By business · Cars

Instagram auto-replies for car dealers

A dealer posts a car that arrived this morning and the comments say “price?” and “still available?” within minutes. Comment-to-DM replies to each with the questions a salesperson would ask. It gives no finance advice and cannot check stock, so a person confirms every car.

Updated 6 October 2026

Start free See the set-ups

Comment words for car dealers

Ask people to comment one word in your caption or video. Each word sends something different.

SPEC: The full specification of the car in the post: mileage, owners, service history, the options fitted and any marks, listed honestly.
TESTDRIVE: How a test drive works: the days and hours, the licence and insurance you check, how long the drive lasts and the route you suggest.
TRADEIN: What you need to give a trade-in estimate: make, model, year, mileage and photos, plus a note that the final figure follows an inspection.
FINANCE: How buying on finance works at your dealership in general terms, what you need to apply and a note that terms depend on the person.
HISTORY: The history documents you can show for a used car: service record, previous keepers and what a history check covers.
WARRANTY: What the warranty covers, for how long, what it leaves out and how to make a claim, in the same plain words as the paperwork.
DELIVERY: How a car reaches a buyer who lives far away: the charge, the days it takes, the checks before it leaves and the handover.

4 set-ups to try

Each one shows the conversation it creates. After a comment, the first DM is plain text, as Meta requires, and the link follows once they answer.

Car details from a just-arrived Reel
Someone comments on your post
SPEC
Public reply under their comment
Full details are on their way to your DMs 🚗
First DM (plain text)
Thanks for the comment. Is this for yourself or the family, and do you have a car to part-exchange? Reply and I'll send the full spec, the mileage and the history we hold.Yes pleaseSpecification, mileage and historySee the car
A car post draws people who are curious as well as buyers. Asking about a part-exchange and the main driver tells the salesperson how to prepare, and the card puts the facts in front of the buyer before anyone drives to the forecourt.
Trade-in estimates from a “we buy your car” post
TRADEINThanks for asking. What make, model and year is your car, and roughly how many miles has it done? Reply and I'll send what we need for an estimate and how an inspection works.How a trade-in estimate worksStart an estimate
A price for a used car means nothing without the details, and a quote given from photos alone can embarrass you at the inspection. The reply sets the expectation that the figure is an estimate until someone has looked at the car.
Test-drive requests from a Saturday Story
Replied to your story
TESTDRIVEThanks for the message. Which car would you like to drive, and which day suits you best? Reply and I'll send what to bring, such as a licence, and how long a drive takes.Book a test driveChoose a time
A test drive is the step that sells a car, and the first delay costs the most. The message names the paperwork people forget, so fewer visitors are turned away at the door, and the car they asked about is already on the card.
Finance questions from a monthly-payment post
Someone comments on your post
FINANCE
Public reply under their comment
Thanks, how finance works is in your DMs
First DM (plain text)
Thanks for asking. Would you rather talk about monthly payments or the total cost, and have you bought a car on finance before? Reply and I'll send how it works here and what we need to start.Yes pleaseHow finance works at our dealershipRead how it works
Finance is regulated and personal, so the automation only explains the process and who to speak to. Asking whether they have done it before lets a salesperson pick up with the right level of detail and never quotes a rate to a stranger.

Freebies worth commenting for

A 12-question checklist to run through before you buy any used car, from the V5 or log book to the spare wheel
A 15-minute test-drive guide: what to listen for, what to try in a car park and what to ask afterwards
A guide to reading a service history, with the gaps and stamps that should prompt a question
A trade-in preparation sheet: what to clean, which keys and papers to find and what not to repair first
A cost-of-ownership worksheet that adds insurance, tax, fuel and servicing to the monthly payment
A paperwork list for collecting a car: ID, proof of address, insurance and what to bring for a part-exchange
A first-month ownership checklist: tyre pressure, fluid checks, warning lights and when your first service is due
A short guide to how finance, leasing and buying outright differ, written as general information only

What people ask a car dealer in DMs

A car is the biggest purchase many people make after a home, and the first message is usually short: price? still there? It is also the easiest to get wrong if an automatic reply invents an answer.

They ask	Send automatically	Answer yourself when
Is it still available?	Nothing: a person checks the stock	Always, and keep the answer to one line
What's the mileage and history?	The SPEC card with the owners and the records	They ask about an accident or an odd noise
What will you give me for my car?	The TRADEIN card and what you need	They send photos: a person gives a range and says it needs inspection
Can I get this on finance?	The FINANCE card, as process only	They ask about rates, credit history or what they could afford
Can I drive it on Saturday?	The TESTDRIVE card	The car is reserved or sold
Will you deliver to Aberdeen?	The DELIVERY card	They want a price for a long distance

Tip: Treat “still available?” as the most important message you get. Put one fixed line at the top of the first reply, such as “let me check the stock”, so the person knows a human will confirm, and keep the sold cars off your keywords.

Posts that earn comments on a forecourt

A just-arrived walk-round filmed in daylight, with SPEC for the details. Show the damage as well as the shine, since buyers check it anyway.
A Reel of a customer collecting their keys, with their consent, and WARRANTY for what is covered after the sale.
A weekend Story with three cars you will have out front, and TESTDRIVE in the text.
A post about what to bring when trading in, with TRADEIN for the estimate sheet.
A worked example of a monthly payment on a car you hold, with FINANCE for the process and a line that it depends on the person.
A short video on what a service history shows, with HISTORY for a sample.

Plate-change months and tax-year ends move buying in many markets, and the weeks after a pay day tend to bring more enquiries than the ones before it. Look at your own sales records, put the matching words live early and test each one by commenting from a second account.

From a comment to someone on the forecourt

The first DM asks one question about the buyer or their part-exchange, so the salesperson's reply starts from facts.
The card opens your car page, a test-drive form or your phone number. DMFast does not read your stock list, so remove or change the reply on a post when the car is sold.
Collect an email for the used-car checklist, and export the list as a CSV for new-arrival alerts.
Use the single reminder for people who asked about a trade-in and stopped replying. Many wait to see what the old car is worth before they decide.
Reply to reserved and sold cars yourself. An automatic reply that offers a car you have already sold costs trust.

A dealer in India could also use the DMFast store to sell a buying guide as a digital product, give away a checklist for an email and take free or paid 1-on-1 calls, with payments through Razorpay. A car sale is paid for and registered in your own way.

Rules and risks for selling cars

Finance. Credit is regulated in most countries, and promoting it often needs a licence and set wording, such as the rate and the total cost. Keep automatic replies to process only, and check what your authorisation requires before a post mentions a monthly figure.
Description. Mileage, accident history and condition must be accurate. Many places treat a false description of a used car as an offence, so state faults you know about.
Consumer rights. Rules on cooling-off periods, warranties and what a dealer must disclose differ by country and sometimes by state. Check yours before you quote a guarantee.
Customer data. Names, driving licences and registration numbers are personal data. Collect them on your own form and not in a DM thread.
Plates. Registration plates can identify a buyer. Blur them when you post a handover.
Meta's limits. One private reply per comment within 7 days, and messages only within 24 hours of someone's last message.

Messages to copy

Questions people ask

Can DMFast tell people whether a car is still available?

No. It cannot see your stock system. It sends the message you wrote and a card with your car page or phone number. Say in the first message that a person will confirm availability, and turn off or change the reply on a post once the car is sold.

Can it give a trade-in price?

No, and it should not. A fair figure depends on a person inspecting the car. The set-up collects the make, year and mileage and explains how an estimate works. AI replies on the Growth and Business plans answer only from the information you provide.

Can an automatic reply talk about finance?

Only in general terms that you wrote and your compliance rules allow. Credit is regulated in most places, so keep replies to the process and who to speak to, and never quote a rate or approve anyone by message. Check what your own authorisation requires.

Can the first message include the car's listing link?

Not after a comment. The first private message to a commenter must be plain text, so it asks a question and the link follows once the person replies. When someone messages you first, or replies to a Story, the card can follow straight away.

Can I message everyone who asked about a car last month?

Not through Instagram. Automated messages reach only people who wrote to you in the last 24 hours, and official tools cannot send mass DMs. Use the email list from a lead magnet for new-arrival alerts, and check your local marketing rules first.

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Words to know

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Answer every SPEC comment in seconds

Pick a post and the word. DMFast replies under each comment, sends the DM and follows with your link once they answer, day and night. It can collect emails on the way. Free plan, no card.

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