Automotive industry veterans Alexander DeBuono and Dennis Lecos say they have developed a vehicle management software app that aims to remove confusion and frustration for car owners and buyers in the country.
“Carfuffle takes the confusion or commotion out of vehicle ownership,” said Lecos, who came up with the idea in December 2017. “The intent was to create an app that marries consumers and vehicle services all in one place.”
To accomplish this, Lecos said Carfuffle (a play on the word kerfuffle) offers a suite of vehicle services, such as mechanical, cosmetic and emergency services that help meet consumer needs, including handpicked products and competitively priced extended warranties for a range of vehicle types.
The app allows consumers to book services for their vehicles, purchase Carfax history reports, access the vehicle’s value through Canadian Black Book (at no additional cost), and store the vehicle documents in a “virtual garage.” Carfuffle’s news release also said customers with compatible vehicles can qualify for three free months of SiriusXM satellite radio.
The Carfuffle team is anticipating more than 100,000 downloads of the app in Ontario by December. Their next move will be to expand the app across Canada.
For dealers curious as to their long-term goal, Carfuffle’s Alexander DeBuono said they are “hoping to streamline vehicle maintenance and educate the consumer when they’re buying, selling or servicing their vehicle.”
Lecos said the trend they are seeing in the industry is of consumers keeping their vehicle and fixing what they can themselves, or buying a warranty and holding onto the vehicle rather than going out and buying a new one.
“Carfuffle is well-suited to address all of these needs and more,” said Lecos. “Throughout the coronavirus crisis, Carfuffle’s certified service centres have remained open as essential businesses.”
Dealerships in certain provinces were forced to close, partially or completely, in the early days of the crisis. However, that does not appear to be the case now and even in Quebec, where a near month-long lockdown has forced certain businesses to close again, dealerships have remained open.
