What Is Vehicle Transportation?
Vehicle transportation, also known as car shipping or auto transport, is a service offered by car 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 can't operate 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 car shipping company to manage the task.
Luckily, there are numerous vehicle transport services available to fulfill your specific requirements, which we'll discuss below.
Varieties Of Car Shipping Services
There are various car shipping services available, summarized below. It's advantageous to read through & determine the precise type of auto transportation service you require or prefer for transporting your vehicle.
The first decision you need to make is where you want your automobile picked up from & delivered to, whether it's a cross-country vehicle transport or moving a car to another state. Terminal-to-terminal car delivery is an option, where designated collection & drop-off points are used, often at the auto transport company's stores or operating bases. Terminal-to-terminal car delivery is usually less expensive but requires more effort on your part to get the vehicle home. However, most people require a door-to-door car shipping delivery service, where their automobiles are picked up & 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 car, which can be challenging without your vehicle in the first place!
Auto transportation services are generally divided into two categories: having someone operate your car to the destination or putting it on a trailer & shipping it.
Have Someone Operate Your Vehicle
This is a straightforward solution to vehicle shipping that involves hiring someone to drive your car to the desired location, whether you need to transport a vehicle across the country or to another state. The advantages of this car shipping method are that it's often less expensive, as trailers & an extra automobile 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 auto transportation companies that lead some people to choose other types of vehicle transport. Firstly, mileage is added to your car during the journey, meaning that if you're moving a vehicle across the country, significant miles will be added, although less so when simply transporting a car to a nearby state. Secondly, there is a slight risk of damage occurring to your automobile while it's being driven from point A to point B. These concerns are particularly worrisome for people buying or selling cars online who want to ensure the vehicle arrives in the same condition as advertised.
Put Your Automobile On A Trailer
Putting your car on a trailer is a safer way to ensure a higher level of protection than having someone operate your vehicle to its destination. With auto shipping trailers, there are several options available depending on the value & size of your car.
Firstly, you need to decide whether you want a single trailer for your automobile. These are often more expensive as they only transport one car at a time but are a great choice if you're moving an expensive or classic vehicle that you don't want to risk getting damaged. The safest way to ship a car 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 transport company is the least expensive & most common option when moving a car. Your automobile is placed on an open carrier & driven to the destination. All cars are securely fastened, but as the name suggests, they are exposed to the elements during the drive, so vehicle shipping companies may not recommend this for highly valuable automobiles. Furthermore, while it may be the least expensive way to transport a car cross-country, long journeys in open trailers will obviously run a higher risk of damage & leave your vehicle exposed to the elements for longer periods.
Enclosed car transport involves multiple automobiles secured on a carrier, but they are enclosed, meaning they are not exposed to dust, weather, & debris from the outside world during transit. This is often preferable for more expensive or newer vehicles where the owner wants to minimize the risk of damage during car shipping.
If you need to transfer your car overseas through a vehicle transport company, try to find one of the specialist services 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 Evanston
Time-Efficient - Rather than filling out a quotation form each instance you desire an accurate cost from a company for Evanston car shipping, on our platform you complete one quote form and can then obtain quotes from various companies based on the information you submit. This can conserve you hours of time that you would have spent phoning companies and completing forms. Communication with these businesses is also feasible through our platform, allowing you to store all your car shipping details in a single location.
Cost Comparison - Ultimately, the price of the car shipping quote is the most crucial factor when choosing which auto transport company to employ for shipping your vehicle. The challenge is that, while most companies willingly provide average prices and rough estimates, you won't receive a definite car transport quote without supplying information and filling in details. Although this is understandable, it means that comparing prices and obtaining a car transport quote is not a simple task. Utilizing Shiply enables you to acquire genuine, final price quotes from car shipping companies and compare them in one place, offering the opportunity to message them individually to ask any questions you may have and ultimately select the optimal company for your needs.
Affordable Car Shipping in Evanston - Auto transport companies on Shiply can typically provide their services at a lower cost than if you approached them directly. This is because they are often seeking to fill space on trips they are already making and have already invested the cost for. For instance, if you were relocating from Los Angeles to New York and needed to transport your car there, a company on Shiply might already have a multi-car transporter making that journey with 5 of the 6 spots occupied, and they are simply looking to ensure they are not wasting any space. As long as the dates, times, and pick-up/drop-off locations are suitable for you, you can often save up to 75% on auto transport by utilizing our service.
Environmentally Friendly - Using Shiply for auto transport is not only more economical but also more environmentally friendly. In the previous example, if your car didn't get on that multi-car transporter and instead, you arranged transport from a separate car shipper, the emissions into the atmosphere would have doubled as another entire journey would be required solely for your vehicle. Similarly, many car transporters return empty-handed after a delivery, which is not only expensive for them but also for the environment, as there are many people who could have utilized that transporter to move their cars in the opposite direction. Many of the auto transporters on Shiply are also looking to fill their trailers on return trips, resulting in even less wasted CO2 being emitted into the atmosphere, as well as continued affordable transport for our users.
Preparing Your Car for Shipping
If you have chosen an auto transport company to transport your car and feel confident using them, it's time to get your car ready for shipping. We suggest following these steps:
Documents - It's crucial to ensure that any necessary documents are available at pick-up or drop-off, especially if you are selling your vehicle.
Cleaning - You should take care to remove all personal belongings from your vehicle before shipping, for the obvious reason that you don't want to risk them getting lost or damaged during transit. It's also highly recommended to clean your vehicle before transport, as this will allow you to assess its condition and 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, you should ensure that it's in running condition. This means checking fluid levels, battery charge, and tire pressure. Again, this can also help you better evaluate 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, and 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 before to determine whether any extra damage has occurred. Shipping a car can, in rare cases, cause damage, and 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 and 500 miles, and if the journey is over 1,000 miles, 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 and 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 and delivery? In most cases, the car shipping company will require you to be in attendance for the pickup and 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, and 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 and 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 and 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 and has the right equipment to safely carry it out.
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