14 replies to this topic

[irish_in_ny]

Hello everyone! I'm not sure if I am posting this thread under the right section. My question is, are there any reliable, affordable auto shipping companies that would ship from 46574 Indiana to 10704 New York? I was about to arrange something with one company but I read they're reviews and they are scammers. The car I bought is running and driving but I wouldn't chance it on a long drive like that. So has anyone dealt with a good auto shipper that they could tell me about?

Thanks in advance,
John

[TK826]

Have you spoken to scatpack, here on the board?

http://www.bluesbrotherscentral.com/forum/members/13242-scatpack01.html

[sigmfsk]

These are the folks I used to transport my Monaco from Oregon to Michigan:
Auto Transport | Car Shipping Company | INSTANT Rate Quote 24/7

From what I can tell, these guys are a clearinghouse, and they keep a portion of the bill and find an actual shipper to handle the work.

The actual company that did the shipping was:
SK Trucking: Welcome!

There seemed to be a lack of communication between the driver and his dispatcher. The driver arrived a few days late and wanted payment in cash, even though I was told I could pay via money order. But everything got sorted out, and for the actual shipping, they seemed to do a good job. If I had to do it again, I'd still use SK trucking, but I'd call them directly. I think National Transport provides a useful service of putting someone that needs a car shipped in touch with a shipper that can do the work, but if you can find the shipper yourself you'll likely save some money.

Please let us know who you end up using and how things went.

your friend in sharing shipping experiences,
arthur

[TI4438]

I used Direct Express Auto Transport to get my 2door Monaco from Washington State to Chicago.They charged me $750.I have no idea if that's expensive or not,but it was less than expected.


Auto Transport 800.600.3750 Direct Express for Instant Online Quotes, Car Shipping, Auto Shipping and Car Transport


The driver stayed in contact with me to give me the best ETA.I paid some of the fee online,with the balance going to the driver.Totally painless experience.

[Bismo]

I used DAS Auto when I had my Crown Vic brought from northern CA to MA... that was about $650 if I remember right but it was almost 5 years ago. Still, no complaints with them, though it took about two weeks (I didn't pay for expedited shipping of any kind).

[TI4438]

It took about a week for my car to get here.I imagine that I went with DEAT because it was the best price I could find.

[ChiTownJohn]

750 is good T1, you paid less than a dollar a mile, was it a large vehicle carrier? Thats the only was I can see them making money, unless a large car hauler brought it close by then a smaller carrier took it to your house. Just curious.

john

[TI4438]

It was a full size hauler.The driver had to drop the car off in a near by parking lot.
FYI,ask about options when shipping.If I had known about it,I would have requested a car cover during transit.It would have cost more,but I suspect it would have eliminated some minor scratches in the paint along with a lot of asphalt in all the nooks and crannies.

[Steam McQueen]

ChiTownJohn said:

750 is good T1, you paid less than a dollar a mile,

I'm thinkin' it comes out to a lot less than that. Spokane is around 1,800mi and Seattle 2,100, so just using 2,000 miles as an example at $750 = 37.5 cents a mile. Is that right? Sounds like a bargain. I remember reading once that a rough estimate to use would be 50 cents a mile uncovered and $1.00 a mile covered.

http://www.bluesbrotherscentral.com/forum2/public/style_emoticons/default/icon_cool.gif

[ChiTownJohn]

Yeah for sure I considered using my Power Stroke for a few bucks hauling, a single inclosed trailer is around a buck a mile or your dying out there, so that's why I asked I knew the guy had to have had a big hauler, or it least brought it close by for a smaller. You cant beat that, would have cost you a lot more, unless you didnt care, up to the person.

What the hell did he go through construction somewhere? whats w/ the asphalt in the well's?

john

[TI4438]

Just a lotta little rocks kicked up by the rigs tires.
If you remember John,I was on the phone with you when I got the car.

[sigmfsk]

I got some quotes from shippers listed earlier in this thread for shipping
http://www.bluesbrotherscentral.com/forum/bluesmobiles-sale/10887-usa-1976-royal-monaco-colorado.html
from CO to MI.

These were the quotes
$795 - Auto Transport | Car Shipping Company | INSTANT Rate Quote 24/7
$900 - Auto Transport 800.600.3750 Direct Express for Instant Online Quotes, Car Shipping, Auto Shipping and Car Transport

DAS had these quotes
standard size car: $796
small van/pickup/suv: $846
I don't know if they'd classify a Monaco as a standard size car, or a small-van, but it didn't really matter because the seller would be required to drop-off the car at a depot 196 miles from his house. I'm looking for door-to-door shipping.

SK Trucking didn't have any trucks going from CO to MI in the near future.

I sent my information into this site:
Auto Transport | Auto Transport Company | Auto Transport Quotes

which sends out the information to several shippers. Here are the quotes I got back for door-to-door shipping:
$625 - Worry Free Auto Transport - Online Quote Form
$645 - AutoShipDirect.com | 1-800-ASD-8177 | Auto Transport | Car Shipping | Car Moving | Free Quotes
$675 - Alliance Auto Transport
$695 - Advanced Auto Shipping LLC - Nationwide Auto Shipping Services
$699 - MOVE ON TIME - Auto Transportation Services.
$845 - Auto Transport Companies | Able Auto Transport
$950 - Auto Shipping - Vehicle Shipping, Car Shipping, Auto Relocation - AllAutoShipping.com
$1150 - United Auto Movers :: Nationwide And International Car Shipping :: Car Transport - Truck Transport - Motorcycle Transport - Boat Transport

I found this site that has reviews posted of many shippers:
Transport Reviews.com - Ratings and Reviews of Auto Transport Companies - Your Source For Finding a Quality Auto Transporter!

I thought it might be just a fake web-site that showed all the shippers as being great, but I see that SK Trucking didn't get all great reviews, and that corresponds with my experience.

I think the reviews have to be interpreted to a certain extent. For example National Transport LLC has pretty good reviews, but when I had my Marin County Monaco shipped here, I used them, but they subcontracted to SK trucking. So if you read the reviews and saw great reviews for company A, and bad reviews for company B, its not obvious that hiring company A will result in a better shipping experience, because company A may subcontract the job to company B.

All things being equal, the best thing I could do would be to hire someone I trust (aka Scatpack from the board
http://www.bluesbrotherscentral.com/forum/members/13242-scatpack01.html
) but he's not in the CO area right now.

He did make a point that I be aware of trucking companies that use terminal yards to transfer vehicles between shippers. I guess they could get your car at a terminal yard and then say they required more money to ship it the rest of the way, and you'd be stuck.

For my current shipping need, the reviews for
Worry Free Auto Transport - Online Quote Form
seem fine, and their Terms and Conditions say they don't use terminal yards, so I plan on giving them a try. I'll keep you posted how it turns out.

your friend in status updates,
arthur

[scatpack01]

those are good rates for a huge car like the Monaco. And when you are hauling 9-12 cars at once they can do it cheaper than I can. But finding a car in the boonies would up the rate for these carriers.
I will work with members if I can although my step deck is in the shop for a new axle. So it will be a bit before I can haul any cars.
I still want to get to Edmonton for the parts car and maybe the one in WY.

[sigmfsk]

I went with Worry Free Transport for $625. The contract said that after 2 weeks, I got to cancel my order without penalty at any time prior to a transporter being assigned.

After 1.5 weeks I started thinking about my options. I thought about canceling at 2 weeks and going with someone else, but then I thought "why cancel?" If I can find another shipping company that allows me to cancel at any time, I can have two companies looking and go with whoever gets the order filled first.

These two companies didn't have a 2-week minimum before canceling without penalty:
$695 - Advanced Auto Shipping LLC - Nationwide Auto Shipping Services
$845 - Auto Transport Companies | Able Auto Transport

And then I thought, if I'll accept paying $695 or $845 to ship the car, I should at least offer that amount to Worry Free Transport. So I called Worry Free. They said the problem wasn't the price, but just finding someone that was going that way. Even so, I had them juice up the offer by $100 to $725. And then I got a lockin on Monday, just before the 2-week period expired. They picked up the car in CO on Monday (this week) and delivered to me in MI today.

I'm happy with their service. For shipping, especially if you have some leeway with shipping dates, I'd recommend trying
Auto Transport | Auto Transport Company | Auto Transport Quotes
and get all the quotes and go from there.

your friend in shipping working out well,
arthur

[scatpack01]

Glad to hear it went well for you. That;s my problem, being in the right place at the right time.