What Is Vehicle Transportation?
Vehicle transportation, also known as car shipping or auto transport, is a service offered by vehicle shipping companies that involves collecting your automobile from one location & transporting it to another. It's beneficial for moving a vehicle in various situations where you're unable to drive the car yourself. For instance, you might be buying or selling a used automobile online & need to transport it to another state, or maybe you've recently moved & need to ship your vehicle across the country. Auto transport services can also be extremely useful when you need to transfer your car overseas & ferries aren't available, requiring you to rely on a vehicle shipping company to manage the task.
Luckily, there are numerous vehicle transport services available to cater to your specific requirements, which we'll discuss below.
Types Of Vehicle Shipping Services
Here's an overview of the various vehicle shipping services available. It's advantageous to read through & identify the precise type of auto transportation service you need or prefer for transporting your automobile.
The first decision you need to make is where you want your vehicle collected from & delivered to, whether it's a cross-country vehicle transport or moving a car to another state. Terminal-to-terminal auto delivery is an option, where designated collection & drop-off points, often the vehicle transport company's stores or operating bases, are used. Terminal-to-terminal auto delivery is usually more affordable but requires more effort on your part to get the automobile home. However, most people need a door-to-door vehicle transport delivery service, where their cars are collected & dropped off at their doorstep, regardless of whether it's a cross-country vehicle transport or just moving a car to another state. This is often preferable as it eliminates the need to go somewhere else to collect your automobile, which can be challenging without your vehicle in the first place!
Vehicle transport services generally fall into two categories: having someone drive your automobile to the destination or putting it on a trailer & transporting it.
Have Someone Drive Your Vehicle
This straightforward solution to vehicle shipping involves hiring someone to drive your automobile to the desired location, whether you need to transport a car across the country or to another state. The advantages of this auto transport method are that it's often more affordable, as trailers & an extra vehicle aren't required, & it can be faster due to the straightforward nature of the transport.
However, there are some drawbacks to this method offered by vehicle shipping companies that lead some people to choose other types of auto transport. Firstly, mileage is added to your automobile during the journey, which can be significant when transporting a car across the country, although less so when moving a car to a nearby state. Secondly, there is a slight risk of damage to your vehicle while it's being driven from point A to point B. These concerns are particularly relevant for people buying or selling cars online who want to ensure the automobile arrives in the exact condition as advertised.
Put Your Vehicle On A Trailer
Putting your automobile in a trailer is a safer way to ensure a higher level of protection than having someone drive your car to its destination. With vehicle shipping trailers, there are several options available depending on the value & size of your automobile.
First, you need to decide whether you want a single trailer for your vehicle. These are often more expensive as they only transport one automobile at a time but are a great choice if you're moving an expensive or classic car that you don't want to risk getting damaged. The safest way to transport a vehicle is to put it in a shipping container, but this is by far the most expensive option. The other option is a multi-car transporter, which can move many automobiles at once & comes in a few variants:
Open vehicle shipping by any auto shipping company is the most affordable & most common option for transporting a car. Your automobile is placed on an open carrier & driven to the destination. All vehicles are securely fastened, but as the name suggests, they are exposed to the elements during the drive, so auto shipping companies may not recommend this for highly valuable automobiles. While it may be the most affordable way to ship a car cross-country, long journeys in open trailers obviously pose a higher risk of damage & leave your vehicle exposed to the elements for extended periods.
Enclosed auto transport involves securing multiple vehicles on a carrier, but they are enclosed, protecting them from dust, weather, & debris during transit. This is often preferable for more expensive or newer automobiles where the owner wants to minimize the risk of damage during vehicle transport.
If you need to move your automobile overseas through a vehicle transport company, try to find a specialist service on our platform or one with experience in overseas auto shipping, as they can provide tailored advice based on your requirements.
The Benefits of Using Shiply for Car Shipping in Janesville
Time-Efficient - Rather than filling out a quotation form each instance you desire an accurate cost from a business on Janesville car shipping, on our site you complete one quotation form & can then obtain quotes based on the information you supply from several companies. This can conserve you hours of effort you would have needed to invest phoning companies and completing forms. Communication with these businesses is also feasible via our platform, allowing you to store all of your car shipping details in a single location.
Cost Comparison - Ultimately, the price of the car shipping estimate is the most crucial aspect in choosing which auto transport company to employ to transport your vehicle. The challenging part is that, while most businesses are willing to provide average prices & rough estimates, you won't actually receive a definite car transport quote without having to give information & fill in details. While this is reasonable, it does mean that price comparison and getting a car transport quote isn't precisely a simple task. Utilizing Shiply enables you to acquire genuine, final price estimates from car shipping companies & compare them in one place, offering the ability to message them individually to ask any questions you may have & ultimately decide on the optimal company for you.
Affordable Car Shipping - Auto transport businesses on Shiply are usually able to provide their services for a lower cost than if you went directly to them. This is because they are frequently seeking to fill space on trips they are already making & have already invested the cost for. For instance, if you were relocating from Los Angeles to New York & needed to move your car there, on Shiply, a company may already have a multi-car transporter making that journey with 5 of the 6 spots filled, & they are just looking to ensure they are not wasting any space. As long as the dates, times, & pick-up/drop-off locations are suitable for you, you can often save up to 75% on auto transport by using our service.
Environmentally Friendly - Not only is using Shiply for auto transport more affordable, but it is also more environmentally friendly! In the above example, if your car didn't get on that multi-car transporter & instead you arranged transport from a separate car shipper, then the emissions into the atmosphere would have doubled as another entire journey would be needed just for your car. Similarly, many car transporters return from a delivery empty-handed, which is not only costly for them but also for the environment as there are lots of people who could have used that transporter to move their cars in the other direction! Many of the auto transporters on Shiply are looking to fill their trailers on return journeys too, meaning even less wasted CO2 is being released into the atmosphere, as well as continued cheap transport for our users.
Preparing Your Car for Shipping
If you have chosen an auto transport company to transport your vehicle & feel confident using them, then it's time to ready your car for shipping. We suggest following these steps:
Documents - It is crucial to ensure that any documents you may require are available at pick up or drop off, particularly if you are selling your vehicle.
Cleaning - You should take care to remove all personal belongings from your vehicle prior to shipping, for the obvious reason that you don't want to risk them getting lost or damaged in transit. It is also highly recommended that you clean your vehicle before transport as this will allow you to ascertain its condition & notice any damages that may occur during delivery.
Running Condition - If the vehicle will be driven at any point during shipping or driven home from the drop-off location then you should ensure that it is in running condition. This means ensuring that there is enough fluid, as well as checking battery charge & tire pressure levels. Again this can also help you better judge the condition of the vehicle upon arrival.
Photographic Evidence - One very important thing to do when preparing your vehicle for the car delivery service to pick up is to take high-quality photographs of all parts of the car. This provides you with evidence of the car's condition before shipping should anything happen to it during transport.
What to Do After Delivery
Once the car shipping company you selected has completed their delivery, there are a few things you should do:
Check Vital Signs - Lights, brakes, & engines should all be checked immediately to ensure that the car is in the expected condition, as well as enable you to immediately raise concerns with the car delivery service should anything not be working as it should.
Exterior Condition - You can compare the exterior of the vehicle to the photos taken of it before to ascertain whether any extra damage has occurred. Shipping a car can, in rare cases, cause damage, & you want to be sure your car transport service has not done so.
Check Mileage - This is more relevant to car shipping services where the car is driven to the destination but it can help to check the mileage to ensure that it matches up with the journey taken.
We would greatly appreciate it if you could also leave a review for the auto transport company you used through Shiply so that others can browse car shipping services with the same peace of mind.
FAQ - Frequently Asked Questions
Below we have answered some of the most asked questions about car shipping:
How much to ship a car?
Car shipping prices can vary drastically depending on the circumstances, but on average a journey should cost you around $2.92 per mile if the journey is less than 200 miles, $0.93 if the journey is between 200 & 500 miles, & if the journey is over 1,000 miles then this drops to $0.78.
What is the cheapest way to ship a car?
Having someone drive your vehicle to its destination is the cheapest way to ship a car, however, if you need a trailer then a multi-car transporter will be your best option with regard to the cheapest way to ship a car.
How do I pay for my auto transport?
This is down to each individual auto transport company on Shiply & is something you should discuss with your chosen car delivery service before confirming the delivery. Most companies will be flexible with payment options, however.
Can I track my car transport online?
Each car shipping company on Shiply has different ways of operating, but many offer the ability to track your car shipment, with some even able to provide personal updates. If you require tracking, you should message individual car transport companies to confirm that this is possible with them.
Does someone have to be present for pickup & delivery?
In most cases, the car shipping company will require you to be in attendance for the pickup & delivery of the vehicle. This is because there are likely to be release forms that you need to sign, as well as handing over the car keys.
Can I keep items in my vehicle during my car shipment?
Most car transport companies will be fine with you keeping some personal items in the vehicle when it is transported. However, there are two important things to remember: 1. The weight of the items may affect the price of the vehicle shipment, & 2. Any items in the vehicle will not be covered by insurance for the transport of the car itself.
How much gas should I have in my vehicle during transit?
Generally, you should aim to have around a quarter of your tank full. This allows for easy loading & unloading of the vehicle but will not add too much extra weight to the vehicle.
Can I ship my vehicle if it isn't running?
You can ship your vehicle if it isn't in running condition, however, this will be more expensive as specialist equipment is required to load & unload the vehicle.
Can I ship a modified vehicle?
Almost any type of vehicle is able to be shipped on Shiply, with hundreds of transport providers available to bid on your job there will always be someone that is up for the job & has the right equipment to safely carry it out.
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