Why we're not integrating with CDK

A common question from dealers using CDK: "do you integrate?"

Short answer: no, by design.

Long answer:

CDK's "Cobalt Connect" gateway charges third-party software vendors $25,000-50,000 just to obtain integration credentials. Then a per-rooftop monthly fee on top, often $300-600. Then per-API-call metered fees on top of that.

For a startup like us, that math is impossible. We'd be paying CDK more than we charge dealers.

Worse, the contract terms required to access the gateway include — for many vendors — clauses that let CDK price-match or otherwise restrict your offering. Read the published lawsuits.

So our path is direct: dealers can export from CDK on their own (CDK's own export tools work fine), and we ingest the export. It's a manual run-once step during onboarding, then a CSV refresh on whatever cadence makes sense.

For dealers stuck in 60-month CDK contracts: we run alongside. Use ADP for marketplace, Herald, CRM, and reporting; keep CDK for what it's actually good at. Then port off when the contract is up.

This isn't ideological. We integrate happily with Reynolds, DealerSocket, Frazer, DealerCenter, Tekion, and the smaller modern DMSes (where the integration costs are reasonable). It's only CDK's pricing that sits outside what we can responsibly absorb.

If you're a CDK dealer reading this and want to switch — we'll cover the first 90 days of dual-running while we migrate you off. Email us.