The Confusing World of Car Shipping

You need to move a car a long distance and are confused by all the options? There are only three basic ways to move your car, but each of those has several options. This article will outline all the choices so you can make an informed decision.
Drive Yourself
The cheapest and easiest way to move a car is to drive it yourself. The only costs involved are gas, food, and lodging. You are in full control of how long it takes and no one will take better care of your car than you. The route you take will have an impact on the time and cost.
One option is to take the Amtrak Auto Train. Unfortunately, there are currently only two stations, one in Lorton, Virginia and the other in Sanford, Florida. Prices vary by season and at prime "snowbird" season prices range from $650 to $1300 for two adults and their vehicle, making it a pricey option for the cost conscious.
Auto Driveaway
The second way to move a car is to have someone drive it for you. The first auto driveaway company started in 1953 moving rental cars between major cities and is still in business today. Today, they also move personal vehicles as well as rentals. There are three types of auto driveaway options to consider: Unpaid Driver, Paid Driver, and Professional Driver.
The most common auto driveaway service acts as a broker to find an unpaid driver to drive your car. The biggest advantage to this option is cost. Since the driver isn't being paid, you only pay the broker fee. Some companies include the cost of gas and tolls in their fee, others bill separately. Unfortunately, this type of service never guarantees a pickup date or delivery date. Cars can sit for weeks or months waiting for a driver. A huge disadvantage to this type of service is the level of expertise and dependability of the drivers.
The next level of service acts as a broker to find a driver to drive your car for a fee. This type of service is more expensive but much more reliable than using unpaid drivers. The drivers are being paid, so they tend to take better care of your vehicle. Most companies also have monetary penalties for late delivery, so your vehicle is delivered on time.
The highest level of service uses staff drivers to drive your car. Some driveaway companies refer to this as their "Expedited Service" or "Professional Driver". The cost will include the driver's fee and the cost of flying the driver one leg of the journey. Although the most expensive, this option is by far the most reliable and dependable.
Auto Shipping
The third way to move is car is to ship it. Auto shipping is the most diverse, and therefore confusing, option. A shipper can be either a broker or a transporter. If the shipper is a broker, they may broker out the moving of your car to a transporter, a driveaway service or a combination of the two. If you do not want your car driven, be sure the shipper is a transporter or only brokers to transporters.
Transporters usually offer several tiers of service, from the most economical to the most expensive, they are: Terminal Shipping, Door-To-Door, and Expedited. Terminal Shipping is where your vehicle is dropped off at a shipping terminal and is delivered to the terminal nearest your destination. There is no guaranteed pickup date or delivery date with this level of service. Door-To-Door is what it implies, your vehicle is picked up at one destination and delivered to the next. Expedited service is where a guaranteed deliver date is given.
Next, there are two types of car carriers that a transporter will use, open carriers and enclosed carriers. Open carriers are the ones you commonly see on the highway. They can carry up to 10 cars, making this the more economical option. Enclosed carriers come in a variety of sizes and look like big box trailers. They are much more expensive than open carriers.
The biggest advantage to employing a carrier is the lack of wear and tear on your vehicle. Your car is loaded on the carrier and it rides to the destination.
The biggest disadvantage is the potential damage. Cars can be damaged by road debris, leaking fluids from other vehicles and from the loading/unloading itself. Extremely valuable vehicles employ enclosed carriers to eliminate the damage from road debris.
The second biggest disadvantage is time. Transporters want to move a full carrier for economical reasons. Therefore, your vehicle will sit until a full load going to the same destination accumulates. The additional revenue for an Expedited Delivery is to compensate the transporter for moving a less-than-full load or to entice the transporter to take the expedited car ahead of others.
One last note about brokers: Since they don't transport their own vehicles, it can be a bit of a gamble to contract with them. During peak busy times, transporters often have full carriers already so cars usually sit until the volume dies down and transporters are looking for additional cars to fill their carriers. If you are contracting with a broker because they have the lowest price, remember that your car will only be moved if and when a transporter cannot find a car offering a larger fee.


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