Features & Guide
Everything Chip.IT Mechanical can do — and how to use it.
Built for everyday drivers

Your garage, in your pocket — and on every dashboard.

Chip.IT Mechanical remembers every oil change, every receipt, and every quirk of every vehicle you own. Tap a sticker on the dash, and the whole story is right there — for you, for your mechanic, or for the next owner.

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What you can do

Track every vehicle

Cars, trucks, motorcycles, lawn mowers, boats, ATVs — anything with an engine fits in your garage.

Log every service

Oil changes, brakes, tires, rotor swaps, custom builds. Pre-built templates make it one tap.

Snap your receipts

Photos of receipts, parts, and invoices live forever next to the log entry — no shoebox required.

Never miss an oil change

Email and push reminders before the next service is due, on a schedule you control.

Tap-to-view history

Stick an NFC chip anywhere on your dash. Tap it with any phone — your full record opens in 1 second.

Decode the check engine light

28,000+ OBD-II codes built in. Type "P0420" — get a plain-English explanation.

Describe it out loud

Tap the mic, say "there's a clunk when I turn left" — get suggestions you can show your mechanic.

See open recalls

One click checks your VIN against the recall database — no more guessing.

Sell with the chip

One email, one click — the entire history transfers to the new owner. Beats a Carfax.

Works offline, installs like an app

Add to home screen. Splash screen, native feel, works at the back of the shop with no signal.

Lock the door behind you

Optional 4-digit PIN to open the app, plus a separate PIN for sensitive service edits.

Free to start

Log your whole garage at no cost. No credit card. No upsells in your face.

For everyday car owners

Daily essentials

Add your daily driver — or your whole fleet 5 minutes

Anything with an engine fits. Cars, pickups, motorcycles, side-by-sides, riding mowers, jet skis, work trucks, project builds. Add a photo, a name your family will recognise ("Mom's Camry", "Yard Beast"), the year/make/model and current mileage — that's it.

  • VIN auto-decode fills in year, make, and model for you.
  • Odometer history remembers every reading you log.
  • Photos on the card so you instantly know which truck is which.
How to use it
  1. From the sidebar tap Add a vehicle.
  2. Type the VIN if you have it — Chip.IT decodes the year/make/model and prefills the form.
  3. Snap or upload a photo (optional, but helps when you have multiple).
  4. Set the current mileage. This is the baseline for every reminder we'll send you.
  5. Hit Save. Repeat for every vehicle you own.
Pro tip. If you don't have the VIN handy, you can skip it and add it later from the vehicle's page — it's never required.

Log every service in seconds templates included

Pre-built templates for the things you actually do: oil changes, tire rotations, brake jobs, air filter swaps, coolant flush, transmission fluid, spark plugs. One tap fills in the title and a sensible default "next due" interval — change anything you want.

  • Date, mileage, notes, and photos of receipts or work performed.
  • Set "next due" by date and by mileage — whichever hits first wins.
  • Custom entries for anything not on the template list.
How to use it
  1. Open a vehicle from My vehicles.
  2. Tap + Log service.
  3. Pick a template (or choose Custom) — title, due-date interval, and due-mileage interval pre-fill.
  4. Enter today's odometer reading and any notes.
  5. Attach photos of the receipt, the parts box, or the work itself — drag & drop, or tap the camera icon to take one now.
  6. Tap Save. A reminder is now scheduled for the next service.
Pro tip. The notes field accepts shop names and part numbers — searchable later from the vehicle's history page.

Reminders that meet you where you are email + push

The dashboard shows what's overdue and what's coming up next. Email reminders land in your inbox before each service is due. If you opt in to push notifications on your phone, your home-screen icon will tap you on the shoulder too.

  • Overdue tile — flashes red the moment something slips past due.
  • Upcoming widget — the next 5 things sorted by which hits first.
  • Smart cron sends one digest per day, never spam.
How to use it
  1. The first time you visit the app on a phone, the browser will ask "Allow notifications?" — tap Allow.
  2. To toggle later: open Settings → Security and flip Push notifications.
  3. Reminder timing is driven by the Next due date and Next due mileage on each log — you can edit them at any time.
  4. Update your odometer regularly so mileage-based reminders fire on time. The dashboard nudges you to do this every 30 days.
The Chip.IT magic

Tap-to-open NFC chips

Stick a chip — tap a phone — see your history no app needed

A Chip.IT NFC tag is a flat sticker about the size of a quarter. Stick it inside your dash, on the inside of the fuel-filler door, anywhere flat. Anyone with a modern phone can tap it — no app, no account — and your service history opens in their browser. Lend the truck to your kid? They can show the mechanic the full receipt history with one tap.

  • You own the chip forever. First user to pair it is the permanent owner.
  • Only the right people see anything. Strangers see a polite "this chip belongs to someone else" page.
  • Re-usable. Sold the truck? Move the chip to your next vehicle in one click.
How to use it
  1. Open Settings → My NFC chips and tap + Pair a new chip.
  2. If the chip is blank, hold a fresh sticker against the back of your Android phone — the page programs it for you. (iPhone users: see the writer panel for the NFC Tools fallback.)
  3. Pick which vehicle the chip should open. Done.
  4. Stick the chip somewhere flat on the vehicle — most people put it on the inside of the fuel door or under the dash.
  5. Test it: turn off your phone's screen, then tap the chip with the back of your phone. The vehicle's history page opens in your browser.
Got a batch? Admins can program a stack of chips in rapid mode — keep tapping fresh stickers, the page walks the list for you.
When something goes wrong

Smart help

Decode any check-engine code 28,000+ codes

The dreaded yellow light just came on. Read the code with any cheap OBD-II scanner or your scan-tool app, type it into Chip.IT, and get a plain-English explanation of what the car is complaining about. P-codes (powertrain), B-codes (body), C-codes (chassis), U-codes (network) — all covered, generic plus most major manufacturer-specific codes.

How to use it
  1. From the sidebar open Garage Tools → Check-engine lookup.
  2. Type the code (e.g. P0420, P0301).
  3. Read the explanation, then attach it to the affected vehicle's history with one tap.
A code is a clue, not a diagnosis. Same code, different cars, very different fixes — see our accuracy disclaimer.

Voice diagnostics — describe it like you would to a friend

You don't always have a code. Sometimes the car just feels wrong. Tap the mic and say it: "There's a clicking when I turn left at low speed." Chip.IT translates that into the components and codes most likely responsible and gives you a list you can show your shop — no automotive vocabulary required.

How to use it
  1. From the sidebar open Garage Tools → Voice diagnostics.
  2. Hold the mic button and describe what's happening — when it happens, what it sounds/feels/smells like.
  3. Review the suggested components and codes. Save the session to a vehicle so it lives with the rest of its history.

Open-recall lookup VIN-aware

Manufacturer recalls fix safety issues for free at any dealer — but only if you know about them. Chip.IT runs your VIN against the recall database and tells you exactly what's outstanding and where to take it.

How to use it
  1. Open the affected vehicle from My vehicles.
  2. Scroll to Recalls on the right rail.
  3. Click Check now — results appear within a couple seconds.
  4. Each open recall links straight to the manufacturer's documentation and dealer-locator.
Always confirm at nhtsa.gov/recalls for the authoritative U.S. record before scheduling a service.
When things go sideways

Safety & security

Stolen-vehicle reports — turn the chip into an alarm

If a vehicle is taken, you can flag it stolen inside Chip.IT. Now if anyone taps its NFC chip — a curious stranger, a savvy mechanic, the next "buyer" — they see your stolen report with the police case number and your contact info. Every tap on a stolen chip is logged with timestamp and IP, so you have a digital trail to hand to law enforcement.

  • Police case number, agency name, agency contact, your contact phone, last-known location.
  • Tap timestamps + IPs visible to you in real time.
  • Un-flag with one click when the vehicle is recovered.
How to use it
  1. Open the affected vehicle.
  2. Tap the red Mark stolen button.
  3. Fill in the police case info (case number, agency, contact). The agency contact + your phone become the call-to-action shown to anyone who taps the chip.
  4. Save. The chip's behaviour switches instantly — no need to re-encode anything.
Always file a police report first. Chip.IT is not a law-enforcement service — it just amplifies the report you already filed.

Lock the app, lock the edits two PINs

Two optional 4-digit PINs give you household-friendly privacy:

  • App-open PIN. Required once per session before anything in the app renders. Great if your spouse or kid uses your phone.
  • Service PIN. Required to delete logs, transfer chips, or mark a vehicle stolen — the irreversible stuff. Keeps "I let my buddy log a tire rotation" from becoming "I let my buddy delete five years of history".
How to use it
  1. Open Settings → Security.
  2. Set the App-open PIN for whole-app lock.
  3. Set the Service PIN for destructive actions (separate from the app PIN — make them different).
  4. Forgot a PIN? Reset it via the email-link recovery flow on the lock screen.
When other people get involved

Share & sell

Share a vehicle with your spouse, kid, or mechanic

Family vehicle? Both of you should be able to log services. Mechanic working on your truck for a week? They should see the history before they wrench. Send a share invite by email — they create a free account (or sign in) and your vehicle shows up in their garage too. Revoke at any time.

How to use it
  1. Open Settings → Sharing.
  2. Tap + Invite someone, type their email, pick which vehicle(s) to share.
  3. They get an email with a one-click accept link. Done.
  4. To revoke: open the same page and hit Remove next to their name.

Sell the truck — hand over the whole story beats Carfax

When you sell a vehicle, you can transfer the chip and every receipt, every photo, every service interval to the new owner. They get a record of your care worth more than any inspection report. You stop seeing the vehicle in your dashboard the moment they accept.

  • 14-day expiry on offers — pull it back any time before they accept.
  • Both sides have to type the literal word "TRANSFER" / "ACCEPT" before it commits — no accidents.
  • Immutable audit trail kept by Chip.IT for both parties.
How to use it
  1. From the vehicle's page (or Settings → My NFC chips), tap Transfer.
  2. Type the buyer's email, an optional personal note, then type the word TRANSFER in the confirmation box.
  3. The buyer gets an email — they sign in or sign up, type ACCEPT, and the vehicle moves to their garage with everything attached.
  4. If the deal falls through before they accept, hit Cancel on the pending transfer.
Transferring a vehicle in Chip.IT does NOT transfer the title. Title, registration, and DMV paperwork still happen the normal way.
Built like a real app

Pocket-ready

Install it. Customise it. Use it offline.

Chip.IT Mechanical is a Progressive Web App — meaning it installs to your phone's home screen with a real app icon, runs full-screen with no browser bar, and works even when you're stuck under a vehicle with no signal. Your splash screen, your theme, your launch animation — all yours.

  • Add to Home Screen — looks and feels like a native app.
  • Custom splash image — upload your shop logo, project car, family photo. Pick the animation and lighting effect.
  • Light + dark theme — flip in the topbar.
  • Offline-tolerant — pages you've already opened keep working when the signal drops.
How to use it
  1. Install (Android): Chrome shows an "Install Chip.IT" prompt — tap it. Or open the menu and pick Install app.
  2. Install (iPhone): tap the share button in Safari and pick Add to Home Screen.
  3. Custom splash: open Settings → Splash studio, upload an image, pick the duration / animation / effect, save.
  4. Theme: tap the moon/sun icon in the topbar.
Frequently asked

Common questions

Is Chip.IT really free?

Yes. Logging your whole garage costs nothing. We only charge for physical NFC chips themselves (consumable hardware). There are no ads, no upsells in your face, and no plans to harvest your data — see our Privacy Notice.

What happens to my data if I close my account?

Email legal@mychipit.com from the email on the account. We erase your account, vehicles, logs, photos, push subscriptions, and active chip pairings. The full procedure is in the Privacy Notice.

Do I need an iPhone or Android phone?

Either works. The whole app runs in any modern browser — Chrome, Safari, Firefox, Edge, Brave. Web NFC writing of new chips is Android-Chrome only (Apple's choice), but tapping an already-programmed chip works on every NFC-capable phone, including iPhones.

Can my mechanic see my history without an account?

Yes — if you stuck a chip on the vehicle, anyone can tap it to see the public-safe version of your history. For full edit access, share the vehicle from Settings → Sharing with their email so they can log work directly.

Built for drivers first. Powerful enough for shops and fleets.

Add your first vehicle in under a minute. Add the second one in less than that.

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Chip.IT Mechanical · A Prosolutions Technology LLC product · Privacy · Terms · Accuracy & Liability