iOS (iPhone/iPad) Based Maintenance Software

[LWB250]

For those out there who like to use a software product to keep their maintenance records, I would like to make a recommendation:

http://www.darrensoft.ca/roadtrip/

I have been using "Road Trip" for a couple of years now after transitioning over from what used to be "Gas Cubby" and "Trip Cubby", both of which were maintenance and mileage applications that eventually became web-based and dumbed down.

The level of detail available as well as the ability to sync across devices using a DropBox account is really nice. You can create reports and export data easily, too. The author will also set up a custom import of your data for free when you purchase the software. I had probably 5-6 years of exported .csv data from Gas Cubby that would have taken me days to re-enter into Road Trip. It does have import tools but I just couldn't get all of the data where I wanted it, so I reached out to the author for help and he ended up doing the import for me gratis.

If there was a negative I would say that it's the limitation of being iOS based, as it would be really nice to be able to enter data from my Mac Pro (desktop). In the near future it's rumored that Apple will have the ability to run iOS based applications in the OS X operating systems, so that might not be an issue much longer.

If you have specific questions about this, please let me know. I have no interest in the author/company, etc., just a very detailed and discriminating record keeper who is very particular about the way in which I record and store my car data.

Dan

 

[gsxr]

For old-school types who are anti-iDevice / mobular, you can use an Excel spreadsheet to track service/maintenance, MPG, error codes, and whatever else. Link below to the format I use, requires Microsoft Excel or other software that can open .xls files. It's pretty rudimentary compared to fancy apps, but I've been using this for 20+ years now. Handy feature is being able to search (Ctrl+F) for things like "brakes" or "thermostat" to find if/when you last replaced something.

Blank template:
http://www.w124performance.com/docs/mb/other/service_record_template.xls

Sample of what it looks like after a few years (PDF file):
http://www.w124performance.com/misc/1994_S500/1994_S500_Service_Record.pdf

 

[LWB250]

I used the spreadsheet method for many years, but I always struggled with things like not having enough space to record all the notes, ability to attach pictures, etc., etc. The "reminder" part is also nice, too, as now I get reminders when I've get service intervals approaching on either mine or other cars in the fleet that I'm tasked with maintaining. I really like the convenience of being able to pull out my phone while I'm fueling up and instantly add the data as well as having it updated on the spot. I would add that by putting this app on the wife's iPhone I never have to ask her for a gas receipt with the mileage written on it - she just enters the data when she fills up and it's done. It's saved a lot of missed fill ups and inaccurate data when I had to swag a mileage entry for her car....

Dan

 

[gerryvz]

I used the spreadsheet method for many years, but I always struggled with things like not having enough space to record all the notes, ability to attach pictures, etc., etc. The "reminder" part is also nice, too, as now I get reminders when I've get service intervals approaching on either mine or other cars in the fleet that I'm tasked with maintaining. I really like the convenience of being able to pull out my phone while I'm fueling up and instantly add the data as well as having it updated on the spot. I would add that by putting this app on the wife's iPhone I never have to ask her for a gas receipt with the mileage written on it - she just enters the data when she fills up and it's done. It's saved a lot of missed fill ups and inaccurate data when I had to swag a mileage entry for her car....

Dan

I use Fuelly (both iOS app and online via web interface, they share the same data) for fuel tracking, and a spreadsheet system similar to GSXR for maintenance tracking on my vehicles.

 

[LWB250]

Gas Cubby was bought out by Fuelly a few years ago, after which they totally killed Gas Cubby, which was an excellent maintenance and record keeping application. I tried to use Fuelly when the conversion took place, but they left so many features out when they went to the web interface I considered it unusable for anything other than fuel/mileage tracking. Not to mention their terms for the security and sharing of your data were not up to my standards (I am a cybersecurity professional, so I actually read some of those EULA things.) I want all my data to be in the same place and stored securely without being shared.....

Dan

 

[gsxr]

I used the spreadsheet method for many years, but I always struggled with things like not having enough space to record all the notes, ability to attach pictures, etc., etc. The "reminder" part is also nice, too, as now I get reminders when I've get service intervals approaching on either mine or other cars in the fleet that I'm tasked with maintaining. I really like the convenience of being able to pull out my phone while I'm fueling up and instantly add the data as well as having it updated on the spot.

Oooo. Fancy! Of course, this does require a phone, which I don't have... and I hear decent ones are upwards of $500. (!?)

I would add that by putting this app on the wife's iPhone I never have to ask her for a gas receipt with the mileage written on it - she just enters the data when she fills up and it's done. It's saved a lot of missed fill ups and inaccurate data when I had to swag a mileage entry for her car....

That is a nice bonus. I'm very lucky, my wife writes down all the data on the receipt and puts it on my keyboard (and, remembers to rest the trip odometer too).

 

[LWB250]

That is a nice bonus. I'm very lucky, my wife writes down all the data on the receipt and puts it on my keyboard (and, remembers to rest the trip odometer too).

After many years of struggling to get her to do the mileage on the receipt, which she did get to be pretty consistent with, I presented this as an alternative to not having to write things down and pass them along to me. She went for it.

However, the trip odometer rarely, if ever, gets reset. I just sat in the car today and it had 3/4 of a tank of fuel and the trip odometer was at 1300 and something. Yeah, I reset it. Small steps, man, even after 38 years.

Dan

 

[gerryvz]

I don't get too hyper about the security of fuel-up information, as there is nothing that I enter with that data that is sensitive other than date, time, amounts, location and fuel brand information.

In reality, ANYTHING we enter or do on-line is partially or wholly insecure, particularly to those who have the tools/motivation to crack security. On the scale of importance as compared to health or financial data, fuel-up info is pretty low to me personally, though I realize for others it may well be very high.

I've attached the spreadsheet that I use for my vehicles. This is the one I use for my E500. It's a home-made spreadsheet, but it works for me (note I have multiple tabs).

Cheers,
Gerry

 

[Maui]

Oooo. Fancy! Of course, this does require a phone, which I don't have... and I hear decent ones are upwards of $500. (!?)

I have a hard time believing you don't have a phone. I can certainly understand why you wouldn't want the number out there because you would receive multiple calls per day from DIY's. But, you could start a paid help line and retire from your day job.