The Free Alternative to AutoTrader & Motors.co.uk

Registration takes under 2 minutes. Once you forward the integration email to your DMS provider, they typically configure the feed within 1–3 business days. Your listings appear on Carslink.ai within minutes of the first feed.

Yes. Carslink.ai supports three vehicle categories: used cars, used motorbikes/motorcycles, and used vans/light commercial vehicles. Set the "vehicle_type" field to "car", "motorbike", or "van" in your stock feed. You can mix all three in a single API request. If vehicle_type is omitted, it defaults to "car" for backwards compatibility.

The following fields are required for all vehicle types: vehicle_type, title, make, model, year, price, mileage, fuel, registration (VRM), image_url, image_urls (minimum 4 images), listing_url, and description. The VIN field is optional but recommended. Additional recommended fields vary by vehicle type — for example, motorbikes should include engine_size, bike_type, and licence_category; vans should include van_type, roof_height, and payload_kg. See the full schema reference below.

We accept JSON payloads sent via a simple HTTP POST request. The API key is sent as an X-Dealer-Api-Key header (not in the body). The integration email includes the full JSON schema, endpoint URL, and a ready-to-use cURL command your DMS provider can test with immediately.

No cap on total vehicles. Each API request supports up to 500 listings. For larger inventories, use our feed session feature: include a "feed_session_id" in each batch and set "final": true on the last batch. This ensures all batches are treated as one complete feed — no stock is accidentally removed between batches.

Ideally, your DMS should push updates whenever stock changes (added, sold, price updated). This gives you real-time accuracy. If scheduled updates are easier, we recommend every 15 minutes to 1 hour during business hours. At an absolute minimum, once per day. Listings auto-expire after 24 hours if not refreshed.

Three options: (1) Use "full_replace" mode — send your entire current inventory and any vehicles not in the batch are removed immediately. This is the recommended approach. (2) Simply stop including the sold vehicle — it auto-expires after 24 hours. (3) Send a full_replace batch at any time with only your current stock.

Yes! Our API is designed for push-on-change. Whenever a vehicle is added, sold, or updated in your DMS, trigger an HTTP POST to our endpoint. This is the ideal integration — your Carslink.ai listings stay perfectly in sync with your actual stock.

Vehicle images must be publicly accessible via HTTPS URL — no authentication required. Hotlink protection must allow our servers to access the images. Use permanent URLs, not signed/temporary URLs that expire. Recommended minimum resolution is 800px wide. Supported formats: JPEG, PNG, WebP. A minimum of 4 images is required per listing (1 hero image + 3 thumbnails). Listings with fewer than 4 images are skipped.

No. Our endpoint is open to any IP address. Authentication is handled entirely via the X-Dealer-Api-Key header. Your system only needs outbound HTTPS (port 443) access — no inbound connections required.

Listings remain live for 24 hours after the last successful refresh. If your feed goes silent, listings will gradually expire. Our admin team monitors feed health and will notify you by email if your feed stops. When the feed resumes, listings are restored immediately.

No. We store only vehicle listing data (make, model, price, images, etc.). No customer or buyer personal data is included in or required by the feed. The integration is fully GDPR-compliant.

Directly to YOUR website. Every listing on Carslink.ai includes a prominent 'View on Dealer's Website' button that links to the URL you provide in your feed. We never host enquiry forms or intercept your leads.

Yes, it's genuinely free for dealers. Our model is designed to become the UK's central used vehicle search engine — the more quality stock we aggregate, the more valuable the platform becomes for buyers. We don't charge dealers because your stock IS the product.

Any DMS or website provider that can send an HTTP POST request with JSON data is compatible. This includes most major UK providers like Codeweavers, Spidersnet, GForces, Autoweb Design, Motor Marketing Solutions, Haswent, and many others. If your provider isn't sure, forward them the integration email — it has everything they need. Dealers whose DMS provider is not yet integrated can contact partnerships@Carslink.ai to request integration.

If you're a dealer operating multiple sites, we recommend each physical site registers separately with its own API key. However, if you're a DMS provider managing multiple dealers, you can use a single API key and include a 'dealer' object in each feed batch to identify the individual dealer. Each batch should represent one dealer's inventory, with a unique 'dms_dealer_id' in the dealer object. Carslink.ai will automatically create individual dealer profiles for each identified dealer.

Yes! If you don't have a DMS provider or prefer to manage stock in a spreadsheet, you can upload a CSV file directly through our self-service portal at /dealer/upload. You'll need your API key and registered email to authenticate. Our AI automatically maps your CSV columns to our system — no technical knowledge required. Listings from CSV uploads expire after 24 hours, so upload daily to keep your stock live.

Yes. Contact us at hello@Carslink.ai and we'll update your details. You can also request a new API key if needed.

Search for one of your vehicles on Carslink.ai. You can also search Google for your dealership name + 'Carslink.ai' to see your indexed listings. Feed failures are notified by email to your registered email address.