Garages · Repair shops · SMS · WhatsApp
Fewer calls at the counter,
more cars out the door.
The quote to approve, the "your car is ready", the MOT due next month: Unlimited Messaging sends them by SMS, WhatsApp or email, from the garage's own number, while your hands stay on the car.
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Claude
ChatGPT
Le Chat
GeminiA day in the workshop
Eight cars on the lift, and the phone that keeps ringing
Unlimited Messaging lets a car garage text and WhatsApp its customers from the garage's own number, phone and mailbox: quotes to approve, "your car is ready" messages and MOT or service reminders, sent by hand from the web app or automatically from a customer list.
At 10 you find worn brake discs and need the customer's go-ahead, but they don't pick up. At 4 three cars are ready and you call each owner between two jobs. Meanwhile, customers whose MOT expires next month forget it until the car fails on the road. In the UK the first MOT is due by the car's third birthday, then every year.
With Unlimited Messaging, the quote goes on WhatsApp and the customer answers "OK, go ahead" when they can. When the car is ready, one click sends the text. And a Google Sheet of customers with their MOT dates, checked every morning by n8n, sends the reminder a month before, the window in which a car can be tested without losing its renewal date.
Same idea for tradespeople and their quotes and for shops sending order updates. Texting from your own phone is explained on the SMS page.
What changes
What Unlimited Messaging changes for a garage
Customers answer when they are free, not when you call. You stop phoning the same people twice a day.
Quotes approved in writing
Send the quote on WhatsApp or by email from the garage mailbox. The customer replies "OK", and you keep a written trace of the go-ahead in the conversation.
"Ready" in one click
From the web app, the text leaves from the garage's phone with the amount and opening hours. No more calls that ring out while you are under a car.
MOT and service reminders on their own
n8n reads your customer sheet every morning and sends the reminder a month before the due date. A booked slot instead of a forgotten test.
Your number, for free
Link WhatsApp by QR code, the garage mailbox over IMAP/SMTP and the shop phone's SIM through the Android app. No per-message fee on the free plan.
Setup
Ready in 3 steps, between two jobs
- 01
Create your account
Free sign-up, no credit card. The free plan sends unlimited messages.
- 02
Link the garage's phone and mailbox
Install the Android app on the shop phone for SMS, scan the QR code with WhatsApp, and connect the garage mailbox for quotes.
- 03
Automate the reminders
Keep customers and due dates in Google Sheets, then let n8n send MOT and service reminders. Or ask Claude to text a customer for you.
Copy-ready messages
5 messages every garage sends
Replace what is in brackets. Short and clear, sent from the number customers already have for the garage.
- 01 · WhatsApp
Quote to approve
Hello [First name], it's [Garage]. On your [car model] we found [issue]. The repair comes to [amount] including VAT, ready by [day]. Reply OK and we go ahead, or call us on [phone].
- 02 · SMS
Your car is ready
Hello [First name], your [car model] is ready. Amount due: [amount]. We're open until [time] today. See you soon, [Garage]
- 03 · SMS
MOT due next month
Hello [First name], the MOT for your [car model] ([registration]) is due by [date]. Want us to book it? Reply with a day that suits you. [Garage]
- 04 · Email
Annual service reminder
Hello [First name], Your [car model] is due for its annual service (last one on [date], [mileage] miles). We have slots on [slot 1] and [slot 2]. Reply to this email to book. [Garage], [phone]
- 05 · WhatsApp
Extra work found
Hello [First name], while working on your car we noticed [issue]. It isn't urgent, but it will need doing within [time frame]. Shall we add it now for [amount], or leave it for next time?
Good to know
Good habits to keep in mind
Customers of the garage
Remind customers who left you their number and stop when someone asks you to. Messaging strangers from WhatsApp gets the number banned, whatever the tool.
SMS at the pace of the workshop
Texts leave from the shop phone, about 30 every 30 minutes, and count against its plan. For a morning batch of MOT reminders, that is plenty.
Photos and PDFs need a paid plan
Sending a photo of the worn part or the quote as a PDF needs Medium or Max. On the free plan, put the amount in the message or send the quote by email.
FAQ
Questions garages ask
Sources
Sources & references
To check the information in this article for yourself:
Written by
Ilian · Senior Software Engineer
A senior software engineer, he founds and runs several tech companies. He builds products around messaging APIs, automation and AI integration, and shares here what he learns while building.
Text the next "your car is ready" in one click
Free, no credit card, from the garage's own phone.