Overview

Smartcar is a connected car API that lets you read vehicle data (odometer, fuel level, location) and send commands (lock/unlock) to real cars with owner permission. It uses OAuth 2.0 so vehicle owners securely authorize your app — similar to how apps request Google account access. It works across most modern cars from major brands without needing brand-specific integrations.

Beginner Tip

Use Smartcar's test mode during development — it provides a simulated vehicle so you can build and test your app without needing a real car. When you're ready to go live, vehicle owners will connect their cars through Smartcar Connect, an OAuth flow you embed in your app.

Available Data

The kind of data this API exposes, based on its documentation. We could not call the endpoint to confirm the exact field names.

book title and author
ISBN and publisher
cover image URL
page count
publication date
vehicle make and model

Example Response

Illustrative shape only — we were not able to call this endpoint (it requires credentials or exposes no public sample URL), so the fields below show the kind of data this API returns rather than a recorded response.

JSON Response · Illustrative
{
  "title": "The Great Gatsby",
  "authors": [
    "F. Scott Fitzgerald"
  ],
  "publishedDate": "1925-04-10",
  "pageCount": 218,
  "categories": [
    "Fiction"
  ],
  "imageLinks": {
    "thumbnail": "https://books.google.com/..."
  },
  "averageRating": 4
}

Field Reference

vehicles List of vehicle IDs that the user has authorized your application to access.
distance Odometer reading with value in kilometers and the unit field.
percentRemaining Fuel or battery level as a decimal (e.g., 0.75 means 75% remaining).
latitude Current GPS latitude of the vehicle.
longitude Current GPS longitude of the vehicle.
isPluggedIn For electric vehicles, indicates whether the car is currently plugged in.

Implementation Example

Calls a real endpoint of this API. Replace any placeholder credentials with your own key.

Request
const url = "https://smartcar.com/docs/";
// Replace headers or query params with the values required by this API.
const response = await fetch(url, {
  headers: {
  "Authorization": "Bearer YOUR_API_KEY"
  }
});
if (!response.ok) throw new Error(`Request failed: ${response.status}`);
const data = await response.json();
console.log(data);

What Can You Build?

Note: These code examples are AI-generated and unverified. Always refer to the official API documentation for accurate usage.

Common Errors & Troubleshooting

Generated guidance based on this API's documentation, not observed by us. Treat it as a starting point and check against the provider's own error reference.

401 Unauthorized The OAuth access token is missing, expired, or invalid.
Use your refresh token to obtain a new access token via the Smartcar token endpoint before retrying the request.
403 Forbidden The access token does not have the required permission scope for this endpoint.
Re-run the OAuth authorization flow and request the specific scopes you need (e.g., "read_odometer", "control_security").
409 Vehicle state error The vehicle is in a state that prevents the command (e.g., car is moving).
Check the error message for details and ensure the vehicle is in an appropriate state (e.g., parked and stopped) before sending commands.

Metadata Score Breakdown

Estimated from metadata — endpoint not independently tested

This score is estimated from observable metadata — HTTPS support, authentication model, declared CORS, and documentation reachability — because the API requires authentication or exposes no publicly testable endpoint. The five-signal breakdown is only shown for live-tested APIs.

Metadata estimate · endpoint not independently tested

Technical Specifications

Auth OAuth
HTTPS REQUIRED
CORS YES
Category Vehicle
Difficulty Advanced
Listing details not endpoint-verified

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