Shipping Your Car

There are three main ways to have your auto shipped.   You can tow your vehicle if you are doing a self haul move.  The vehicle can be loaded on the van with your household goods.  Or, you can have the vehicle shipped by a professional car carrier.

Towing your auto as part of your self haul move - It is best to check with a rental truck agency for any directions, insurance coverage and restrictions for towing a vehicle.   Generally there are two methods, a tow dolly and a car carrier trailer.  A tow dolly elevates the front two wheels of the vehicle on to a support that is hitched to the rental truck.  With a car carrier trailer, the vehicle is driven up a short ramp on to a trailer that is hitched to the rental truck.  All four wheels are off the ground and on the trailer. 

Shipping your auto on a moving van with your household goods – It will be up to your professional mover if the car is able to go on the van with your household goods.  Space constraints and certain auto types may prevent your vehicle from being loaded.  Be sure to ask your van line what the coverage is for the shipping your auto.  If your van line ships your auto, a complete inspection will be done on the vehicle prior to being loaded.  All scratches, dings and rubs will be noted and you will be asked to sign the bill of lading agreeing to the condition of the auto.  It is important to have your vehicle clean so it can be properly inspected.  Your auto will be either loaded at your residence with ramps, or taken to the van line agency where it is driven on to the van from a dock.  In either case, you want to make sure your vehicle is properly prepared for shipment.  At the time of delivery you need to do a thorough inspection of the auto to make sure the condition of the vehicle is the same as when it was picked up.   If there is a claim, your van line will assist you based on the shipment’s policy coverage.

Shipping your auto with a professional car carrier – The most popular means of shipping autos is with a professional car carrier.  They will ship your auto on an open or an enclosed car transporter.  Professional car carriers have several methods in auto pick up and delivery.  There are door to door services in which the auto is picked up and delivered on roll back or by the large car carrier.  The roll back method allows your car to be conveniently picked up at your residence and delivered to a location where it can be loaded on to the car carrier.  The large car carrier method may result in the driver contacting you to meet him at a near by parking lot if the transport truck can not gain access to your residence.  There are also dock to dock or terminal to terminal services to ship your auto.  With these services, you drive your vehicle to the auto transporter facility where it is loaded on to the car carrier.  At destination you will be contacted when the auto arrives and it can be picked up at the transporter facility.

The car carrier service will provide you with details and requirements for shipping your auto, but below are some general guidelines to keep in mind.

Open Car Carriers - The most accepted method of shipping an auto.  The carrier allows multiple autos to be loaded and safely transported from origin to destination.

Enclosed Car Carriers – An enclosed carrier can ship any type of auto, but it is frequently used for autos that require special handling by the manufacturer or collector autos that are not normally exposed to the weather elements. Your auto shipper professional will let you know if your auto is required to be shipped enclosed or you can make that request.  Enclosed shipment is usually more expensive than shipping the auto on an open carrier.

Vehicle Coverage Valuation – Each car carrier company offers valuation coverage.  It is important to know what the coverage is when shipping your auto.  You want to make sure that you are fully covered. Do not simply rely on your personal insurance coverage for shipping your auto, there may be restrictions.   You may want to check with your insurance company.

Claims - You need to fully inspect your auto at the time of delivery.  Report any damage immediately.  Your valuation coverage will instruct you on how to file a claim and what is covered.

Requirements for shipping a vehicle on a car carrier -

• Auto should be in running condition. 
• Auto should have inflated tires, windows and a roof that completely covers the passenger compartment.
• Auto should not leak any fluids.

Criteria for vehicles requiring special arrangements in shipping - Your auto transport professional can advise you on what can be done to properly ship a vehicle with any of the below criteria.

• Vehicles with original equipment manufacture requirement that suggests how the vehicle should be transported.
• Vehicles exceeding 80 inches plus in height
• Vehicles exceeding 72 inches plus in width
• Vehicles exceeding 21 feet in length
• Vehicles with less than 4 ½ inches in ground clearance
• Vehicles with staggered track (front wheels closer together than rear wheels or vice versa)
• Vehicles with 3 wheels
• Vehicles exceeding 8000 lbs
• Vehicles with gull-wing or scissor type doors
• Tires exceeding 19 inches in width
• Nitrous filled race systems
• Inoperable vehicles
• Vehicles with non-removable racks or camper shells such as roof racks resulting in the vehicle being over 80 inches tall.  Includes wheel chair racks, plastic luggage boxes, camper racks, ladder racks and  camper shells.
• Vehicles with a stall converter
• Restored classic cars
• Show cars
• Vehicles that are not weather worthy
• Vehicles that cannot get wet or dirty
• Vehicles with a compromised support frame

Preparing your vehicle for shipment on a car carrier – 

• Provide a full set of keys for the auto.
• Gas tank should have less than ½ tank of gas.
• Remove all personal items from the passenger area and trunk.
• Remove all items that are not manufactured to the auto such as detachable radios, CD players, satellite radios, car phones, car phone accessories, DVD players and monitors. 
• Remove all garage door openers, E-Z passes and gate passes.
• Remove from the exterior of the vehicle all spare tire covers, car covers, grill covers, non-permanent luggage, bike and ski racks.
• Vehicle should not leak any fluids.
• Disengage any alarm systems so that the battery is not drained during transport.
• Fully retract or remove your antenna.
• Prepare your vehicle for any climate changes – check your vehicles fluids.
• Make sure your vehicle is clean so a proper inspection can be done.