Auto.dev – Automotive Data

Use when working with Auto.dev APIs, vehicle data, VIN decoding, car listings, vehicle photos, specs, recalls, payments, interest rates, taxes, OEM build dat...

Security Scan

The skill's requirements and runtime instructions align with its stated purpose (calling Auto.dev APIs) and request only the single expected credential (AUTODEV_API_KEY); there are no install steps or unexpected permissions.

Purpose & Capability

Name/description match the requested artifact: the skill documents and instructs use of Auto.dev endpoints and only requires AUTODEV_API_KEY. There are no unrelated environment variables or binaries requested that would be inconsistent with an API client skill.

Instruction Scope

SKILL.md confines runtime behavior to constructing API requests, handling pagination, exporting results (CSV/JSON), prompting for an API key if missing, and scaffolding app templates. It does not instruct the agent to read unrelated system files, harvest other environment variables, or exfiltrate data to unknown endpoints. The skill does reference saving exports to user-specified paths and integrating with external sinks (Slack, Google Sheets) in recipes — these are expected for a developer-focused API integration and would require user-provided credentials at runtime.

Install Mechanism

No install spec or downloaded code is included; this is an instruction-only skill. That minimizes disk-write and execution risk. The repo contains documentation and code examples but no executable install artifacts.

Credentials

Only one environment variable is declared/used: AUTODEV_API_KEY (primaryEnv). That is proportional and expected for a service API integration. The documentation explicitly warns not to expose keys client-side and suggests storing the key in environment/config — consistent with least privilege practices.

Persistence & Privilege

The skill is not marked always:true and does not request persistent elevated privileges. It recommends storing the API key in the agent/config (e.g., OpenClaw config) if the user chooses; this is normal for API skills but should be done only with a trusted key and storage location.

Assessment

This skill appears coherent and only needs your Auto.dev API key. Before installing: (1) Treat AUTODEV_API_KEY as a secret — do not paste it into public chats or repos. (2) Prefer creating a restricted key or account for automated agents (if Auto.dev supports scoped keys), and revoke it if you stop using the skill. (3) The skill can save exports (CSV/JSON) and suggests storing the key in OpenClaw config or your shell profile — ensure you trust the environment where the key will be stored. (4) The docs warn about per-call data fees and will prompt before expensive batch/paid endpoints; confirm large operations to avoid unexpected charges. If you want extra assurance, review the referenced code snippets in the repo (they are documentation-only) or test with a low-permission/test key first.

Auto.dev API

V2 is the primary API. V1 provides supplemental endpoints with no V2 equivalent.

Authentication

Check for AUTODEV_API_KEY environment variable first. If not set, ask: "Do you have an Auto.dev API key?"

• If yes: Ask them to paste it or set it with export AUTODEV_API_KEY="your-key-here"
• If no: Direct them to https://www.auto.dev/pricing to sign up (free Starter plan available)

V2 (base: https://api.auto.dev): Authorization: Bearer {key} or ?apiKey={key} V1 (base: https://auto.dev/api): ?apikey={key} (query string only)

API Reference — Copy These URLs

Use these exact URL patterns. Do NOT guess parameter names — wrong params return 400.

Search Listings (Starter)

GET https://api.auto.dev/listings?vehicle.make=Audi&vehicle.model=R8&retailListing.price=1-60000&retailListing.state=FL&limit=100&page=1&apiKey={key}

More filters: vehicle.year=2022-2024, vehicle.bodyStyle=SUV, vehicle.drivetrain=AWD, retailListing.miles=1-50000, zip=33132&distance=50. See v2-listings-api.md for all filters.

Single Listing (Starter)

GET https://api.auto.dev/listings/{vin}?apiKey={key}

VIN Decode (Starter)

GET https://api.auto.dev/vin/{vin}?apiKey={key}

Vehicle Photos (Starter)

GET https://api.auto.dev/photos/{vin}?apiKey={key}

Specifications (Growth)

GET https://api.auto.dev/specs/{vin}?apiKey={key}

OEM Build Data (Growth — $0.10/call)

GET https://api.auto.dev/build/{vin}?apiKey={key}

Vehicle Recalls (Growth)

GET https://api.auto.dev/recalls/{vin}?apiKey={key}

Total Cost of Ownership (Growth)

GET https://api.auto.dev/tco/{vin}?zip=33132&apiKey={key}

Vehicle Payments (Growth) — price and zip are required

GET https://api.auto.dev/payments/{vin}?price=39520&zip=33132&downPayment=5000&loanTerm=60&apiKey={key}

Interest Rates (Growth) — year, make, model, zip, creditScore are required

GET https://api.auto.dev/apr/{vin}?year=2024&make=Audi&model=R8&zip=33132&creditScore=720&apiKey={key}

Open Recalls (Scale)

GET https://api.auto.dev/openrecalls/{vin}?apiKey={key}

Plate-to-VIN (Scale — $0.55/call)

GET https://api.auto.dev/plate/{state}/{plate}?apiKey={key}

Taxes & Fees (Scale) — price and zip are required

GET https://api.auto.dev/taxes/{vin}?price=39520&zip=33132&apiKey={key}

V1 Supplemental (No V2 Equivalent)

GET https://auto.dev/api/models?apikey={key}
GET https://auto.dev/api/cities?apikey={key}
GET https://auto.dev/api/zip/{zip}?apikey={key}
GET https://auto.dev/api/autosuggest/{term}?apikey={key}

Parameters That Do NOT Exist (Will Return 400)

make=          ← use vehicle.make
model=         ← use vehicle.model
_order=        ← no sort parameter exists
sort=          ← no sort parameter exists
rows=          ← use limit
state=         ← use retailListing.state
price=         ← use retailListing.price (on /listings), or price= (on /payments, /taxes)

Plans & Pricing

See pricing.md for full per-call costs and upgrade links.

Plan	Monthly	Includes
Starter	Free + data fees	VIN Decode, Listings, Photos (1,000 free calls/mo)
Growth	$299/mo + data fees	+ Specs, Recalls, TCO, Payments, APR, Build
Scale	$599/mo + data fees	+ Open Recalls, Plate-to-VIN, Taxes & Fees

All plans charge per-call data fees on every request. Growth/Scale have no cap on volume but data fees still apply.

Important Rules

• Before batch operations, call the endpoint once with a single item to see the actual response shape. Do not guess field names or nesting — inspect the real response first.
• Include ALL fields from the API response unless the user explicitly says to exclude some.
• Small results (<10 items, single VIN): Display inline as formatted table
• Large results (10+ listings): Ask user preference, default to CSV export
• Always support: CSV, JSON export when user requests
• Chain APIs when the query spans multiple endpoints

Deep Reference

API Docs: v2-listings-api.md | v2-vin-apis.md | v2-plate-api.md | v1-apis.md Workflows: chaining-patterns.md | interactive-explorer.md | business-workflows.md Code Gen: code-patterns.md | app-scaffolding.md | integration-recipes.md Other: error-recovery.md | pricing.md | examples.md