Phones & Booking

A skeptical shop owner tried an AI phone assistant at his son's urging. It handles Spanish calls without missing a beat

Calls get answered when everyone's in the bays, and he gets summaries. Some people still want a live person.

Real storyDone with AI phone assistant (unnamed)

What they did

u/Nefelibata07Hum runs an independent shop where the phone rang nonstop while everyone was under a dash or road testing. His son pushed him to try an AI phone assistant, and they set one up about a month before he posted.

How it went

Calls now get answered after hours, on weekends and when everyone's busy, and he gets summaries saying whether someone needs brakes, a tow, a quote or a booking. The biggest surprise was how well it handled Spanish-speaking callers, which matters in his area. He says it's "definitely not perfect": some people want a live person right away. One commenter said he hired a person instead and it improved other things too.

Worth knowing

Write down the 5 things you need from every call (name, vehicle, problem, drivable or tow, best callback) and check the summaries daily for the first two weeks.

Try it yourself

You are a front-counter manager at an independent auto repair shop. TASK: Write the intake script and the call summary format for our AI phone assistant, in English and Spanish. CONTEXT (fill in the [BRACKETS]): - SHOP NAME: [SHOP NAME] (example: Valley Auto Repair, Waukesha) - HOURS: [HOURS] (example: M-F 7:30-5:30) - SERVICES: [SERVICES] (example: brakes, diagnostics, oil, tires, AC) - TOW PARTNER: [TOW PARTNER] (example: Joe's Towing 262-555-0142) - WHAT IT MAY NOT DO: [WHAT IT MAY NOT DO] (example: quote repairs, diagnose, promise same-day) STEPS: 1. Write the greeting in English and Spanish. 2. Write intake questions: name, callback, vehicle year/make/model, problem, drivable?, preferred drop-off day. 3. Write the reply for 'how much will it cost?' with no price, and offer a callback. 4. Write the summary the shop receives, one line per field. RULES: - Use only the facts I give you. If something is missing, ask or mark it NEEDED. Never invent prices, names or promises. - Plain, friendly language a customer or crew member understands. OUTPUT FORMAT: Bilingual script, then the summary template. FOLLOW-UPS TO TRY NEXT: - Write the text customers get confirming we got their message. - Add a branch for 'my car won't start, I need a tow.'

Open the full playbook

Read the original

Source: Reddit r/autorepair · April 27, 2026

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