FAQs

CarMD® Connect brings vehicle health insights, trusted service, and rewards together to make car care simple, fair, and more transparent.

Anyone who owns or is responsible for the upkeep of a car, light truck, SUV or minivan can benefit from CarMD Connect. It’s great to monitor vehicle health and location for your own car. And it also enables you to co-manage a vehicle, which is ideal for households with more than one vehicle and teen drivers.

CarMD is headquartered in Irvine, California.

In 2006, CarMD.com Corporation launched to empower consumers by providing them with tools and information to make better-educated decisions about their vehicle’s health. Our sister company, Innova Electronics, has been an industry leader of diagnostic tools and reporting for the automotive aftermarket since 1982.

From 2006 to 2013, CarMD sold its handheld device (#2100/#2150) and software kit. Drivers could plug the device into an OBD2 port under their vehicle’s dashboard and get a green, yellow or red LED to see if their car was ready for a road trip or emissions test.

The device also connected to a computer to generate a vehicle health report, empowering them with upcoming maintenance and estimated repair costs – saving consumers thousands in automotive repairs.

The original CarMD product earned many prestigious awards, including a 2007 CES Innovation Award and 2010 Edison Award. Today, the company sells CarMD Connect, an all-in-one device and intelligent app that was launched in 2025.

To use the app and all its features, it is important to provide your vehicle’s VIN. You can usually find your car's VIN in a few different places, including stamped on the dashboard near the driver’s side windshield, on a sticker inside the driver's side door, on your insurance policy, or on your vehicle’s title and registration.

Absolutely! The app gives you the flexibility and needed features to keep on top of your vehicle's health and earn cash-back rewards.

No. There are no monthly subscriptions or hidden fees to use the CarMD Connect app. We’ve negotiated with our partners to bring you discounts and incentives that make vehicle ownership a little more affordable, simple and stress free.

The simplest way is to use the app to schedule a service with one of our vetted shops, perform the service, scan your receipt, and redeem your rewards as a gift card and enjoy the savings. Check the app for more details and other ways to earn credits.

Our app gives you the option to scan your vehicle at more than 17,000 auto parts retail locations across the country. Simply open the app to find your nearest location, go to the store and ask for a free vehicle health scan, and follow the steps on the app.

No. CarMD Connect includes all features with no monthly fees or hidden charges. Even the location sharing feature doesn’t need a subscription because it uses your approved mobile devices instead of a built-in GPS. You stay in control of who sees your location — while still getting smart alerts and trip tracking without extra costs.

It's easy. Download the CarMD Connect app from the Apple App or Google Play stores. Then follow the app prompts to use it as a free stand-alone product, or with the optional CarMD Device.

Yes. An account registration is needed to use and activate your free CarMD Connect app. Registration only takes under a minute. And you will never be asked for any additional fees or subscriptions to use the CarMD Connect app.

The CarMD database has tons of millions of vehicle-specific maintenance and repair insights. We need your VIN and mileage to provide you with the most accurate information for your specific vehicle and to ensure AskCarMD, our AI chatbot, gives you personalized answers.

No. A device is not required to use the CarMD Connect app. Anyone in the family can download the free app and Join a (family) Group. But you will need to give permission for someone to join the group. This makes it ideal for parents to help monitor their teen or elderly parent.

CarMD has developed a proprietary knowledgebase, developed over decades, with real world vehicle service and repair data that includes maintenance and technician-verified, vehicle-specific fixes, plus licensed information from vehicle manufacturers. When you engage with AskCarMD and ask a question, you get personalized answers customized to your vehicle and its collected engine data, which is more accurate than if you were to ask a generic chatbot or AI engine like ChatGPT or Gemini.

Yes. In order to use the CarMD Connect device and access its features, functions and benefits, you need to install the companion app, which is available in the Apple App and Google Play stores.

The CarMD Connect device works on nearly all vehicles 1996 and newer sold in the U.S. and Canada. This includes passenger cars and light-duty trucks - including hybrids (must be OBD II compliant). Check your vehicle’s compatibility

CarMD connects into a universal 16-pin Data Link Connector (or DLC) found inside your vehicle. It is usually located under the dashboard on the driver’s side. This connector is standard on all 1996 and newer vehicles sold in North America. Follow the app prompts to locate your vehicle’s OBD2 port.

You can only have one device plugged into your vehicle’s OBD2 port, so if you already use a tracker for good driving discounts, you won’t be able to use CarMD Connect.

CarMD Connect works with newer model (2010 and newer) hybrids as well as most EVs, as long as the vehicle is equipped with an OBD2 port – where the CarMD Connect device is plugged in to gather vehicle data.

However, EVs don’t have emissions-related components; their OBD2 systems primarily monitor the electric powertrain and battery health, so there may be limited functionality on EVs.

We recommend one CarMD Connect device per each household vehicle. However, the app can be shared and used by parents and their teens to help monitor their safety.

We offer a limited one-year (1-year) warranty. You can view the full warranty terms here.