Industry insights
I evaluated the AI phone agent platforms that dealership BDC managers are actually considering in 2026 and ranked them for speed-to-lead, DMS integration, multichannel follow-up, and automotive-specific conversation quality.
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I evaluated the AI phone agent platforms that dealership BDC managers and general managers are actually considering in 2026 — the ones showing up in vendor demos, dealer forums, and industry conferences — and tested each one against the specific operational requirements of automotive retail.
Automotive dealerships are not generic call centers. A dealership handles internet leads from third-party aggregators, walk-in follow-ups, service appointment scheduling, recall campaigns, finance inquiries, and trade-in requests — all routed through a BDC team that is usually understaffed and always under pressure to hit response-time targets. The AI phone agent that works for an insurance agency or a mortgage lender is not automatically the right fit for a dealership running a DMS, a CRMCRMThe system of record for leads, contacts, deals, and activity. Thoughtly reads from and writes to your CRM continuously., and a desking tool simultaneously.
This guide ranks the platforms that handle the full dealership phone lifecycle: answering and qualifying inbound internet leads within seconds, following up across voice and text, booking test drives and service appointments, and writing outcomes back to the CRM or DMS — without requiring the dealer to hire a developer or manage prompt engineering.
I scored each platform against six criteria that matter most to dealership operations teams. This is not a feature-count comparison — it is a workflow-fit evaluation based on how each platform handles real dealership scenarios.
Internet leads from Autotrader, Cars.com, CarGurus, dealer websites, and Facebook Marketplace are the lifeblood of most dealership sales departments. The industry data is clear: leads contacted within the first 60 seconds convert at dramatically higher rates than those left sitting in a CRM queue for 20 minutes. I evaluated how quickly each platform initiates outbound contact after a lead arrives, whether it can call and text simultaneously, and whether it handles after-hours leads without human intervention. A platform that only answers inbound calls but cannot initiate outbound follow-up on new internet leads is solving the wrong half of the problem for most dealers.
Dealerships run on their DMS — CDK, Reynolds & Reynolds, Dealertrack, or Tekion — alongside a CRM like VinSolutions, DealerSocket, or Elead. Any AI phone agent that cannot read from and write to these systems creates more work than it eliminates. I looked for native or pre-built integrations with major automotive CRMs and DMS platforms, the ability to pull customer vehicle history into the conversation context, and automated logging of call outcomes, appointments, and lead status changes. A platform that requires manual re-entry of call data into the CRM is not saving the BDC team any real time.
Today's car buyer expects to start with a text, continue with a phone call, and confirm with an email. I evaluated whether each platform can orchestrate follow-up across voice, SMS, and email from the same conversation thread — maintaining context so the customer does not repeat themselves. Dealers that rely on voice-only AI are leaving significant lead coverage on the table, particularly for younger buyers who prefer texting over phone calls. The best platforms send an automated text confirmation after a call, follow up with missed leads via SMS, and escalate to a human when the conversation requires it.
Booking the test drive or service appointment is the conversion event that matters. I tested each platform's ability to check real-time availability, offer specific time slots, confirm the appointment via text, send reminders, and handle rescheduling without human involvement. Some platforms claim appointment scheduling but actually just collect a preferred time and leave the confirmation to a human — that is not automation, that is a message relay. I prioritized platforms that complete the booking loop end-to-end and sync it to the dealer's scheduling system.
Most AI phone agent evaluations focus exclusively on sales. But for many dealerships, the service department generates more gross profit than new car sales, and service calls are higher volume and more repetitive — appointment scheduling, recall notifications, service status updates, and parts inquiries. I looked at whether each platform supports service-specific workflows, can access vehicle service history from the DMS, handles recall campaign outreach, and manages the different routing logic that service departments require. A platform that only handles sales calls is covering half the dealership.
Car buyers and service customers ask specific questions: trim-level availability, trade-in value ranges, financing pre-qualificationPre-qualificationCapturing the qualifying details — income, credit-score range, LTV, timeline — before a licensed officer engages. Thoughtly automates this., warranty coverage, recall details. I evaluated how well each platform handles automotive-specific vocabulary and scenarios without hallucinating inventory details or making promises the dealership cannot keep. The best platforms integrate with inventory feeds so they can answer questions like 'Do you have any 2026 Camrys in blue?' with real data rather than generic deflection. I also tested how each handles interruptions, objections, and requests for a human — all of which are common in dealership phone conversations.
| Platform | Best for | Channels | DMS/CRM integration | Pricing model |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thoughtly | Inbound lead conversion + multichannel follow-up | Voice + SMS + email | HubSpot, Salesforce, Pipedrive + custom integrations | Per minute |
| Toma | Fixed ops and service department automation | Voice + SMS + web chat | Native CDK, Reynolds, Tekion integrations | Contact vendor |
| Podium | Dealership communication + review management | Voice + SMS + web chat + reviews | CDK, DealerSocket, Reynolds integrations | Monthly subscription |
| Numa | BDC team collaboration + smart inbox | Voice + SMS + chat | CDK, Reynolds, DealerSocket integrations | Contact vendor |
| Impel AI | End-to-end customer lifecycle | Voice + SMS + video + web chat | Native DMS integrations | Contact vendor |
| Matador AI | Lead intent scoring + hot prospect routing | SMS + voice + web chat | CRM integrations via API | Contact vendor |
| Conversica | Automated AI lead follow-up at scale | Email + SMS + voice | Salesforce, HubSpot, Elead integrations | Annual subscription |
Thoughtly is a voice AI platform built for high-volume inbound lead conversion in high-consideration industries — and automotive is one of its validated verticals. Unlike platforms that only handle inbound calls or only send texts, Thoughtly orchestrates the entire lead follow-up sequence: an internet lead arrives, the AI agent calls within seconds, qualifies the buyer's interest and timeline, sends a text confirmation, books the test drive or consultation, and writes everything back to the CRM. The same agent handles after-hours calls, missed-call callbacks, and ongoing follow-up sequences across voice, SMS, and email without requiring the BDC team to touch anything.
For dealerships, the multichannel execution is the key differentiator. Most AI phone agents in the automotive space handle calls or texts, but not both from the same conversation thread. Thoughtly maintains shared context across every channel a lead touches — so if a buyer inquires via text, gets a follow-up call, and then receives an email summary, all three interactions reference the same conversation. The platform integrates with major CRMs including HubSpot, Salesforce, and Pipedrive, and supports custom integrations for DMS platforms through its workflowWorkflowAn automated, multi-step process — usually triggered by an event (form fill, new lead) and orchestrating one or more voice / SMS / email actions. builder and API.
Multi-rooftop dealer groups and high-volume single-point dealerships that process 500+ internet leads per month and need a platform that handles the entire follow-up lifecycle — not just answering phones. Ideal for BDC directors and general managers who want every lead contacted across voice and text within seconds, with outcomes logged directly to the CRM, without expanding headcount.
Per-minute pricing. Each customer gets a dedicated account manager and customer success team that builds, launches, and optimizes their agents. Contact Thoughtly for dealership-specific pricing.
Toma is built specifically for the automotive industry and it shows. The platform handles both sales and service calls with deep dealership awareness — it can pull a customer's vehicle history from the DMS, know that a 2020 Honda Accord at 80,000 miles is due for specific OEM-recommended services, and book the appointment during the same call. Toma is used by recognizable dealer groups including Pohanka Automotive Group, Hudson Automotive Group, Corwin Automotive Group, and Bergey's. Their recent $17 million funding round signals continued investment in automotive-specific AI capabilities.
Where Toma stands out is fixed ops. Service departments handle high-volume, repetitive calls — appointment scheduling, recall notifications, service status checks, parts inquiries — and Toma has pre-built workflows for all of these. The platform integrates natively with CDK, Reynolds & Reynolds, and Tekion, so call outcomes and appointments flow directly into the DMS without manual data entry.
Dealerships where the service department is the primary profit center and fixed ops call volume is the bottleneck. Ideal for multi-rooftop groups that need deep DMS integration and automotive-specific conversation logic out of the box, particularly if service scheduling and recall outreach are higher priorities than internet lead follow-up.
Contact Toma for pricing. The platform offers a managed onboarding option with tuning and optimization included.
Podium built its reputation as a customer communication and review management platform for local businesses, and its AI BDC product extends that foundation into automotive phone handling. The advantage for dealerships already using Podium is consolidation: the AI phone agent sits on top of the same platform that manages Google reviews, web chat, text messaging, and payment processing. Podium's CEO Eric Rea appeared on the Car Dealership Guy podcast in 2025 to discuss the state of dealership AI, and the platform has significant dealer adoption — G2 shows a 4.6/5 rating from over 2,000 reviews across industries.
The AI BDC handles inbound calls, routes leads to the right department, and follows up via text — all within Podium's unified inbox. For dealers who already have Podium's messaging and review tools, adding AI phone handling is a natural extension rather than another vendor to manage.
Dealerships already using Podium for reviews and messaging that want to consolidate AI phone handling into the same platform. Ideal for multi-location groups that value a single-vendor approach to customer communication rather than best-of-breed point solutions.
Monthly subscription pricing. Podium offers tiered plans based on features and location count. Contact Podium for dealership-specific pricing that includes AI BDC capabilities.
Numa approaches dealership AI from a team-augmentation angle rather than full automation. The platform's Smart Inbox aggregates calls, texts, and chats into a single view where AI handles the initial response and qualification, then routes to the right human when needed. For dealerships that want AI to handle the first touch and after-hours coverageAfter-hours coverageHandling inbound calls outside of business hours. Thoughtly works 24/7, so prospects don't bounce to voicemail at 2am. but still keep their BDC team in the loop for complex interactions, Numa provides a middle ground between full automation and a traditional phone tree.
Numa integrates with CDK, Reynolds & Reynolds, and DealerSocket, and is specifically designed for the dealership workflow where calls need to be routed between sales, service, parts, and the cashier — not just answered generically. The platform handles 24/7 voice coverage with natural-sounding AI that books service appointments and answers common questions.
Dealerships that want to augment their existing BDC team with AI rather than replace it. Ideal for stores where the general manager wants to ensure every call is answered 24/7 and routed correctly, but the BDC team still handles the consultative selling and complex scheduling.
Custom pricing, typically in the $500–1,500/month range for enterprise features. Contact Numa for dealership-specific pricing.
Impel AI positions itself as an end-to-end AI platform for automotive retail, covering the customer journey from first inquiry through post-sale loyalty. The platform combines conversational AI for phone and messaging with digital retailing tools, video walkarounds, and trade-in processing. For dealer groups that want a single platform to handle lead engagement, nurturing, sales follow-up, and service retention, Impel offers a broad suite rather than a point solution.
The platform's automotive depth is evident in its feature set: VIN-specific inventory integration, trade-in value estimation, financing pre-qualification conversations, and service appointment scheduling that pulls from the dealer's actual availability. Impel serves large dealer groups and has native DMS integrations for major platforms.
Large dealer groups that want a single automotive-specific platform covering the entire customer lifecycle — from internet lead engagement through service retention. Best suited for organizations with the implementation bandwidth to adopt a comprehensive suite rather than a single-purpose AI phone agent.
Contact Impel AI for pricing. The platform typically serves mid-to-large dealer groups with custom pricing based on rooftop count and feature scope.
Matador AI focuses on identifying which leads are most likely to buy and routing them to the right person at the right time. The platform's Opportunity Search feature scans incoming leads and flags hot prospects based on intent signals — form submissions, repeat website visits, specific vehicle page views, and conversation sentiment. For dealerships drowning in internet leads with limited BDC bandwidth, Matador helps prioritize which leads deserve immediate human attention versus which ones the AI should continue nurturing.
The platform handles initial lead engagement via text and voice, qualifies interest, and scores each lead's purchase readiness. When a lead meets the threshold, Matador alerts the assigned salesperson with context about what the buyer has been looking at and what they have said — so the human follow-up call starts with information rather than a cold introduction.
Dealerships with a strong BDC team that needs better lead prioritization and faster identification of purchase-ready buyers. Ideal for high-volume stores where the challenge is not answering calls but figuring out which leads to pursue first.
Contact Matador AI for pricing. The platform serves dealerships with custom pricing based on volume and feature requirements.
Conversica pioneered AI-powered lead follow-up before most of the platforms on this list existed. The company has been automating sales outreach via email and SMS since 2007, and its Revenue Digital Assistants handle persistent, multi-touch follow-up campaigns that continue engaging leads until they respond or opt out. For dealerships that struggle with long-term lead nurturing — following up with someone who submitted a form three weeks ago and never responded — Conversica is built precisely for that problem.
The platform integrates deeply with Salesforce, HubSpot, and automotive CRMs including Elead, and its AI assistants can be configured for automotive sales scenarios including new vehicle inquiries, service reminders, and trade-in outreach. Conversica's long track record means a large base of deployment data and trained conversation models, though the platform's roots in email-first follow-up mean its real-time voice AI capabilities are newer than some competitors.
Dealerships and dealer groups that need persistent, long-term lead nurturing across email, SMS, and voice — particularly for re-engaging aged leads that the BDC team has stopped working. Best for organizations already using Salesforce or HubSpot as their primary CRM.
Annual subscription pricing. Contact Conversica for automotive-specific pricing. The platform typically serves mid-market to enterprise dealer groups.
The right platform depends on which dealership problem is costing you the most revenue today:
For most dealerships in 2026, the core challenge is not answering phones — it is converting the internet leads that arrive after hours, on weekends, and faster than the BDC team can respond. The platform that handles that full conversion lifecycle across voice and text, while writing outcomes back to the CRM, will deliver the highest ROI.
An AI phone agent for dealerships is software that uses artificial intelligence to handle inbound and outbound phone calls autonomously — answering customer inquiries, qualifying leads, booking test drives and service appointments, and routing calls to the right department. Unlike a traditional IVR or phone tree, these platforms use natural language processing to have actual conversations, understand intent, and take actions like scheduling or CRM updates.
Pricing varies significantly across platforms. Per-minute pricing (like Thoughtly) typically ranges from a few cents to around $0.50 per minute of conversation, meaning dealers pay based on actual call volume. Subscription-based platforms (like Podium and Conversica) can range from $500 to several thousand dollars per month depending on features, rooftop count, and call volume. Automotive-specific platforms like Toma and Numa typically offer custom pricing based on the dealer's size and requirements.
Some platforms — particularly automotive-native ones like Toma, Numa, and Impel — offer pre-built integrations with major DMS platforms including CDK, Reynolds & Reynolds, Tekion, and Dealertrack. Horizontal platforms like Thoughtly and Conversica typically connect to dealer systems through APIs, webhooks, and workflow tools like Zapier. Before committing, ask any vendor to demonstrate a live write-back to your specific DMS — integration claims and actual integration depth can differ.
Most dealerships in 2026 are using AI to augment their BDC team, not replace it. AI handles the high-volume, time-sensitive tasks that BDC teams struggle with — instant lead response, after-hours coverage, follow-up persistence, and repetitive service scheduling — while humans handle the consultative selling, complex trade-in negotiations, and relationship building that still require a personal touch. The result is usually higher lead coverage and faster response times without expanding BDC headcount.
The best platforms can initiate outbound contact — a phone call, a text, or both — within seconds of a lead submission. Thoughtly, for example, can call and text new internet leads in under 60 seconds. This speed matters because industry data consistently shows that leads contacted within the first minute convert at significantly higher rates than those left waiting for 15–30 minutes in a CRM queue. After-hours leads are where AI provides the most dramatic improvement, since the alternative is waiting until the next business day.
Ask the vendor to demonstrate these specific scenarios: (1) an after-hours internet lead arriving from your actual lead source, (2) a service appointment booking for a vehicle in your DMS, (3) a call where the customer interrupts and changes the subject, (4) a warm transfer to a live salesperson with context, (5) how call outcomes are logged in your CRM or DMS. Also ask about pricing transparency, contract length, implementation timeline, and what happens when the AI cannot handle a call. If the vendor cannot demonstrate your specific workflow during the demo, that is a signal.
