In Analytics, I want the option to look at graphs between weekly, monthly, quarterly, and annually.

A search option in the Estimates calendar is needed to find customer's appointments and ROs.

In Analytics - Duration of Service, add in a graph to track "No Status, Checked In, Needs Estimate, Waiting for Approval, Needs Parts Ordered, Waiting for Parts, Work In Queue, Work In Progress, Quality Control, Ready for Pickup, Completed and Contacted, Waiting for Dispatch, Problem, Waiting for Sublet, Needs Scheduled, and Needs Deposit Paid".

Summary: Increasing efficiency across the board by tracking all parts purchased, optimizing the price based on revenue projections, increasing average RO prices and making sure technician hours are tracked accurately.

Positive: ARI is built around a modern shop; they are focused on the customer interaction and constant updates and improvements. The community of ARI users is strong and very helpful. The business seems to be founded and run by shop-owners, and it shows in the details. The integration with PartsTech makes it a one-stop system. An entire shop can be run with just this system.

Negative: ARI doesn't have the best digital vehicle inspections. As a user, you can build from scratch, but I've demoed other systems with a very useful and technician-friendly interface.

Summary: It assists me in communication with customers, service writing and price comparison with the parts tech system

Positive: I love that we can have one program for many different functions. It is helpful to be able to communicate with customers from their profiles and it is all documented for reference back if needed

Negative: I do not like that I cannot custom name the fee categories. I would like to add Waste Disposal instead of EPA or for us we do not deal with Tires so it could take the place of "tires" as a fee as well.

Summary: The reports the program offers are far more valuable than any report I can create I'm QuickBooks as it offers me more detailed information based on each technician or each department separately. I have 5 repair departments that all work on different types of vehicles and this allows me to categorize them for reporting purposes.

Positive: The program has a ton of features. It easily links with QuickBooks and has a variety of reports. It covers my inventory needs and makes ordering stock parts very simple. I have my main vendors set up for one push ordering.

Negative: My computer is the master, I often lose connection to my employees' computers which becomes incredibly irritating.

Summary: From an internal perspective, the system has made it much easier to manage work orders, track parts, and stay organized. The integrated texting feature allows customers to easily review inspection results, check estimates, and approve repairs with a click of a button—eliminating back-and-forth phone calls and speeding up the approval process.

Positive: So glad we made the switch to ARI! We were nervous about the transition, but it was incredibly smooth, and their customer service was top-notch every step of the way. If you're considering it—do it, you won't regret it! From service advisors to technicians and even our customers, everyone benefits.

Our customers especially love the text feature, allowing them to review inspection results, check estimates, and approve repairs with just a click of a button. The system is streamlined and fully integrated, making our workflow smoother than ever.

Another huge plus is that ARI is constantly improving based on customer feedback. They have a feature request system, so they actually listen to shops and make updates that matter. Highly recommend ARI for any shop looking to improve efficiency and customer experience!

Negative: There’s always room for improvement, and one feature that would be extremely helpful is the ability to account for core inventory. Having a more streamlined way to track cores would make inventory management even more efficient. That said, ARI is always evolving based on customer feedback, so we appreciate their commitment to continuous improvement!

Summary: Its providing me with a way to keep track of invoices and customers. I can also make a schedule with ARI as well.

Positive: I like how easy it is to create an invoice and how easy it is to create appts or keep track of customers.

Negative: The reports are poor and is not accurate most of the time. Keeping track of the parts inventory and expenses is also not accurate. I am not able to transfer anything to quickbooks either for some reason. Other features are pretty difficult to use and to understand.

Summary: Installs easily, very intuitive.many new update and features

Positive: Lots of features that other higher prices alternatives don't offer

Negative: Not much printing quality on the invoice is like a copy of a copy.

Summary: I would recommend it to anybody opening a shop for mobile business The Price is Right in the system works excellent

Positive: The system works excellent to keep track of my clients and vehicles and being able to look up vehicle repair history have the necessary tool that I use in a daily basis I couldn't ask for a better program

Negative: Honestly I don't have any negative to say about it there was a few bugs in the beginning but they work them out it works every time and it's fast and reliable

Summary: Over all everything seems to work really well for me.

Positive: Inventory control, Invoicing, Estimates, Service reminders, Accounting, Reports, Job cards

Negative: Sometimes some of the stuff gets to be a little confusing