As in all other areas of life, smartphone apps are proliferating for drivers and car owners. These nine are the ones we’ve found to be the most useful, be they for getting around, for nabbing the best deal on gas prices, for finding parking, and a lot more. Just please keep your eyes on the road—not your phone—while you’re driving.
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Google Maps
-If you’ve been on Apple Maps for a while, or really any other mapping app, it’s time to come back to the Google mothership. It’s simply the best and it keeps getting better. This is particularly true if you use Gmail or are logged into other Google services on your computer. The places you search on you desktop seamlessly show up in the mobile app. And now that it integrates a lot of info from Waze (which Google bought) it’s even smarter about routing you around problems. http://www.google.com/maps/about/
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Waze
-For everyday use, Waze isn’t ideal. It’s still kind of buggy, it devours your phone’s battery, and it can be distracting while you drive. So why recommend it? Because if you get stuck in some dense traffic, it’s the best tool there is. This is especially true in a city like L.A., where there’s always an alternate route. It may take you along some very strange paths, but it will get you there. Just make sure your phone is plugged in. https://www.waze.com/
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Roadtrippers
-While Google Maps is the best for getting from one place to another, if you’re planning an extended road trip, Roadtrippers absolutely indispensible. Think of it as Yelp but for road tripping. Not only does it have reviews for hotels, campgrounds, points of interest, and eats, but it has advanced route-planning tools that let you string all of them together. Basically it gives you a complete picture of your drive. It can even estimate the amount you’re going to spend on gas. Pretty sweet. https://roadtrippers.com/about/app
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SpotHero
-If you’ve ever arrived for a meeting twenty minutes early, only to spend the next 45 minutes driving around in circles looking for a place to park your car, then you need SpotHero. It’s kind of like Airbnb for your car. Use the app to find an open spot near you, reserve and pay for it, and when you arrive at the garage you’re all set. Currently available in 12 major U.S. cities. http://spothero.com/
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RepairPal
-It would be great if everyone had a trusted local mechanic, but for many people that just isn’t the case. Sometimes your car has problem you’ve never encountered, you have to take it to a shop you’ve never been to, and you have no idea how much it should cost. How do you keep from getting ripped off? RepairPal gives you accurate, average costs for specific repairs to your specific vehicle and can even help you find a highly rated mechanic nearby. http://repairpal.com/
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Automatic
-Automatic is an unobtrusive, little dongle (yes, that’s the correct word) that plugs into your vehicle’s diagnostics port and stays there. It’s equipped with GPS and Bluetooth. This means it can deliver unto your smartphone all kinds of stats about your vehicle and your driving. Stuff like gas mileage, engine health, performance, and it can even automatically alert authorities if it senses you’ve been in a bad accident. You can always install more apps for it, too. The dongle is $100, but most of the apps are free. https://www.automatic.com
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GasBuddy
-There are a ton of gas-station-finding apps out there. We’ve found GasBuddy to be the most reliable. Not only does it have nearly every gas station in the U.S. in its database, but it has a huge user base, so updates and corrections are always coming in. This means it can, more often than not, help you find the absolute cheapest gas around, and you can apply filters if you need something specific like diesel. http://www.gasbuddy.com/
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PlugShare
-Got an electric car? PlugShare is mandatory. It’s basically an interactive map of more than 40,000 charging stations across the U.S. It can even tell you whether there’s any space left at the one you’re heading towards. It’s a very basic app but it might just save you from a very expensive tow. http://www.plugshare.com/
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XLR8
-Okay, this last one is totally dumb kind of pointless. And yet, it’s really fun and it’s sure to get a laugh or two. XLR8 is for those well intentioned people who have a hybrid or electric car but miss the sound of a big, mean engine. XLR8 gives you back the vroom vroom you’ve been craving. Connect your phone to your stereo and you can make your car sound like a V-8 muscle car, NASCAR engine, a Ford GT40, a Ferrari, or a Lamborghini supercar. Dumb, but fun. http://2xlgames.com/xlr8/
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