Car shipping options

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47PILOT

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47PILOT
Wondering if anyone here has a recommendation for shipping a car from NC to Los Angeles. I had no idea when I bought the car that I would have such an issue getting it shipped. As I’m now learning, when you call what you believe to be a auto shipping company, is actually just some kind of broker that lists the job on some type of central board that links an endless number of independent haulers to bid on the job I’m guessing? The car is nothing special. Open transport is fine. I was told to expect to pay 800-900 but I’m getting prices of 1400-1500 and even at that I’m not getting a commitment
 
Need to look directly at auto transport companies. I got a quote to ship a F350, crewcab, long bed, 4x4, dually from Phoenix to DFW, 1 week delivery, for about $700. That was in late 2017. I didn’t get warm fuzzys from the brokerage type places.
 
Sadly, I don't think the quotes you're getting are way out of line. It cost me about $900 to ship a 560sl from Florida to NYS about 15 years ago, also on an open platform. Maybe I could have done better...I don't know.
 
$1400 to $1500 for that size and weight of load coast-to-coast LTL is quite reasonable.
 
Agree. Numbers are about right.

Uship.com is an option, but merely broker out as well. Do not go with the lowest bidder. Look at the ratings, and read up on who is bidding. Lots of complaints from customers of the bottom scrapers about lost cars, damage, extra charges, and no one to contact.

Another option is to Craigslist the car in NC if it is nothing special, and buy another on LA. Lots of no rust cars there.
 
I have used 2 companies that are actually the transporter, not a broker. You talk to the company that owns the trucks and employs the drivers. Intercity Lines and Golden Key Express.

Great communication. On time. No BS.

One car was Philly to Indy. Enclosed. I think I paid $900?

Another was LA to Indy. Open. I think I paid right around $1000?
 
I sold a car on www.bringatrailer.com so shipping was the buyer's problem. However, they used Montway who brokered for Starway logistics and I helped load it on the truck. Seemed reasonable from my end and I didn't hear any complaints.
 
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Seems like there's gotta be a college kid who'd make the cross country drive for $800 expenses included, if you could come up with a one-way ticket home.
 
$1400-1500 for a cross country transport like that seems like a very reasonable price in my opinion, open or not. Fuel has gotten expensive. One of my friends just had two cars moved from Denver to the Oregon coast for $1800 or so, and that was a screaming deal compared to other quotes he was getting. He found a Facebook group for car transport. The transport was not without drama but it worked out for him. In 2016 when I bought my E55 it was about $900 to ship it from Florida to Kansas.

What kind of car, does it run, and is it driveable? Why not just fly out there and drive it home yourself?
 
Ted DuPuis said:
$1400-1500 for a cross country transport like that seems like a very reasonable price in my opinion, open or not. Fuel has gotten expensive. One of my friends just had two cars moved from Denver to the Oregon coast for $1800 or so, and that was a screaming deal compared to other quotes he was getting. He found a Facebook group for car transport. The transport was not without drama but it worked out for him. In 2016 when I bought my E55 it was about $900 to ship it from Florida to Kansas.

What kind of car, does it run, and is it driveable? Why not just fly out there and drive it home yourself?
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It’s a 2010 Dodge Charger I got from a police auction. It’s been sitting for a few mo. so I listed it as not running just in case it doesn’t start. Non running did add 50-150 to the shipping price but after talking to some of the brokers, that was somewhat of a regular thing for them. The problem seems to be the pick-up location. NC is kind of in the dead zone. If it was north or south of there, there is much more action going coast to coast
 
47PILOT said:
It’s a 2010 Dodge Charger I got from a police auction. It’s been sitting for a few mo. so I listed it as not running just in case it doesn’t start. Non running did add 50-150 to the shipping price but after talking to some of the brokers, that was somewhat of a regular thing for them. The problem seems to be the pick-up location. NC is kind of in the dead zone. If it was north or south of there, there is much more action going coast to coast
Click to expand...

That seems like a long way to get a car of that sort, but I've gone about as far for cars before. I would list it as running if it's supposed to run. If it just needs to get jumped that's simple enough to do.
 
I know someone in the brokerage business and he gave me a great price when my son wrecked his Corvette in Nashville. Nashville to Miami for $500 assuming that the car needed to be winched on which adds to the cost. In actual fact the car could move under its own power and did not need to be winched after all. But we did not know that until the transporter reached the yard and loaded it.
 
No direct experience, but you might try the railroad. My BIL shipped a car from New Orleans to Dayton, OH on the railroad. Don't remember what he paid, but it was very inexpensive.
 
Where in NC is it and can you confirm whether or not it’s driveable? Reason being I have a retired cousin, extremely dependable who relocates cars for dealers with a couple of other retirees up to one or two states away. He may be interested if it’s able to be driven or like some suggested, a college kid? I bought a GMC Acadia from an IRS auction in Philadelphia last summer and was quoted in the $1300-1400 range. I ended up buying a one way ticket from Miami for $126, Uber from PHI and drove it back for just a couple of hundred in expenses. Was expecting around $600 but apparently the wrong time of year for moving cars south. (Price dependent upon volume of snowbirds heading north or south)
 
If anyone has a need to move a vehicle around Texas and the surrounding states, get in touch... The guy I used was very reasonable on costs, good service, and pretty quick.
 
I’m surprised you could find them that cheap. You are looking at least 900 in fuel to make the trip one way. Plus a place to stay over night one way. Granted most haulers carry more than one car to help spread the cost. Would take a lot of effort to fill up a transport both directions.
 
We shipped a big, beastly Wrangler and our VW camper from Denver to far northeastern NY state in 2016 for $1400 door to door, 6 days.
 
Going the broker route cost me about three weeks before I realized just how crooked they are. I called a shipper who said he had seen my listing but no one was going to touch it at the brokers price. We negotiated a price and I got my truck. Just call a real shipper and work it out.
 
The service used by car collectors is Inter-City Lines.
https://intercitylines.com/

I used them to ship a car 1800 miles, and I was thoroughly impressed by the service, the crew, the special (new) truck, and the whole experience. The other cars on the truck were such things as a classic Ferrari and a new Corvette. Mine was a lowly used Prius, which I sent to a relative, and they treated it like a Rolls Royce, which is indeed something they often ship.

You deal with them directly — no broker.
 
Mcnut auto transport. have used them 3x in the last 2 years. price is in the corect ballpark,and they hire only the best/better truckers,and there booking department is spot on.they do a large volume with Manheim.
 
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