For Anthony Bridges, Patrick Deslatte and Jackie Deslatte, Car Connect started with a simple observation: people depend on their vehicles every day, but most do not have the time, knowledge or desire to constantly keep up with them. Their solution brings vehicle maintenance directly to the customer.
Most people know they are supposed to check their oil.They know tires wear down, batteries eventually die and that strange sound coming from somewhere underneath the hood probably deserves attention.
Actually finding the time to do something about it is another story.
Between work, school pickup, ball practice, errands and everything else packed into a Livingston Parish week, spending an afternoon in a mechanic shop waiting room is not exactly high on anyone’s list.
Anthony Bridges, Patrick Deslatte and Jackie Deslatte believe there is a better way.
Their new business, Car Connect, is built around a surprisingly simple concept: what if someone else kept up with your vehicle for you?
“We want to get the most working life out of your vehicle that we can get,” Anthony said. “You pay too much for it to let things slide.”
Where the Idea Started
For Anthony, the idea was years in the making.
While working for LSU managing its cattle herd, he was also responsible for keeping a fleet of older vehicles running.
“We had, like, ’99, 2000-model trucks that we had to keep up,” Anthony recalled. “One of the main things that I liked to do was have my guys confident their vehicle was going to run when they turned the key.”
Whether they were traveling a few miles or much farther, reliability mattered.
That lesson followed Anthony throughout his career in agriculture and later insurance.
“Having a reliable vehicle is very important,” he said. “You don’t want to be stuck on the side of the road somewhere.”Anthony had also done plenty of vehicle maintenance himself over the years.
“Early in my life, I did a lot of DIY stuff,” he said. “Sometimes it worked, sometimes it didn’t.”
Eventually, those experiences planted the seed for a business centered on maintaining vehicles correctly and catching problems early.
Patrick’s road to Car Connect was different.
A retired Navy veteran, Patrick spent five years managing a rubber plant after his military career.
With another baby on the way, he began thinking seriously about doing something different.
“I got tired of being dirty every night,” Patrick said.
The carbon from the plant followed him home so regularly that he still laughs about it.
“There was a black ring around the bathtub,” he said. “I looked like I was in a goth band.”
Patrick and Anthony eventually met through a mutual friend at a Saints game. Both were considering entering the hotshot trucking business, and Patrick used his military benefits to earn his CDL.
But as the economics surrounding hotshot trucking changed, Anthony suggested a different plan.
“He said, ‘Put the brakes on that and help me start this thing up and see what we can do here, because I think it’s a good idea,’” Patrick recalled.
Car Connect was born.
Jackie, who is also a Navy veteran and met Patrick through their military service, joined the venture as well. She handles much of the office work and scheduling while she and Patrick raise their five children.
For a husband-and-wife team with five kids, starting a business is hardly the easy option.
But their own packed schedule also gives them firsthand knowledge of the type of customer Car Connect hopes to serve.
Bringing the Service to You
Car Connect comes directly to its customers, whether that means meeting someone in their driveway or going to their workplace.
During recurring “Care Checks,” the team inspects as much of the vehicle as possible without putting it on a rack, including fluids, tires, windshield and glass, battery condition, body damage, warning lights and diagnostic codes.“You’re getting a report from us every time we come out,” Anthony explained. “This is what we found is a problem, and you make the call from there on what you want to get fixed.”
The company’s personal service plans can also include oil changes, roadside call-outs, towingassistance, detailing and, with its top package, a loaner vehicle while the customer’s car is being serviced.
For businesses, Car Connect offers similar fleet services designed to keep company vehicles on the road.
But the real value may be less about what is listed on a service sheet and more about the problems customers never knew they had.
Catching It Before It Costs Thousands
One of Car Connect’s first customers provided a perfect example.
Patrick went out for an initial Care Check on a truck that had not been maintained particularly
well.
He checked the oil.
Nothing appeared on the dipstick.
He added a quart.
Still nothing.
Eventually, they discovered the truck, which should have held roughly seven or eight quarts of
oil, was running with only about two.
“He was driving around with two quarts of oil in a truck that takes seven or eight,” Anthony said.
Without someone checking, the customer could have eventually lost the engine entirely.
Another client was preparing to drive to Florida when Car Connect found that her coolant was
low. They filled it and returned the following day.
It was low again.
“Okay, this is a problem,” Anthony recalled. “You’re about to take a hundreds-of-miles road trip,
and you’re leaking coolant somewhere.”
Instead of discovering that problem somewhere between Louisiana and Florida, she was able to
have it diagnosed before leaving. The issue was a leaking thermostat.Those are the problems Car Connect wants to find.
“We’re decreasing costs, we’re increasing engine life,” Anthony said. “That’s our goal.”
In another case, a fleet customer called after the shift linkage on a work vehicle broke. The
customer had been quoted around $750 for the repair elsewhere.
Car Connect went to the vehicle and discovered the problem could be fixed with a part costing
around $30.
They installed it, and the customer was able to finish the workday.
The savings were not only in the repair bill. For a business owner, every hour a work vehicle sits
in a shop can mean lost income.
Another Set of Eyes
Car Connect is not trying to replace the mechanic.
Instead, Patrick describes their role as being “kind of like a third party.”
When a problem requires shop work, the team can help coordinate repairs through trusted
partners, including Simple Simon in Baton Rouge. Car Connect finds the symptoms, helps
determine what needs attention and gives the owner another set of eyes throughout the process.
That can be particularly valuable for someone who knows very little about cars.
Patrick recalled one customer being straightforward about exactly why he hired them.
“He said, ‘I’m ignorant of auto mechanics, so I’m glad I hired y’all because y’all can do this,’”
Patrick said.
And that customer is far from alone.
Car Connect sees several groups who could benefit from the service, from busy professionals to
business owners with fleets and parents worried about the vehicles their young drivers depend
on.
“The busy professional that goes to the office and does their nine to five, and they’re working
overtime and trying to stay ahead of the game, they don’t have time to take a day off and go get
their vehicle worked on,” Anthony said.
Then there is the parent whose teenager has started driving.
“The older parent who’s worried about their younger child, or driving-age child, not being able
to take care of it,” Anthony said. “You’re getting a report from us every time we come out.”It means Mom or Dad does not have to wonder whether the oil is low, the tires are worn or a
warning light has been ignored for three weeks.
Someone is checking.
The People Behind the Business
Outside Car Connect, all three have lives every bit as busy as the customers they serve.
Patrick and Jackie are raising five children and have two dogs, Rosie and Roscoe. Roscoe
became part of the family somewhat unexpectedly after simply showing up one day.
They found his owner, who no longer wanted him, and Roscoe found himself a new home.
Patrick is also involved with the Knights of Columbus, while Jackie balances the family and
scheduling side of the growing business.
Anthony stays busy himself. He serves as the 2026 president of the Business Associates of Baton
Rouge, a networking organization with more than 50 members, and at home has two daughters
and an impressive collection of animals, including dogs, cats, guinea pigs and a snake.
Free time is scarce for all three.
Perhaps that is exactly why they understand the problem they are trying to solve.
Car Connect is still young, only a few months into business, and its owners are open about the
realities of getting a new concept in front of people.
“We always get good feedback from people,” Anthony said. “‘Oh, that’s a great idea. That’s a
great idea.’”
Now, the challenge is helping people realize that it might be a great idea for them.
Because eventually every vehicle needs something.
Sometimes it is an oil change. Sometimes it is a dead battery or a flat tire. Sometimes it is two
missing quarts of oil, a coolant leak before a road trip or a $30 part standing between a business
owner and a $750 repair bill.
For Car Connect, the goal is to find those things before they become bigger things.
“We’re going to go the extra mile,” Anthony said, “to make sure that it’s taken care of properly.”
