For most dealerships, one of the key measures of vehicle preparation is days to sale.
We consistently see a direct link between reducing preparation time and reducing the time it takes to sell a vehicle.
But there’s a problem with how prep is often measured.
What we regularly see is a vehicle that took 7 days to prepare, was only worked on for 8 hours in total.
The rest of the time?
Waiting. Queuing. Moving between departments. Sitting idle.
If the goal is to prepare vehicles within 24 hours, then measuring days alone is not enough.
You need visibility into actual hours worked.
That is why we have pushed live a series of enhancements to clocking on/off and reporting designed to help move from days to hours.
Why This Matters
Reducing preparation time is not just about speed; it is about:
- increasing throughput
- improving efficiency
- removing idle time
- and getting vehicles retail-ready faster
To support this, we’ve focused on two areas:
Making clocking on and off faster and easier
Improving reporting to show true prep efficiency
1) Enhanced Clock On / Clock Off
We have significantly improved how users start and stop the clock, removing friction and reducing missed time.
There are now multiple ways to clock on and off, depending on how your teams work.
A) Clock on via T-Card View
Users no longer need to be on their own user screen.
They can now:
- clock on directly from the T-Card view
- clock onto a process or a vehicle
This makes it faster for both operatives and managers to see and control activity.
B) New Quick Clock Option on the Process Page
We have added a new option on the process page that allows users to clock on more quickly, without unnecessary navigation.
C) Allocated Jobs & Task Flow
Jobs can now be allocated directly to users, allowing them to:
- work through assigned tasks
- clock on/off as they go
- without having to return to Workshop Control each time
This keeps teams focused and moving without interruption.
D) Clocking via System Integrations
If you’re already using:
- a DMS
- or another workshop system
we can now start and stop the clock automatically via integration.
That means:
- no change to how your team works
- accurate time recording is still captured
- hours tracked even when actions happen outside vAutoStock
E) Clear Visibility of Who Is Working on a Vehicle
As soon as the clock is started, directly in vAutoStock or via a third-party system visibility updates instantly.
- The T-Card changes colour
- The active user is shown on the overview and other screens
- The system records who is on the vehicle and when
When clocked on, the T-Card turns blue, making it instantly clear that work is in progress.
2) Improved Reporting — Measuring What Really Matters
Alongside clocking improvements, we have enhanced reporting to give dealerships true insight into preparation efficiency.
A) Set Available Hours & Create Teams
You can now:
- define available working hours for each staff member
- group them into teams such as:
- Workshop A
- Workshop B
- Valet Team
This creates a realistic baseline for measuring efficiency.
B) View Efficiency by User or Team
You can see:
- overall efficiency per team member
- overall efficiency per team
This helps identify:
- bottlenecks
- under-utilisation
- and opportunities to improve throughput
C) See What’s Being Worked on Right Now
At any time, you can view:
- what each user is currently working on
- which vehicle and which process
No more guessing or chasing updates.
D) Track What’s Been Completed
You can also see:
- what has been completed today
- or across a selected time period
This makes daily and weekly performance reviews far more meaningful.
E) Hours per Vehicle, Not Just per Department
One of the biggest improvements is how time is reported.
We now:
- record hours across the entire vehicle
- not just individual departments
This allows dealerships to see:
- actual hours spent per vehicle
- alongside days to prepare
- By source check, they are not buying vehicles from the wrong source
For the first time, you can clearly see the gap between:
how long a vehicle took
vs
how much time was actually spent working on it
Want to See It in Action?
If you would like a walkthrough of these new clocking and reporting enhancements, or want help configuring them for your structure, just get in touch and we will be happy to help.
