Detect Auto Chat System

The Detect Auto Chat System keeps your shop’s internal communication organized directly inside your shop management software so messages stay tied to repair orders instead of getting lost in texts, calls, or other group chat services like WhatsApp, Google Chat, or Slack.

Currently, the chat system is only active on Tekmetric. We plan on launching support for Shop-Ware and other shop management softwares in the next few weeks.

What the Chat System Does

• Direct Messages for quick 1:1 internal communication
• Repair Order Chats so conversations stay attached to the exact RO
• Channels for team-wide topics and updates

This helps your team stay aligned, reduce missed messages, and move faster on busy days.

One-Time Setup (Admin Only)

Before You Start

Have the following ready:

• A list of team members’ full names and emails
• Admin access in Tekmetric (required to update Webhooks)

Step 1: Open Chat System Setup

1. Log into Detect Auto.
2. Go to Settings. If you don't see Settings, make sure you expand the sidebar by clicking the icon in the top left corner of the page.
   

3. Click Chat System (NEW).
4. Select Start Chat Setup.

Step 2: Choose a Setup Method

1. Select Start a blank chat.
   
2. Click Continue.

NOTE: Slack import will be supported in a future release.

Step 3: Update Your Tekmetric Webhooks Integration

This step connects repair orders in Tekmetric to Detect Auto Chat.

1. In Detect Auto, copy the webhook value shown in Update Webhook (Step 2).
2. In Tekmetric:

• Open Settings → Integrations
• Locate Webhooks (Also referred to as Custom Integration)
• Paste the Detect Auto webhook value
• Update the checkboxes in the webhook page with the boxes listed in the Detect Auto chat onboarding page.
• Hit Save.

3. Return to Detect Auto and continue setup.

Step 4: Invite Users

1. Enter each team member’s name and email.
   
2. Send invites.
3. Have each user accept their invite and sign in once.

At this point, the chat platform is now live.

Step 5: Configure Notifications

To configure when you receive notifications (e.g. status changes, completion of repair orders, etc.), head to https://ai.detectauto.com/notification-settings.

NOTE: These notification settings are for individual users, NOT for the entire shop. You will need to update the settings on each user account to adjust notification settings.

1. Once on the notification settings page, you can adjust when you'd like to be notified. You can receive notifications via Google Chrome and/or email.
   
2. After adjusting your settings, use the test notification guide to confirm that you're receiving notifications on your device. If you don't receive a notification, click the button to confirm that you did NOT receive a notification and follow the configuration guide to get set up.
   

Using Chat Inside Tekmetric

Open Chat

1. Open Tekmetric.
2. Open the Detect Auto side panel.
3. Click the chat bubble next to your initials in the top right corner of the extension. The chat function can be used on any website, but repair order functionality is only live on Tekmetric.
   

You’ll see:

• Direct Messages
• Repair Orders
• Channels

Direct Messages

Use for quick, internal 1:1 questions.

1. Click Direct Messages.
2. Select a teammate.
3. Type and send your message.

This function is especially helpful for sharing feedback on particular repair orders or getting a quick update on something outside of the scope of regular messaging in repair orders or channels.

Repair Order Chats (Recommended)

Use this for anything related to a customer or vehicle.

1. Click Repair Orders.
2. Select a repair order.
3. Type your message in the RO chat.
4. Send.

Repair order context (customer, vehicle, status) stays visible at the top of the conversation.

Examples

• “Waiting on customer approval”
• “Parts just arrived”
• “Tech needs clarification”
• “QA check requested”
• Label changes or status updates

Repair order chats are saved by vehicle, so you can go back and review previous chat threads for customers. This allows you to audit what happened on a customer's vehicle for a particular RO as well as search for previous topics that happened on prior visits. This information is visible from the Detect Auto website when viewing a vehicle.

If you would like to see notifications for repair orders that you've subscribed to, hover over the Repair Orders section and click on the Eye icon. This will filter to show you ROs that you are actively subscribed to and receiving notifications for.

If you would like to change your notifications for a specific RO, click on the 3 dots next to the customer's name in the Repair Order chat log. Then, click View Subscribers.

From here, you can adjust your notifications settings. Adding a subscription to an RO means that you will be notified according to your settings when events or chat message occur for that RO, and removing a subscription will block notifications from being sent out for that RO.

Finally, after an RO is completed, it will be archived from view in the browser extension. To go back and view historical chats for a vehicle, head to the Detect Auto website and visit the vehicle chats section as mentioned earlier.

Channels

Channels are for team-wide communication.

1. Open Channels.
2. Select a channel.
3. Post your update.

Common Channel Ideas

• #front-counter
• #technicians
• #parts
• #status-updates
• #comebacks

These channels are great for sharing updates to everyone, or to specific sub-teams like technicians or service advisors. It allows you to communicate broadly without disrupting teams that don't need a notification for everything that happens in the shop.

Troubleshooting

If chat does not load or repair orders do not appear:

1. Click Clear Cache & Reload
2. Confirm the Tekmetric Webhooks Integration is saved
3. Confirm the user has accepted their invite
4. Contact Live Support from the menu if issues persist

Best Practices

• Use Repair Order chats for all customer and vehicle communication
• Use Direct Messages for short internal questions
• Use Channels for team-wide updates only

Final Note If the message is about a customer or vehicle, always use the Repair Order chat.

If you need help setting this up, reach out through Live Support inside the Detect Auto panel.

Updated on: 26/12/2025