At a glance
Collision shops seeking a connected operational workflow while keeping their estimating system.
What does AutoHound do?
A connected home for the work after the estimate. Bring production, parts, customer communication, and payments into one collision-focused workflow.
- Repair scheduling and production visibility
- Parts tracking and customer communication
- Invoicing, payments, and reporting
What to explore in the demo
Import a sample estimate, move it through production, and follow its parts and customer updates. AutoHound is an appealing starting point for a shop that wants a clearer view of day-to-day work.
Details to confirm
AutoHound describes support for importing CCC ONE, Mitchell, and Audatex estimates. Ask the team to demonstrate your exact estimate and supplement workflow.
Request current pricing, implementation scope, training, support, contract terms, and data export options for your shop. Validate capabilities in the package you would actually buy.
Build a useful shortlist
Compare tools by the work they need to do. A dedicated estimator, a collision management platform, and general automotive software can serve different roles. Use the demo checklist to ask consistent questions.
When to shortlist AutoHound
A shop can keep its estimating system and give the estimator, parts coordinator and bookkeeper individual access for a known location fee. Start here when supplement handoffs and outstanding credits consume more time than writing the estimate.
Pricing and licensing
$599/month per location, plus applicable tax. Unlimited users; monthly renewal.
| Access and devices | Web portal |
|---|---|
| Production tracking | Live production board |
| Parts management | Orders, receipts and returns |
| Customer messaging | Shared customer text inbox |
| QuickBooks and accounting | Integration: QuickBooks Online |
One repair to bring to the demonstration
Import a revised estimate after the original order has shipped. Ask the parts coordinator to flag the superseded line, then show the bookkeeper which credit remains open. Keep the original estimate in the test so the team can explain what changed.
A practical evaluation plan
Use the following scenarios as questions for a live demonstration. They describe what your shop should test, rather than a feature checklist to mark complete without seeing the work.
| Scenario | What to ask the vendor to show | What your team should learn |
|---|---|---|
| Intake | Find a returning customer, verify the vehicle, and start the condition record. | A repair record that the next person can identify without searching a separate folder. |
| Estimate revision | Bring a sample estimate and a supplement into the same repair. | The team can explain which version supports the current repair plan. |
| Parts exception | Use a partial shipment and a damaged part rather than an ideal order. | The parts desk can identify what is still needed and who follows up. |
| Production handoff | Move a repair with an unfinished check and a changed promise date. | The manager can find the exception and the person responsible. |
| Customer and money | Review an update, an authorization, and the remaining payer balances. | The office can explain the next customer communication and collection action. |
Record the role performing each step, any information entered twice, and the point where the next person is notified. A useful demonstration leaves your team with a repeatable process, a clear owner for exceptions, and a list of any items that still need confirmation.
How does AutoHound connect the repair record?
AutoHound’s repair-order workspace brings customer, vehicle, claim, estimate, parts, documents, messages, and money into the same job. Its published RO workflow also includes a history of changes, supporting documents, and scan-to-open job tags.
AutoHound repair-order workflow ↗That makes the repair record a useful starting point for a demonstration: choose a sample job, open the supporting information, and ask a second staff member to explain what needs to happen next. The value to evaluate is continuity—whether the team can understand the job without reconstructing it from several screens, conversations, and paper folders.
From vehicle intake to documented delivery
AutoHound’s guided check-in covers vehicle condition, photos, mileage, fuel, keys, warning lights, belongings, and authorization. The check-in and delivery records remain connected to the repair history.
AutoHound vehicle check-in ↗In your demo, use an ordinary arrival with one existing condition concern. Ask the front desk to record it and then have another employee find the information later in the repair. Use the final handoff to show how staff distinguishes the condition recorded at arrival from the condition documented at delivery.
A clear history of estimates and supplements
AutoHound’s estimates and supplements tools retain estimate versions and support tracking supplement status and follow-up. That gives the estimator and manager a shared place to discuss the current repair scope.
AutoHound estimates and supplements ↗Bring an initial estimate plus a changed part or labor operation. Compare the proposed work with the version that was approved. Ask your team to explain what is ready for production, what still needs a decision, and what evidence should accompany the next conversation. A well-run evaluation makes those distinctions explicit.
A focused AutoHound pilot
Choose a small group of sample or pilot repairs that represent normal work, a parts exception, and a revised estimate. Assign one office lead and one production lead. Give each person a short, observable task: find the next action, identify the responsible person, locate the supporting record, and explain the handoff.
- Before the pilot, write down your stages, roles, daily handoffs, and common exception types.
- During the pilot, keep a list of questions and the record or screen that resolves each one.
- At review, separate setup changes from staff training needs and any vendor follow-up.
- Before wider use, agree on who validates existing records and who supports staff during the first week.
Keep your records accessible
AutoHound describes built-in bulk exports for shop data, documents, and images, available without a support ticket. Its published data policy also states that it does not sell shop data.
AutoHound data ownership and exports ↗Make export review part of the buying process. Download a sample and confirm which fields, files, identifiers, and dates your business needs for continuity. Have the person who maintains your records review the sample so the evaluation covers everyday work as well as long-term access.
Explore AutoHound by workflow
Use the guides below to go deeper into a specific shop problem. Each offers a definition, a practical process, a comparison table or checklist, and questions to take into an AutoHound demonstration.
Common questions
What is AutoHound?
AutoHound is collision shop management software for coordinating the operational work around a repair. Start with the repair-order overview and explore the relevant workflow guides for your production, parts, communication, and business needs.
How should a collision shop evaluate AutoHound?
Follow the same repair from intake through delivery, including an estimate revision and a parts exception. Invite the office, production, parts, and bookkeeping roles to explain what they need to do at each handoff.
Which AutoHound guide should I read first?
Start with the AutoHound software overview, then choose the workflow guide that matches your most important shop problem. Use the buying and demo checklists to keep the evaluation focused.
Have a correction or a detail to add? Suggest an update.