Switching from another garage system

You already went digital. It just is not the right fit any more. Here is what moving to Pistonlog really involves, including the parts that do not come across.

Why garages move

Usually not because the old system broke. Because it stopped fitting.

Paying by the seat
You want the apprentice to see his own jobs, but not enough to pay for another user to do it. So he does not get an account, and the board is never quite right.
Built for a bigger garage
Half the screens assume a parts department, a body shop and a service manager. You have four ramps and a kettle, and you are paying for the other half.
Your data feels stuck
Years of customers went in and getting them out again feels like the actual reason you have not moved. It is usually one export button away.

How the move goes

Two weeks of running both, and one CSV. That is genuinely most of it.

  1. 1.Export your customers and vehicles

    Nearly every system will give you a CSV of customers and vehicles, usually somewhere under settings or reports. If you cannot find it, their support can do it for you. That export is all you need to bring across.

  2. 2.Fill in the Pistonlog template

    Download the template and paste your list into it. Customer name, business name, phone, email and address, then the registration, make, model, year, fuel, MOT date and mileage for each vehicle. Anything you have not got, leave blank.

  3. 3.Read the preview before anything is written

    Upload it and the server works out what it would do, then shows you. New customer, matched to one already in Pistonlog, or unclear. Nothing is written yet. Anything unclear stops the import rather than guessing which record you meant.

  4. 4.Commit it, and undo it if you need to

    When the preview looks right, commit. It all goes in as one lot, so you never end up half imported. If it turns out wrong you have 24 hours to roll the whole thing back.

  5. 5.Run both for a fortnight

    Finish the jobs that are already open where they are, and start every new one in Pistonlog. When the last old job closes you are done, and the old system becomes something you only keep for looking things up.

Unlimited users, no long contract, and a way back out

The three things that make a system easy to leave are the same three that make it safe to join.

Everyone In
Unlimited users on every plan
The apprentice, the weekend lad, the bookkeeper. Give everyone the access that suits them without working out what another seat costs first.
No Lock In
Cancel whenever you like
No long-term contract to sign and nothing to serve out. If it is not right for your garage you are not stuck paying for it until a renewal date.
24 Hours
Undo the whole import
The preview shows you what will happen before anything is written, and once it is written you still have a day to put it all back as it was.

Questions before you move

The things garage owners actually ask, answered straight.

Have a look before you move anything

Set up an account, run a couple of real jobs through it, and only bring your customers across once you know it suits your garage.