“Boost Revenue and Efficiency with xTime: A Complete Guide for Car Dealerships”

What Is xTime?

xTime (often branded Xtime) is an all‑in‑one service experience platform designed to revolutionize fixed‑ops at automotive dealerships. Now part of Cox Automotive’s Retail360, xTime integrates across the service journey—offering modules for online scheduling, digital check-in, mobile inspections, customer marketing, payments, and reporting. It seamlessly links with DMS/CRM systems like CDK and Dealertrack to streamline operations, boost transparency, and enhance both customer and staff experience. Drive efficiency, profitability, and customer and employee retention with Xtime to help maximize the value of your service department.

 Why Dealerships Choose xTime

1. Service More Cars in Less Time
   Using unified online and in-lane booking with capacity control, dealerships reduce scheduling friction and optimize throughput.

2. Increase Revenue per Repair Order (RO)
   With digital multipoint inspection (“Inspect”) featuring photos, video, and subtitles, additional service recommendations (ASRs) can be approved in as little as 7 minutes, boosting upsells by up to $110 per RO.

3. Boost Service Retention
   Personalized marketing through “Invite” (SMS/email campaigns for declined services, recalls) drives a 13.3 % increase in retention and more appointments.

4. Enhance Customer Experience
   Tablet-based check-in (“Engage”), real-time status texting, and online payment options deliver a seamless, convenient, and modern digital engagement.

5. Profit from Transparency
   Rich media (photos, videos, chat logs) during inspections builds trust and clarity, helping customers see exactly what they’re paying for—and why. Drive efficiency, profitability, and customer and employee retention with Xtime to help maximize the value of your service department.

The xTime Suite Overview

Here’s what each module offers:

• Schedule

• 24/7 online/mobile/in-lane scheduling

• Capacity control, recall integration, customizable pricing menus

• Service financing options included

• Engage

• Tablet check-in/check-out with SMS updates

• Online payment and advisor-driven upsells

• Intelligent diagnostics and team messaging

• Inspect

• Digital multipoint inspections with photos, videos, chat

• Real-time approval and technician-advisor communication

• Invite

• Automated marketing campaigns (SMS/email) for declined services and recalls

• In-message scheduling and analytics tracking

• Payments

• Secure in-lane tablet processing or remote payment links

• Reduces cashier bottlenecks and supports service financing

 2025 Enhancements

Announced Jan 17, 2025, at NADA and via PR, these updates strengthen key workflows:

• Enhanced Messaging Center: Bulk SMS/email, unified inboxes

• Improved Multimedia: Noise cancellation, high-res and branded MPI videos, subtitles

• Real‑time Dashboards: Performance scoring on ASRs and KPIs

• Advanced Reporting: Deeper lane-level analytics

• Stronger DMS Integration: Smoother data sync with CDK/Dealertrack

These innovations aim to boost transparency, conversion speeds, and upsells—all while preserving dealer efficiency.

 Scale & Reach

• 7,600+ dealerships and 44 OEM endorsements

• 10+ million appointments/month

• 13.3 % retention lift, up to $110 additional revenue per RO

• ASRs approved in ~7 minutes on average using Inspect multimedia

 Dealer Feedback: Pros & Cons

 Strengths

• Ease of use & UX: Intuitive interface; praised for customer-facing features

  “Xtime is very user friendly… easy to learn… customizable”

• Strong scheduling reliability: Prevents double-booking, simplifies appointment flow

• Built-in accountability: Tracks declined services and MPI penetration Training/support: Fast, knowledgeable onboarding praised across reviews

 Challenges

• Parts quote sync delays: Manual double entry when CDs parts don’t sync

  “Takes forever to populate parts lines… feels really buggy”

• Interface bugs: Jumping screens when adding parts lines frustrate users

  “Adding an engine quote with 80+ parts is a nightmare… shoots you to the top”

• Complex implementation: Requires disciplined setup; missing features if misconfigured

  “If you do not have it set up properly, you will not see the benefits”

• Campaign ROI concerns: Some find marketing modules pricey (~$4,000/mo)

 Best Practices for Adoption

1. Commit to robust onboarding: Allocate dedicated resources during rollout.

   “They had to fix a LOT… first days were an absolute nightmare”

2. Roll out modules sequentially: Start with Schedule + Engage, then add Inspect, Invite, Payments.

3. Prioritize DMS integration: Test parts, labor, estimate sync closely to avoid double entry.

4. Leverage training & support: Use xTime University and Performance Managers to maximize efficiency.

5. Monitor KPIs: Track ASR approval speeds, MPI penetration, retention, ROI on Invite campaigns.

 Final Verdict

xTime stands out as a mature, feature-rich fixed-ops platform, excelling at scheduling, digital workflow, transparency, and upsells. Its 2025 upgrades—especially in messaging, multimedia, dashboards, and integrations—further reinforce delivery of modern customer experiences.

However, meaningful success depends on structured setup, cross-departmental alignment, and diligent system maintenance. High-volume shops should watch DMS sync and parts quoting closely. For marketing & bulk campaigns, ROI should be tracked carefully to justify costs.Drive efficiency, profitability, and customer and employee retention with Xtime to help maximize the value of your service department.

 Quick Recap Table

 Is xTime Right for You?

• Ideal for: Medium-to-large dealerships targeting high fixed‑ops volume, aiming for digital-first experience, and ready to invest in disciplined implementation.

• Caution for: Small-volume stores, teams lacking system-ready infrastructure, or those averse to multi-platform adoption.Drive efficiency, profitability, and customer and employee retention with Xtime to help maximize the value of your service department.