I've been looking at a few cars that are considerable distances away. So if I were to make a buy the car would have to be shipped. Assuming that there were others in this situation I am looking for a little advice. What have your experiences been and what/who would you recommend based on your experience. Did you pay up front fees or paid total bill at delivery. Also did you use open or closed carriers. Did you have a car cover or just left it exposed. As i start looking into this there seems to be a lot of questions and I am also hearing of a lot of scams in this area. I'm just trying to gather data . Thanks

 

I have used fed ex passport transport- enclosed. The other major company is intercity lines - these 2 companies do transport for car shows and auctions, like Barrett Jackson. I would stick to a major company such as these that handle high end cars.

 

Reliable Carriers, Inc (#1 with enclosed trailers and the #1 pick for ultra premium brands and showcars) and Intercity Lines, Inc are the top of the line.

There are literally hundreds of auto transports on the road.

First, you have to determine do you want to transport enclosed trailer or open trailer.

Second, you have to determine to use a truck broker or find a transport company yourself. All transport brokers charge a fee ($200-$400) to simply arrange a carrier to pick-up your car and deliver it. These truck brokers do NOT own trucks. They simply use the Central Dispatch System for transports and post your request on the CDS and they receive bids from truckers signed onto the system, then relay these bids back to you. CDS is a computerized system that truckers pay for the service. It is the number one source for transport leads and jobs. Many times these transport brokers will provide a quote then come back and raise the quote, so beware. The Truck broker will require an immediate payment via credit card for their services. The transport company picking up the car will inspect the car for any damages, paint chips etc, and fill out a Bill of ladding, so they are not liable for damages between pickup and delivery. The transport company will require cash or cashiers check upon delivery. You will know what you owe, before the car is picked up.

Once the transport company is agreed upon, the pickup date and time will be decided and an estimate of delivery time will be provided. Then the transport is between you and the transport company and driver. There can be delays as the transport companies usually want full loads before delivery.

Estimated cost for open transport (which is all that I have used, except one time) is about 50 to 70 cents per mile. This varies on distance and geograhical location from the pickup point to the delivery point. It is lower priced when you live in a larger metro city, verus a small rural town off major highways and state roads.

If you buy from a dealer, the dealer usually has a list of transport companies that they use. Most of the time, they can assist in the transport of the car.

Kind in mind that enclosed transport covers many different types of carriers. They could be top of the line auto transport rigs, all the way down to a 35 ft enclosed trailer pulled by a regular pickup truck. The last transport I used was for my classic 1966 Mustang being transported from New Mexico to Californina after a sale of the car. The driver showed up with a regular 18 wheel enclosed rig, and had long ramps to drive the car up on the trailer. The trailer held 3 cars. I thought it was a joke at first, but he did make the delivery.

So do your research. You can go to Transport Reviews.com - Ratings and Reviews of Auto Transport Companies - Your Source For Finding a Quality Auto Transporter! and see what other end users are saying about the many different auto transport companies. The truck brokers will tell you anything to get your credit card payment, so be careful who you use.

I have transported many cars, all mostly without problems. However when I saw a few of the trucks, I couldn't believe how shi--y the trucks where.

My best transport is when I sold one of my Formula F1000 race cars. The truck came to the house, it was a $300,000 rig, and top notch, the best of the best. (Steeltoycarriers.com....Ken Currier). The truck was the best I have ever seen. Ken had several classic cars priced well into the hundreds of thousands in value on the truck. My buyer of the Formula F1000 paid $1800 to have the race car transported from New Mexico to Virginia International Raceway, about $1.00 per mile.

So there are hundreds of trucks available. Just determine which way you want to proceed. I suggest to use the dealer first, then if push comes to shove, select a truck broker then go from there.

There are lots of options. The more you do over time, the easier it gets as you learn from your experiences. I certainly have.

As for my Jaguar, I selected the auto transport company myself, went open trailer from Florida to New Mexico, took 3 days, paid $900.00 as the trip for the driver was up I-95 from Palm Beach to I-10 then all the way to Las Cruces, NM. All major Interstate highway. The driver called 30 miles out, and meet him in the parking lot of a local Walmart store located 1/4 mile off the interstate. I inspected the car, paid the driver, and drove it home. It was quite easy.

My 2014 Porsche 981 transport was arranged thru the Porsche dealer in Tucson, shipped 250 miles, open trailer for $200. No reported problems, it was the last car on the trailer. It was delivered at 10:00 PM at the local TA truck stop, inspected, and driven home.

Hope this helps.

 

Enclosed only. It's worth the extra cost. Check reviews and insurance, ask if you will be able to be in contact with the actual driver's progress, and don't go for the cheapest but the one who your are most comfortable with. I asked some of the larger car dealerships in my area who they used. They didn't run my credit card until the car was delivered. Car was delivered within 2 streets from my home. I didn't want them to pull up in front of my house.

 

Almost all transport drivers will keep in touch with the customer for any changes in dropoff location, final delivery date and times. Many times these large rigs can't get into a residental neighborhood, so they will try to find a common place that is good for the customer and driver for the final dropoff.

If working with a truck broker, I can guarantee the truck broker will request automatic immediate payment for their services. The transport company will accept payment upon delivery as mentioned in my post above.

Don't rule out an open transport. Keep in mind almost all new cars from manufacturer to dealerships are completed via open wheel transport. I am sure that you have seen new cars on open transports many times when on a major highway or interstate. If money is not an issue, and you have an expensive car, then it is your decision to go open or closed transport. The transport companies carry a very high amount of insurance for transporting these cars. Be sure to check reviews at www.transportreview.com as mentioned in my post above on the carrier that you have selected.

It sounds like you may have found the Jaguar of your dreams. I hope so. Transport of the vehicle is the easy part, finding the exact Jaguar you want in the secondary market is probably the hardest part of any deal.

Good luck, here to answer any additional questions you might have.