Kimoby vs Dealer-FX
Dealer-FX is service lane software that dealers buy direct or run as a certified provider for their OEM program. Dealer-FX lists Toyota SmartPath, Lexus MONOGRAM, GM 3Synergy, and Stellantis Mopar Service Gateway on its site. Kimoby sits on the same DMS and handles the same core: digital inspections, approvals, status updates, and payments.
Used by 1,000+ dealerships across North America. Works with the DMS you have.
What makes Kimoby the best Dealer-FX alternative?
Kimoby replaces Dealer-FX in the lane, on the same DMS, and runs across every rooftop and every brand in your group. One thing we don't have yet: an online scheduler. It ships late 2026. If that's the main thing you need, come back then. Everything below assumes you can live without it for now.
One shared inbox for advisors and the BDC.
Drafted from what the tech says on camera, approved in one tap.
Sent automatically, every brand, every rooftop.
One inbox, one report, across the whole group.
Terminal or phone, with surcharging and Affirm.
Reminders, recall, declined work, tire season, on your schedule.
Books or routes what advisors can't get to.
The car reports itself back. Nobody has to remember to log it.
How Kimoby compares to Dealer-FX
Both run on your DMS. Here's where they line up and where they don't.
The same core, on your DMS
The core of Dealer-FX's product works. We're not going to pretend otherwise. Digital inspections with video, one-tap approvals, status updates, payment by text, email, or at the counter: both do all of it, both on your DMS. Where it stops is the edge of the OEM program it's certified for.
Every brand in the group
Dealer-FX through an OEM program runs one brand. A group with a Toyota, a Honda, and a Ford store ends up with a different lane tool at each one. Kimoby gives the whole group the same inbox, the same campaigns, and the same reporting.
What Kimoby adds after the core
Campaigns your own team sends instead of a vendor's marketing department. Missed service calls answered by Kimoby Voice. Loaners tracked by Kimoby Go. Payment written back to the RO, with surcharging where your state allows it and Affirm on the estimate, then the CSI survey. Dealer-FX's public materials don't list these.
When is Kimoby the better fit than Dealer-FX?
Based on what Dealer-FX publishes about its own product, Kimoby is the stronger choice for a store or group in any of these situations.
More than one brand under one roof.
A Toyota store, a Honda store, and a Ford store on one system, one inbox, one set of reports. Your BDC stops logging into three tools.
Campaigns your BDC builds, on your calendar.
Reminders, recall, declined work, tire season. You decide what goes out and when. You don't open a ticket with a vendor's marketing team and wait for a proof.
The calls nobody picks up.
Lunch rush, two advisors on the drive, phone ringing. Kimoby Voice answers, books what it can, and routes the rest.
A loaner fleet you can actually see.
You know the loaner is back because the car told you, not because someone remembered to log it. Kimoby Go tracks every unit out and back.
The payment closes the RO. Then the survey goes out.
Written back to the RO in the DMS, surcharging where your state allows it, Affirm on the estimate, CSI survey after. Nobody rekeys anything.
No contract. Leave when you want.
No setup fee either. Most groups are live in a few weeks, depending on the DMS.
Where each one fits
Both run on your DMS. The right column is only what the tool's maker publishes about it. If your program bundles something marked "not listed," it may well do. The OEM programs all bundle differently. Ask your rep.
| Capability | Kimoby | OEM service lane tool |
|---|---|---|
| Online service scheduler | Late 2026 | ✓ |
| Tablet check-in and write-up | ✓ | ✓ |
| Digital inspection with photo and video | ✓ | ✓ |
| Estimate drafted from the tech's video | ✓ | Not listed |
| One-tap approval from the customer's phone | ✓ | ✓ |
| Service status updates | ✓ | ✓ |
| Texting tied to the RO, shared inbox | ✓ | Not listed |
| Payment request by text or email | ✓ | ✓ |
| In-person terminal | ✓ | ✓ |
| Payment written back to the DMS RO | ✓ | Not listed |
| Credit card surcharging | ✓ | Not listed |
| Affirm financing | ✓ | Not listed |
| CSI surveys after the visit | ✓ | Not listed |
| Campaigns your team builds and sends | ✓ | Managed by their team |
| Recall and declined-work follow-up | ✓ | Not listed |
| Missed calls answered (Kimoby Voice) | ✓ | Not listed |
| Loaner fleet management (Kimoby Go) | ✓ | Not listed |
| One tool across every brand in the group | ✓ | One per OEM program |
| DMS integration | ✓ | ✓ |
| Month-to-month, no setup fee | ✓ | Varies by program |
Both tools take the inspection. The money gets made or lost in the hour after the customer sees it.
Across 16.8 million repair orders, the ROs where the customer got a digital conversation ran $160 higher in customer pay than the ones where they didn't. This is any RO with a digital conversation against one without, whichever tool sent it.
$453 in customer pay on ROs with a digital conversation. $293 without. Same stores, same techs.
6 minutes when the estimate lands on the customer's phone. 22 to 23 hours when the advisor has to call. 88.2% of digital estimates are approved within the hour.
Approved value when the customer saw the inspection ($628.61) against the value when they declined the same inspection ($320.67).
Source: The Cost of Silence, Kimoby, 2026. 871 dealerships, 16.8M repair orders, $5.65B in service revenue, trailing 12 months. Phone approval median from industry data.
Read the full report and run the numbers for your storeDoes Kimoby work with your DMS?
Kimoby reads the same RO Dealer-FX reads, and holds a separate set of OEM approvals of its own.
DMS integrations
CDK (with write-back), Reynolds and Reynolds, PBS, Tekion, DealerTrack, Autosoft, Serti, Dealer Vu, and Quorum.
OEM approvals
BMW Activities Fund approved with myBMW app integration. VW eConnect and CMC approved. Ford FCP qualifying vendor, submitted for the 2027 list. Kimoby is not a certified provider for the Toyota, Lexus, GM, or Stellantis service programs.
Dealers across these four brands already run Kimoby.
One operator from each brand whose OEM program Dealer-FX lists on its site.
Prior to Kimoby, the customer experience was such a hassle. We couldn't connect with our customers fast enough. Kimoby has made a huge impact on our bottom line.
Arvin Merino
Service Manager, Honda & Toyota of Seattle
Communication is a really important part of a customer's experience. With Kimoby, we're able to keep that consistent and scalable across the team.
Klaudia Sanecka
Group Manager BDC, Policaro, Northwest Lexus
My advisors use it religiously. The clarity in the communication is what sells the work.
Angie Prince
Service Manager, Gus Brown Buick
We've seen such significant growth in our CSI that the investment pays for itself.
Brad Jacobs
General Manager, Colbourne Chrysler
What is Dealer-FX?
The company behind the program names most Service Managers actually use.
Dealer-FX is a Snap-on company based in Markham, Ontario. Its product, ONE Platform, is service lane software sold to dealerships directly and as a certified provider for OEM service programs.
Dealer-FX lists four programs on its site: Toyota SmartPath, Lexus MONOGRAM, GM 3Synergy, and Stellantis Mopar Service Gateway. Most dealers know the software by the program name rather than by Dealer-FX.
An online scheduler, tablet check-in, video inspection, a service status tracker, real-time approve and decline, payments by text or email through Stripe, card readers, campaigns run by its marketing team, and integrations with more than 20 DMS providers.
Questions dealers ask
These come up in almost every conversation about switching or adding Kimoby.
Is Kimoby a Dealer-FX alternative?
Yes. Both run on top of your DMS and cover digital inspections, approvals, status updates, and payments. Kimoby adds CSI surveys, campaigns your own team sends, Voice AI for missed calls, loaner management, surcharging, Affirm, and payment written back to the RO, across every brand in the group. The one case where you keep Dealer-FX is when it's the certified tool for your OEM program.
Can I use Kimoby and Dealer-FX together?
Yes. Both read the same repair order from your DMS, so nothing has to be connected between them. Stores that need Dealer-FX for an OEM program keep it for that program's process and run Kimoby for the customer side: texting, video, approvals, payment, CSI, and campaigns, across every brand in the group.
Does Kimoby replace SmartPath, MONOGRAM, 3Synergy, or Mopar Service Gateway?
No. Those are OEM programs that require a certified tool, and Kimoby isn't certified for them. Whatever your program requires stays. Kimoby replaces the rest of the lane and runs alongside it. Advisors use the OEM tool for the OEM's process and Kimoby for the customer.
How does Kimoby compare to Dealer-FX?
On the core of the lane they match: digital inspection with video, one-tap approvals, status updates, payment by text, email, or at the counter, both on your DMS. Kimoby is the better fit for multi-brand groups, for stores that want their own team sending campaigns, for stores that miss service calls, for stores with a loaner fleet, and for stores that want payment written back to the RO with surcharging and Affirm.
Does running Kimoby affect our OEM program standing or co-op?
Kimoby doesn't connect to the OEM tool and doesn't report to the OEM. Your program, and any co-op tied to it, runs the way it runs today.
Is there an integration between Kimoby and Dealer-FX?
No, and you don't need one. Both read the same repair order from your DMS.
Does Kimoby integrate with CDK and Reynolds?
Yes. CDK with write-back, plus Reynolds and Reynolds, PBS, Tekion, DealerTrack, Autosoft, Serti, Dealer Vu, and Quorum.
Is Kimoby approved for OEM programs?
BMW Activities Fund approved with myBMW app integration. VW eConnect and CMC approved. Ford FCP qualifying vendor, submitted for the 2027 list.
We're a three-rooftop group on SmartPath at the Toyota store and nothing at the Honda and Ford stores. What does Kimoby change?
SmartPath stays at the Toyota store. Kimoby goes in at all three on your DMS. Advisors at every rooftop get the same inbox with texting tied to the RO, video inspections, approvals, and payment. Your BDC runs reminder and recall campaigns for all three stores from the same place. The CSI survey goes out after every visit at every brand, and the Fixed Ops Director gets a single report.
We bought Dealer-FX direct three years ago and the contract is up. What do we gain and lose switching to Kimoby?
You keep digital inspections with video, one-tap approvals, status updates, and text or email payments. You gain CSI surveys, campaigns your own team sends, Voice AI for missed calls, loaner management, surcharging, Affirm, payment written back to the RO, and one system across every brand you sell. You lose the online scheduler until Kimoby's ships in late 2026. No contract to sign, so if it doesn't work out you're not stuck.
How much does Kimoby cost?
Pricing is published at kimoby.com/pricing. No contract, no setup fee. What you see there is what you pay.
Thinking about adding Kimoby next to Dealer-FX?
Watch the demo on your own, or book 20 minutes and tell us your DMS, how you run Dealer-FX, and what you're trying to fix.
Month-to-month. No setup fee. Works with your DMS. Live in weeks.
Dealer-FX, ONE Platform, SmartPath, MONOGRAM, 3Synergy, and Mopar Service Gateway are trademarks of their respective owners. Kimoby is not affiliated with Dealer-FX or with any OEM program named on this page.
