As lightweight vehicles like golf carts and tiny cars become connected, Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) and enterprises face a critical decision: build custom software and IoT connectivity in-house, or partner with a third-party software platform. While in-house development may seem attractive, most organizations underestimate the high cost, complexity and long-term risks involved.
For manufacturers of golf carts, LSVs, e-bikes, scooters and medical mobility vehicles, smart functionality is no longer an optional add-on. It is a core component of the product itself, beginning on the assembly line, and impacting everything from fleet visibility and rental automation to post-sale revenue models and customer experience.
The “build vs buy mobility platform” dilemma is a topic we discuss regularly with industry manufacturers, who are typically shocked to learn just how much time and money is saved when outsourcing software and IoT hardware.
If you’re debating between custom or third-party fleet software, here’s what you need to know about differentiating between building vs buying:
What “Mobility Software” actually includes
Modern mobility software for lightweight vehicles is not a single feature, it’s a full operational system including:
- Vehicle connectivity and telematics
- Real-time GPS tracking and geofencing controls
- User access and permissions
- Reservation and rental workflows
- Payments, billing and usage rules
- Fleet health monitoring and alerts
- Admin dashboards and reporting
- APIs for OEM hardware integration
Building all of this internally is far more than a one-time development effort, it’s an ongoing product commitment that requires expertise across embedded hardware and telematics, cloud infrastructure and data pipelines, user applications and dashboards, payment and rental workflows, and security and device lifecycle management. Beyond designing, you need to constantly test the hardware and software, which requires multiple different teams, new hires, internal rounds of development and more just to make something comparable to what already exists.
In short, you want a platform that has all of the certifications required for hardware and an enterprise-ready front and backend solution for dealers and consumers. Building that internally will be extremely expensive and timely. Let’s take a closer look:
Factor | Build In-House | Third-Party Platform (Joyride) |
Time to Market | 12–36 months | 6-10 Weeks |
Upfront Cost | High (software and hardware engineering, infrastructure) | Predictable volume-based subscription |
Ongoing Maintenance | Internal team required for hardware, software, compliance, support and payments | Joyride’s team of 40+ engineers ensure 99+% uptime across all products |
Scalability | Each module needs to be built from scratch, tested | Flexibility to offer rental, fleet, delivery and end-consumer solutions |
Security & Compliance | Your responsibility to make | Data and payment management maintained by Joyride, ensuring instant compliance in any market |
Feature Updates | Manual and expensive | New feature releases every 2 weeks, with product roadmap input from customers |
Risk | High | Low |
The hidden costs of building in-house
Many organizations only budget for initial development, but overlook things like engineering turnover and knowledge loss, managing payments infrastructure, security patches and compliance updates, supporting new vehicle models, customer support tooling, and ongoing UX improvements.
Many OEMs exploring internal software development quickly encounter a structural challenge: connected mobility requires both IoT hardware and cloud software.
In fragmented approaches, manufacturers often combine:
- A third-party telematics hardware provider
- A separate cloud platform
- Custom-built dashboards or apps
- External payment integrations
This multi-vendor architecture introduces:
- Integration delays
- Firmware compatibility issues
- Multiple support dependencies
- Security and update risks
- Higher long-term maintenance overhead
Even small inconsistencies between hardware and software layers can impact vehicle reliability and user experience.
Why integrated platforms reduce deployment risk
To avoid fragmentation, many OEMs are moving toward fully integrated mobility platforms that combine telematics hardware and software into one system.
Joyride, for example, provides:
- A cloud-based mobility platform for tracking, rentals and fleet management
- White-label tools for OEM deployment
- APIs for vehicle integrations
- Built-in digital access and payment workflows
- Proprietary Neon IoT hardware designed specifically for lightweight vehicles
Since the hardware and software layers are designed in unison, OEMs can avoid the complexity of stitching together multiple vendors.
This approach helps ensure faster deployment timelines, simplified technical architecture, consistent firmware and platform updates, and streamlined support and lifecycle management.
Why OEMs are moving away from internal software builds
While internal platforms can offer customization, they often become long-term engineering commitments that extend far beyond initial launch.
Common challenges include:
- Maintaining dedicated software teams
- Managing device firmware updates
- Scaling infrastructure as fleets grow
- Supporting new vehicle models and configurations
- Building and adding new systems such as rental management and consumer-facing solutions on the fly
For many lightweight vehicle manufacturers, software is quickly becoming a product enabler rather than the core product itself, making platform partnerships more practical than internal builds.
New revenue models are accelerating platform adoption
Another factor driving third-party adoption is the shift toward usage-based mobility models, including:
- Rentals
- Subscriptions
- Fleet deployments
- Managed mobility programs
These models require software capabilities that go beyond traditional fleet tracking, including:
- Automated reservations
- Digital payments
- Remote vehicle access
- Usage analytics
Platforms that already support these workflows allow OEMs to move faster into new markets without building complex infrastructure internally.
When building in-house still makes sense
In some cases, internal development may still be appropriate, particularly when the organization already operates large software teams, the connected platform itself is the core product offering and/or highly specialized or proprietary workflows are required.
However, for most lightweight vehicle OEMs, the cost and complexity of building a full connected mobility ecosystem internally still outweigh the benefits.
As connected vehicles become standard across lightweight mobility categories, software platforms are increasingly functioning as infrastructure layers, similar to how cloud platforms support modern applications.
Instead of building from scratch, OEMs are deploying integrated mobility platforms that combine IoT hardware with connectivity management, fleet software and rental automation tools.
This approach allows manufacturers to focus on vehicle innovation while still delivering modern connected experiences.
Conclusion
The build vs buy decision for mobility software is no longer just a technical choice, it’s a strategic one tied to revenue and overhead. As connected features, rental automation and fleet visibility become standard expectations, OEMs need reliable software ecosystems that can scale with their vehicles.
Third-party platforms are gaining traction because they reduce complexity, accelerate deployment and eliminate fragmentation, especially when hardware and software are designed together.
Frequently Asked Questions
What pricing options exist for third-party mobility platforms like Joyride?
Joyride offers tiered pricing designed to span small fleets to large OEM deployments. This includes monthly subscription plans across scooters/e-bikes and connected golf carts and LSVs (e.g., Scale, Revii and White Label) with decreasing per-vehicle costs as fleet size increases, as well as Enterprise plans with custom pricing for large deployments and API access. For OEMs, custom plans include deeper integrations and priority support.
Why is using a platform with both software and hardware included valuable for OEMs?
Integrated platforms that include both cloud-based software and dedicated IoT hardware eliminate fragmentation between systems. With Joyride’s built-in Neon IoT hardware, OEMs don’t need to source third-party telematics separately or build their own device software stack, reducing integration risks and shortening time to market.
What features are typically included in a third-party mobility platform subscription?
Even entry-level subscriptions include things like GPS tracking, integrated mobile apps (Android & iOS), digital payments, fleet dashboards, user management and analytics. Higher tiers add advanced features in-field operator apps, RFID unlocks, more AI automation, advanced payment features and 24/7 support.
Can third-party software replace the need for dealers or OEMs to build custom rental systems?
Yes. Third-party mobility platforms provide pre-built rental workflows, digital access tools and automated billing systems so dealers and manufacturers don’t need to build or maintain their own software stacks. This reduces overhead significantly and lets operators focus on vehicle innovation and customer experience.
How does pricing scale as fleet size grows?
Joyride’s subscription plans are structured to scale. For example, the Revii tier is designed for fleets that want to launch quickly with a ready-made universal rental app and backend in the Revii label branding, which comes with a minimum fee. While higher tiers like White Label and Pro support increasingly larger fleets at lower per-vehicle costs. Enterprise plans are custom-quoted for fleets in the thousands.
Do third-party platforms offer enterprise-grade support and customization?
Yes. Enterprise tiers typically include dedicated account management, 24/7 support, CAN integration, white-label consumer app solutions and custom integrations tailored for large OEMs and global deployments, making them suitable for companies that need both scale and control.
Why do OEMs often choose not to build mobility software in-house?
Building in-house means writing software, managing hardware integration, maintaining servers and building apps, which is a costly and time-intensive effort. Third-party solutions provide a ready-made, continuously updated software ecosystem that avoids these overheads and lets OEMs bring connected vehicles to market more quickly.
Ready to explore a solution tailored to vehicle innovation? Learn more by talking to us here.
