When someone “shops” the vehicle, they physically locate the vehicle on the lot and inspect it from all sides. They then make recommendations for enhancements that will likely result in additional profit for the customer.
Shopping the vehicle can be done using paper, V-TRACE, or the Inspections Portal. In this document, we assume that the shopper is using the Inspections Portal to make recommendations.
Shopping a vehicle that requires a mechanical inspection
Vehicles that require an inspection appear in the Needs Inspection work queue. When the Condition Report (CR) is completed, the vehicle moves to the Suggested Repair work queue (see Figure 1).
The Suggested Repair queue serves as the working list for the shopper. (For more information on the different queues, see the “Inspections Portal Workflow” documentation in the Help Center.)
To maintain the Suggested Repair work queue, the shopper will review each vehicle’s Condition Report (CR) and suggest repairs for the vehicle in the Portal.
To shop a vehicle in the Suggested Repair queue:
1. The shopper walks the lot and search for the vehicle by VIN.
2. If a mechanical check is required, the shopper places a yellow sticker on the vehicle’s windshield.
This sticker makes it obvious to the lot crew or mechanic that a mechanical inspection is required.
3. The shopper marks suggested repairs by selecting the S checkbox (see Figure 2).
4. The shopper adds photos or damage notes for each line item as needed (see Figure 3).
5. In the Overall Notes area, the shopper types any notes that need to appear with the vehicle, such as Key or As is (see Figure 4).
6. If the vehicle requires a mechanical check, the shopper selects the Add a Tag + sign (see Figure 5) and then chooses the appropriate tag, such as Mech Check Needed (see Figure 6).
For a complete list of available tags, see the “Inspections Portal Tag Cheat Sheet” documentation in the Help Center.
7. To submit changes, the shopper clicks on the Submit CR button.
8. After adding suggestions and notes, the shopper selects Workflow and moves the vehicle to the Cert/Estimate work queue (see Figure 7).
Shopping a vehicle that needs only part price estimates
In some cases, a vehicle may require a price estimate on a part, such as a broken grille, but not require a mechanical inspection or body shop visit. Shoppers will still physically inspect the vehicle on the lot and mark S to indicate suggested repairs. Shoppers can then indicate that an estimate is needed in one of two ways:
Use the Estimate button and V-TRACE: Select the Estimate button to request a price estimate for that part. In the Estimate Repair window that appears, add Requester Notes, such as “Need price on mirror cover,” and then select Save (see Figure 8).
The information populates in V-TRACE, and the word Requested appears in blue next to the Estimate button (see Figure 9).
Use tags in the Inspections Portal: Select the Add a Tag + sign in the top left corner to add a tag, such as Parts Price Needed, and then select Save Tags (see Figure 10).
No matter which method is used to request the estimate, the shopper can use the Workflow menu to move the vehicle to the Cert/Estimates work queue.
Depending on what the auction has arranged, the vehicle will automatically go to V-TRACE. Alternatively, someone at the auction can be responsible for monitoring the Parts Price Needed tag in the Inspections Portal and request and enter the price. Each auction will decide which method it prefers and follow that method for all vehicles that go through the auction.
Shopping a vehicle that doesn’t need part prices or a mechanical inspection but needs an estimate sent to the customer
If a vehicle doesn’t need a part price estimate or a mechanical inspection, the shopper can use tags or Repair Quotes to send an estimate to the customer. For details on how to do so, see the “Send a Repair Estimate to a Customer” documentation in the Help Center.
Shopping a vehicle that doesn’t need any repairs
If a vehicle doesn’t need any repairs, then the shopper adds notes, such as As is or Cert., and tags the vehicle with Announcements Needed.
The shopper then moves the Workflow to Approve Sale Ready so that whoever monitors the Approve Sale Ready tag can go into AMS, add the proper announcements, and remove the Announcements Needed tag.
