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International Automotive Technicians Network

iATN FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions

Members that need help should consult our help document in the members-only area of iATN.

How can my company join iATN?

All iATN memberships belong to individual people, not companies. Anyone at your company that is qualified to join iATN should do so (it's free). The primary membership requirement is that you are an automotive professional with at least four years of experience in the automotive industry, or have at least one ASE certification.

I have multiple repair shops, how can I setup iATN for my enterprise?

Every iATN account is assigned to a specific person, not a business. So the best approach would be to have the employees at each location sign up for their own iATN accounts. These free accounts can be used to participate on iATN, discuss things in our forums, ask for vehicle repair help on TechHelp, and more.

The most valuable feature of iATN is the ability to search the millions of items shared over the years, which is reserved for premium members. The best solution for a business seeking to benefit from iATN would be to have each shop's manager upgrade their iATN account to the Business+ level for $45 per month, which would allow them to specify up to 4 employee accounts as "sub-accounts." These sub-accounts are provided with the same searchable access to iATN as a paid premium account, for no additional charge. Plus, with a Business+ level premium membership, your repair shop will appear in the iATN Repair Shop Finder, aimed at consumers looking for a nearby repair shop.

If you only have one person at each location that needs searchable access to iATN, another option would be to upgrade to the regular Business level, at $36 per month. It offers the same features as Business+, without the 4 sub-accounts.

And finally, a third option would be for each employee that can benefit from searching iATN upgrade to the Individual premium membership level, for $19 per month. Note that this option does not provide business-level features, such as access to consumers through the Repair Shop Finder.

Click here for more details on premium account features and upgrade details.

I'm having a problem with my vehicle, can iATN help?

Yes. If you are a consumer with a vehicle problem, please use the iATN Repair Shop Finder to quickly locate a repair shop near you from the iATN member directory. In addition to their own experience, these repair shops have access to millions of years of additional automotive experience, via their peers on iATN. Please note that iATN does not endorse any company or person listed in our member directory, nor do we guarantee their fitness to perform any services, including automotive repair.

If you are an automotive professional, join iATN today and you can research your problem vehicle in the Knowledge Base, submit a TechHelp request, discuss the vehicle issue in our web forums, or even talk about it in real time with other pros via live chat.

I'm not an automotive technician, but I work in the industry. Can I join?

Yes! Although most members are technicians, we have thousands of members in other roles of the industry, including owners, managers, foreman, service writers, educators/instructors, marketing representatives, engineers, government representatives, etc. Our primary requirement is that you have at least four years of work experience in the automotive industry, or ASE certification, or both.

I'm an automotive student, and don't have the required level of experience. Can I still join?

Yes! We have a special student membership available to automotive students that are referred by their instructor. Ask your instructor to go to the Student Invites section of the members-only area to generate a referral link you can use to join iATN as a student. If your instructor is not yet a member, they can join here.

How much does it cost to be a member?

It is free to join iATN, as long as you are qualified: an automotive professional with at least four years of experience or ASE certification. Basic membership provides access to all of the core features of iATN. If you choose to pay for a premium membership level (ranging from $19 to $45 per month), you will have access to additional resources, such as the searchable iATN Knowledge Base which contains 2.9 million records of real-world automotive repair information. Please view our membership comparison chart to see all the details.

Can I use it from work and home?

Absolutely. Most members use iATN at work AND at home. As long as you are not sharing access to your account with anyone else, you can use iATN from anywhere. Many members like to do research at home on problem vehicles they've got at the shop.

Can I cancel at any time?

Of course. You can downgrade to a basic membership if you only want access to the free portions of iATN, or cancel your account entirely if you no longer wish to be a member. However, we would rather you stick around and help us improve iATN rather than quitting. Please feel free to contact us at any time with your suggestions, comments and constructive criticism.

Can I use iATN to hire a new employee? Or to find a job?

Yes. iATN provides the Classifieds Forum for all members to read and respond to job-wanted, job-available, and non-commercial items for sale messages. Premium members can start these types of discussions.

Can I advertise to iATN's members?

The short answer is no. iATN has long prided itself on providing our members with a very non-commercial atmosphere within the members-only area of iATN. Professionals that join iATN do not have to worry about being bombarded with ads, spam, or the like. And while we welcome participation by everyone in the automotive industry on our forums, we put forth great effort to prevent people from advertising there.

The longer answer is that, in addition to the great support of our members, we are supported by many outstanding automotive industry leaders through our Industry Sponsorship program. Some of these partners have been supporting us for over 10 years now! Our members see the list of our Industry Sponsors on the homepage of the members-only area, as well as in extremely low-key messaging that appears on the top/right side of pages in the members-only area. The industry leaders that enter into this long-term program do so knowing they are supporting iATN, our mission, and our members, more so than simply "advertising."

Can I use iATN to advertise my business to consumers?

Absolutely. Join iATN today and choose the Business Sponsorship option, for $36/month. In addition to all the benefits you get from membership and sponsorship, such as access to the searchable Knowledge Base, you will also receive a webpage and enhanced listing in the iATN Member Directory. Your repair shop will be shown at the top of search results in the Repair Shop Finder, which is aimed at consumers looking for a nearby repair shop.

Please view our membership comparison chart to see all the details.

Can I see a sample of the members-only area?

If you read through the benefits of iATN membership, you will get a good idea of what is available inside iATN. We also have some videos that highlight certain aspects of iATN and the members-only area. However, registration is quick for those that are qualified, why not join today and check it out for yourself?

Do you have vehicle specifications, wiring diagrams, etc?

Not exactly. We do have quite a few OEM resources available in our resources section of the members-only area. And members are constantly discussing vehicles, specifications, and mostly, real-world fixes. Our focus is on real-world automotive vehicle diagnosis, repair and discussion among the professionals working in the field. The vast majority of what's available inside iATN is this kind of material. If you are strictly looking for OEM vehicle specifications and wiring diagrams, we would recommend you take a look at the product offerings of our sister company, Identifix, or some of our industry sponsors, such as AllData, Mitchell 1, Toyota, and others.

Is iATN a "social network"?

Yes, in that iATN has become a society of automotive repair professionals, from around the world, networking with each other to help fix those really tough vehicle problems. Since iATN started in 1995, we're also technically one of the oldest "social networks." Our members often become friends with their peers on iATN, host gatherings (in person!), meet up at industry events to socialize, discuss more personal, non-automotive topics in the Open Discussion Forum, follow each other on iATN so they can keep up with their friend's latest postings, etc.

However, unlike traditional social networks like Facebook, the focus on iATN is on the automotive industry and getting stuff done. Members socialize, but for most, work comes first on iATN. It is first and foremost a tool that can help you get your job done faster.

Is iATN like Identifix®? What is iATN's relationship with Identifix?

Identifix and iATN are owned by the same parent company, Service Repair Solutions, which is a joint venture between Solera Holdings and the private equity firm Welsh, Carson, Anderson & Stowe. Although both Identifix and iATN are in the business of helping automotive repair shops fix vehicles, we have different, but complementary services.

iATN provides a way to network with your peers, to discussion vehicle repair and the automotive industry with fellow professionals. Our premium memberships allow our members to search this collective information. Identifix's Direct-Hit product focuses on expert-authored vehicle repair information that is primarily gathered via their Hotline service. In addition, they have added a huge amount of official OEM data with their OEMDirect service that is now part of Direct-Hit.

Both iATN and Identifix have very reasonably priced services that work well together, and we feel no repair shop should be without either service. We're working together to make it easier for users that subscribe to both services to find information across both services easily and seamlessly.

Can I call someone when I have a vehicle problem, or any other problem?

iATN provides a network for communicating with your peers in the automotive industry, via our website. We do not provide any sort of hotline service. (You may want to try Identifix's Hotline service.) We handle all website technical support issues via email, and premium members can call or email us to discuss any billing issues. Our contact information can be found here.

Did iATN copy the lowercase "i" prefix stylization from Apple®?

iATN was founded in 1995 as "AutoTechNet," and changed it's name to iATN in early 1996, complete with the stylized lowercase "i" in the name and the logo (both of which are registered trademarks). Apple announced their first "iProduct," the iMac®, two years later, in 1998. ;-)