Tag: Auto Transport Rates

Car Shipping Carrier Driver behind the wheel

Understanding Car Shipping & Auto Transport Quotes, Rates & Costs

Written by Mike Rupers on January 4, 2023. Posted in Auto Transport Quote Calculator, Auto Transport Rates, Auto Transport Tips, Car Shipping Advice, Car Shipping Quotes Calculator.

Car shipping and auto transport can be confusing, with various quotes, rates, and costs involved. It’s important to understand what factors determine the cost of shipping your car so you can make an informed decision.

What Determines Auto Transport Costs?

There are several factors that contribute to the cost of car shipping and auto transport:

Distance: The distance between the pickup and delivery locations is a major factor in determining the cost.

Vehicle size and type: The size and type of the vehicle being shipped also affect the cost. Larger vehicles and exotic cars may require specialized equipment and incur higher costs.

Shipping method: Open or enclosed transport, door-to-door or terminal-to-terminal, and expedited shipping all impact the cost of car shipping.

Seasonality: The demand for car shipping may fluctuate throughout the year, leading to changes in the cost.

Understanding Car Transport Quotes & Rates

Auto transport companies typically give auto transport quotes and rates to give you an estimate of the cost of shipping your car. Quotes are based on the information provided by the customer, including the pickup and delivery locations, the size and type of the vehicle, and the desired shipping method.

It’s important to keep in mind that quotes are just an estimate, and the final cost may vary based on additional fees or unexpected circumstances.

Calculating the Cost of Car Shipping

There are several tools available to help you calculate the cost of shipping your car. Direct Express Auto Transport’s cost calculator is one tool that provides an estimate based on the information you provide.

However, it’s always recommended to get quotes from multiple auto transport companies to compare costs and ensure you are getting the best deal.

Expect to pay more in car shipping costs for certain types of vehicles:

Sedan longer than 200 inches
Sedan heavier than 4,000 pounds
SUV midsize
SUV – heavier, longer, or higher
Passenger Van
Cargo Van
Pickup Truck – regular size
Pickup Truck – heavier, longer, or higher
Dually Truck
RV
Military

Choosing the Right Auto Transport Company

When selecting an auto transport company, it’s important to consider factors such as the company’s reputation, insurance coverage, and customer reviews. Also, ask about any additional fees, such as fuel surcharges or terminal fees, which can impact the final cost.

We are committed to providing our customers with reliable and affordable car shipping and auto transport services at Direct Express Auto Transport. With almost twenty years of experience and a focus on customer satisfaction, you can trust us to handle your car shipping needs.

Understanding the Factors That Determine Car Shipping & Auto Transport Costs

In conclusion, understanding the factors that determine car shipping and auto transport costs is essential to make an informed decision when shipping your car. Whether you’re using a cost calculator or getting quotes from multiple companies, consider all the factors that impact the cost and choose the right auto transport company for you. At Direct Express Auto Transport, we are committed to providing our customers with reliable and affordable car shipping and auto transport services. With almost twenty years of experience and a focus on customer satisfaction, you can trust us to handle your car shipping needs.

photo of hand with money Sell buy shipping your car

8 Things to Consider Before Selling a Car

Written by Mike Rupers on December 6, 2022. Posted in Auto Shipping, Car Shipping Advice, Door To Door Auto Transport, Vehicle Shipping Cost.

Whether you are a seasoned veteran at flipping cars or a newbie selling your first ride, it never hurts to have a refresher course (or a crash course) on how to sell a car. If you are ready to learn (or relearn) how to do just that, you’re in the right place. Our car shipping experts at Direct Express Auto Transport cover eight essentials to consider before selling a car. Learn everything you need to know before selling and shipping your vehicle with our trusted team today!

Get Your Paperwork Together

Before even considering selling a car, ensure you have the title. A car title is a legal form establishing a person or business as the legal owner of a vehicle. Without it, you cannot make someone else the legal owner of your car. Each state has slightly different rules for transferring car titles, so make sure that you research exactly how you have to transfer ownership of a vehicle in your state. If you have moved states recently but still have a car title from your old state, you might have to title your car in your new state before you can sell it there. Again, researching the different state’s rules on title transference will help put you on the right track.

Research a Good Price, Then Set Your Asking Price

Picking a price for your vehicle can be tricky, but it doesn’t have to be rocket science. Regarding pricing, online research is once again your best friend. Look into Kelly Blue Book prices for your car by searching for the same make and model year with similar mileage. After browsing Kelley Blue Book, search online car marketplaces to see what others are asking for similar makes and models.

When selling a car, “when” matters; after you’ve established a price range from your research, you’ll find that your selling timeframe will dictate which end of the spectrum your asking price will fall on. Just like with selling a house, if you have to sell your car fast, you will probably need to list it at a low price to generate the desired interest. But on the other hand, if you plan (which you most definitely should!), you can afford to list your car at the high end of the range and hope that you find someone looking for exactly what you are selling at a price that is great for you.

Establish a Minimum in Advance of Negotiations

In the United States, second-hand car selling is one of the last places where an asking price isn’t necessarily set in stone. Know this before you put your car up for sale so that you aren’t surprised and turned off by potential buyers that throw you numbers lower than your asking price. You can always be firm about only taking offers that are your exact asking price, but once again, this might lead you to lose out on potential sales.

Before putting your car on the market, establish a minimum number you will take for your vehicle. Write that number down. Tape it up on your fridge. Look at it every morning before breakfast. Burn it into your head so that when negotiation time rolls around, you won’t get sweet-talked into a price lower than you are willing to take. Bad at bartering with people? Enlist friends or family members with natural sales tendencies to negotiate for you. They may not know how to sell a car, but they will learn how to deal with haggling. They’ll likely be able to get you a much better price than you could get on your own.

Get Your Car Looking its Very Best

Sometimes, it’s the little things that make all of the difference. A few hundred dollars spent on the front end could save you thousands on the back end when you finally try to sell your car. Do an inventory of the damages to your car, both minor and major. Before you bring the car into your local body shop, see if you can fix any of the dents or clean away any scuffs with affordable auto care products found at most shops.

If you’re not that handy and not that comfortable fixing the minor surface issues yourself, ask a gearhead friend to try it, or get your local body shop to do it when you take your vehicle in for more extensive repairs. Be wise about how much money you will put into your car before trying to sell it. If it looks like you’re going to have to put in thousands of dollars to fix up your car, and you’re only going to sell it for a few thousand, it may be best to forgo the repairs. It’s always an option (sometimes the best) to sell your car in its current condition.

Take Great (Current) Pictures of Your Car

A good photo will go a long way in upselling your car. A great picture will go even further. Cell phone cameras are getting nicer and nicer, so you can handle taking photos on your own. If you don’t trust your eye, enlist the help of a friend with a good-looking Instagram or Facebook.

Once you have the pictures, compose them on your computer to ensure the lighting and colors are correct. Here, you should talk to someone with a few photo-editing skills to make your pictures pop. That will help distinguish your car from the thousands of others sold online. A final suggestion: make sure you upload current photos of your vehicle. No one wants to be fooled by five-year-old photos. That’s a surefire way to face haggling from the start.

Disseminate Your Ads

In this day and age, selling your car is a digital endeavor. The days of window advertising and pasteboards are all but behind us. (Though if you still want to advertise this way, we won’t stop you.) With the internet, there is an incredible collection of advertising and research tools at your fingertips. Kelly Blue Book is the first place you should start when listing your car. It is the largest, most reputable site out there for buying and selling cars. But don’t just stop there.

Consider listing your car on Autotrader.com, Cars.com, eBay Auto, and Craigslist. If you have a specialty car, do some research on specialty car sites to find an audience that’s more likely to give your vehicle a look. Be smart about your listing choices, but don’t be too discriminatory. The wider the net you cast, the more likely you’ll catch a buyer.

The Sale Scale: Local, National, or Worldwide?

Before listing, decide whether you want to sell your car to local, nationwide, or worldwide buyers. In the previous section, we recommend casting as wide of a net as possible. This same logic primarily applies here. You never know if there’s a rancher out in Wyoming or a Soccer Mom in Connecticut dreaming of buying a ‘06 Grey Toyota Camry with 135,000 miles on it. Plus, you stand a much better chance of being able to sell your car for the full asking price if you sell to the entire nation. Haggling is much harder online, and opening up your vehicle to a wider audience increases the likelihood that you’ll find a buyer willing to pay top dollar.

However, if you sell your car to an interstate or international buyer, you’ll likely have to ship it. Ensure you establish a way of safely and effectively transporting the money, title, and, eventually, the car safely and effectively. Invest in a car shipping company that is highly reviewed, priced affordably, and offers the options you’re looking for.

Think About Your Safety

Knowing how to sell a car safely is an essential component of the car-selling process. Have a safety plan before listing your vehicle so that when interested buyers start calling and emailing you, you will know the proper precautions before meeting up for a test drive.

Set up a separate email account that you will use specifically for the sale of the car, and consider getting a Google Voice number so that you don’t have to exchange your actual phone number and email address with random internet strangers. Don’t worry about letting calls go to voicemail. Assess whether callers seem sketchy or legitimate based on their voicemails or email responses. If they pass your litmus test, propose to schedule a meet-up in a public place.

If things go well, go ahead and offer a supervised test drive. Bring a friend to one or both of these meet-ups for safety. Your potential buyer will also do the same because safety goes both ways. Think about safety early so you can plan accordingly for each step of the process.

Learn More and Ship Your Car With Direct Express Auto Transport

If you end up selling your car to an interstate buyer and need to find a reliable and affordable auto transportation company, look no further than our direct Express Auto Transport team. For years, we have led the interstate car shipping industry in the contiguous 48 states with our passionate team of dispatchers, drivers, and customer service representatives working round the clock to get your vehicle to its new happy owner. Don’t believe us? Please read what our satisfied customers say on Trustpilot, get your instant quote, and ship with us today!

The Original Car Shipping Quote Calculator

Direct Express Auto Transport originated the instant car shipping quote calculator in 2004. It is still the best, most sophisticated, reliable tool available anywhere online. We offer three options that we call tiers of car shipping estimates. The standard rate is the cheapest car shipping quote, but it may take longer. Use it if you are patient. We recommend the expedited car shipping rate and have countless satisfied customers because the shipping process tends to go quicker.

The Real Cost of Shipping A Car

Written by Mike Rupers on December 3, 2022. Posted in Auto Shipping, Auto Transport Quote Calculator, Auto Transport Rates, Auto Transport Tips, Car Shipping Cost Calculator, Vehicle Shipping Cost.

The most common questions are about the cost of shipping a car. People can see the advantages of auto shipping, especially when compared to taking a long road trip that lasts for days or weeks. But they worry that shipping a car will cost a bundle – so much that it’s not worth it.

We have some good news for you at the start: a competitive auto shipping market has lowered the cost of getting your vehicle onto the back of a vehicle trailer. Plus, it’s always been challenging to arrange auto shipping, especially with the help of an online shipping broker like Direct Express Auto Transport. It’s an option for everyone!

But you’re probably still wondering how much it costs. We will get to that figure shortly. But before you consider the cost, consider the cost of the alternatives. You might spend more money when you think you’re paying less.

The Cost of Driving

People expect that driving costs less than shipping. But when you consider all the costs of a road trip – whether of hundreds of miles or thousands of miles – the economics start to look differently:

Gas – Depending on what you drive, how far you’re traveling, and the current cost of gas, you might spend hundreds or thousands of dollars fueling your vehicle.
Food – Food costs can add up fast when you’re eating three meals a day on the road (plus any snacks you buy), especially when traveling with multiple people.
Lodging – Paying for hotels or motels can be a considerable cost, and even if you’re willing to pitch a tent during your travels, you must pay for campgrounds.
Wear and Tear – Long drives add tons of miles to the odometer, lower the value of your vehicle and mean you will need maintenance (oil changes, new tires etc.) sooner.
Time – You can fly across the country in the afternoon, but it takes days and days to cover the same distance by driving. Your time is valuable, and you must invest a lot of it whenever you take a road trip.
If One Thing Goes Wrong! – Even if you’ve sharpened your pencil and determined it is cheaper to drive if just one thing goes wrong, a flat tire, overheated radiator, blown transmission, a speeding ticket (ouch!), or more, then you will be in the negative and wishing you had just let Direct Express Auto Transport ship your car.

Driving to an adjacent state can be expensive when you add up all the costs. It would help if you also had to factor in danger or to go – you, your passenger, and your vehicle are all at risk on the road, no matter how skilled you are behind the wheel. Plus, you might dread spending long hours behind the wheel as you inch toward your destination. Consider all this when considering the cost of having a car shipped.

The Cost of Car Shipping

How much you pay for shipping depends on several variables:

Make/Model – The larger the vehicle, the more space it takes up on a vehicle trailer. People with a truck, SUV, van, or large auto will pay more than those with a sedan or compact car.
Trailer Type – Most people ship their vehicle on the back of open-air auto trailers similar to the ones you see on the highway all the time. You can also ship inside an enclosed trailer for more safety (a popular option for auto collectors), but it costs more.
Route – The longer a vehicle hauler has to travel with your vehicle, the more you will pay for the shipment. The pickup and dropoff location can also affect costs; if you need pickup or dropoff in a remote location far away from a major highway or population center, it could elevate the cost of shipping a car.
Schedule – You can pay more to have your car picked up and delivered sooner, within days of scheduling the shipment. Or you can spend less if you’re willing to wait a week or more for pickup.
Availability – There are certain times of the year, usually around major holidays, when there are fewer vehicle haulers on the road, in which case it will cost more to schedule one that’s available.
Condition – If you want to ship a vehicle that doesn’t run, the hauler will have to manually get it on and off the trailer, which takes more time and effort and therefore costs more money.

Another thing to remember when considering the cost of shipping a car is that vehicle haulers carry multiple vehicles on the back of a trailer. That means the price of gas and the driver’s time are split between everyone shipping their car. Since you share the financial burden, you often spend less than when you take a road trip and shoulder the entire cost yourself.

What Will Your Car Shipment Cost?

Thanks to Direct Express Auto Transport, you don’t have to estimate the cost of having a car shipped. Thanks to our car shipping quote calculator, you can get an exact quote instantly. We invented this innovative tool in the early 2000s, and it remains the simplest and fastest way to explore the cost of auto shipping. That way, you don’t have to guess about the best option – you can know for sure using real numbers.

Here’s how it works: You enter the type of vehicle you want to ship, the kind of trailer you want to ship it on, your pickup and dropoff locations, and whether the car runs. Then, we give you quotes for the cost of shipping broken down into three tiers:

Standard Tier – This is the least expensive option. Shipments are usually assigned to a vehicle hauler 1-8 days from the first date you make it available.
Expedited Tier – This is the middle (and recommended) pricing tier. Shipments are usually assigned to a vehicle hauler 1-4 days from the first date you make it available.
Rush Tier – This is the most expensive option. Shipments are usually assigned to a vehicle hauler 1-2 days from the first date you make it available.

For your reference, vehicle haulers typically cover about 500 miles a day. You can get a rough estimate of the shipping time by dividing the total shipping distance by 500. However, haulers must also make stops for pickups and dropoffs, which can add a day or two to the shipment time.

Is the Cheapest Option the Best?

The cheapest shipping options are sometimes better. Sure, you pay less. But you also entrust your car to a vehicle hauler with a spotty record or rely on a shipping company that couldn’t care less about service. Auto shipping doesn’t have to be expensive to be exceptional. That being said, beware of prices that seem too good to be true. You get what you pay for with auto shipping. You might take a considerable risk for something as important and expensive as your car by seeking out the lowest prices possible. The better strategy is to work with a company that balances affordability, quality, consistency, and commitment.

Direct Express Auto Transport – High-Value Car Shipping Options

As an innovator and standard-bearer in the auto shipping industry, you can count on Direct Express Auto Transport to make auto shipping as valuable as possible. That means we do everything we can to keep the cost of shipping a car low. But we also only work with the top vehicle haulers in the industry. You’re paying for the best in the business, so you know your vehicle is in good hands.

If this is your first time shipping a car, read this beginner’s guide, and get some tips and tricks from experts.

The Original Car Shipping Quote Calculator

photo of interstate road-signs car shipping

The Best Way To Ship A Car to an Interstate Buyer

Written by Mike Rupers on November 21, 2022. Posted in Auto Shipping, Auto Transport Broker, Auto Transport by State, Auto Transport Carriers, Auto Transport Rates, Car Shipping Advice.

Want to learn how to ship a car? Don’t worry; the process won’t require any heavy lifting on your part. Nor will it need the headache, hassle, or hunt for a needle in a haystack. It’s the 21st century, and several excellent options for moving cars across state lines exist. If you have a buyer in another state and are trying to ship in the shortest amount of time possible, this is the guide. In the following sections, our car shipping experts here at Direct Express Auto Transport will teach you how to ship a car efficiently to any interstate buyer. Move on, and ship your vehicle with our trusted team today!

Step 1: Know Your Shipping Needs

You have probably heard of door-to-door service. But what about terminal-to-terminal or door-to-terminal service? These terms apply to car shipping, and knowing them will help you understand exactly how your car will get shipped.

With terminal-to-terminal service, you bring your car to a designated place where it is grouped up and loaded up with other cars at that specific location (or “terminal”). The terminal is usually a large parking lot where cars can gather, and freight trucks can maneuver. Once your car reaches its destination city, it will be dropped off at another terminal for the new owner to pick up. As you would expect, the more “terminals” and fewer “doors” you have in your delivery method, the cheaper the service will be. Having new car buyers pick up their vehicles from a terminal can be a big hassle because they might not have the means to get to their new cars.

If you opt to use terminals, make sure you are clear with the person buying your car on what type of delivery they are getting. We only recommend using terminals if you are willing to wait several weeks (or longer) and suffer the inconvenience of getting there. Few people are close to terminals at both ends of the shipment. Dear reader, most people seem to regret having used a terminal and would never do it again. It is cheap car shipping, but you get what you pay for.

Are you selling a high-end car that should not travel hundreds or thousands of miles aboard an uncovered truck on open roads? If so, you’ll probably want to choose an enclosed shipping transport. We recommend choosing this shipping method only if it’s necessary. Most of the vehicles shipped around the country are shipped on open trailers, roughly 97%, which means that if you go the enclosed shipping route, you will be paying a pretty penny, about 40-50% more. That’s because enclosed trailers can accommodate fewer cars but have approximately the same operating expense as larger Open trailers. Therefore, the Enclosed transporter must charge more. The customer does receive value for the extra money as their vehicle is protected from the elements.

Step 2: Know Your Arrival Deadline

Door-to-door car shipping is the fastest and most efficient method of transporting vehicles, so Direct Express Auto Transport will only do it that way. Getting your buyer their car quickly is ideal, but it will require some communication with the car shipping company you choose. Auto transport companies will almost always give you a range of dates for the car’s arrival. The reason dates are presented in ranges rather than precise days is that, unlike other services, shipping cars isn’t an exact science.

For logistical reasons, cars are shipped in groups, all going in the same direction. However, they’re not all going to the same place. Depending on where your vehicle is in the drop-off order, it may not always reach its final destination at the early side of the date range. Your driver could run into issues dropping off some of the cars before your car is dropped off. Weather, accidents, and other unforeseen problems can influence timing, which is why most car shipping companies give ranges for their car drop-offs. Before you book, ensure that the date range you’re quoted works for you and your buyer.

Regarding picking your car up, you have a couple of options to work with, depending on how tight or loose your schedule is. Tighter schedules should use our Expedited or Rush service, and even that cannot be guaranteed. Always have a backup plan to take the stress out of it. More flexible schedules can get away with booking the Standard transport rate, though we still think going Expedited is wise.

Step 3: Do Some Market Research

If you’re like most working adults, your car is one of the most expensive items you own. Like other expensive items, it should be shipped with care. To ensure careful shipping, you must choose the right car shipping company. And to do that, you have to do your research. Before settling on a car shipping company, see what the shipping market looks like in both your area and the area you are shipping to.

Some regions are massive shipping hubs with large markets and tons of options. Other places, like destinations off the beaten path, don’t have nearly as much truck traffic, so their selection of car shipping options will likely be much smaller. Doing some preliminary market research will help you get a feel for the possibilities in your regions.

It will also help you determine the price. In many cases, it’s not the distance that correlates to price but rather competition and convenience for car shipping companies. Assess the field, get quotes, and prepare to make your choice. We are pricing experts, and you can feel confident that we have already done that analysis for you.

Step 4: Choose a Reputable Auto Transportation Company

The most significant decision of the car-shipping process is choosing the right auto transport company. Here, you want to work with a business that will keep your car safe while ensuring it arrives on time—without costing you an arm and a leg.

The best car shipping companies know how to ship a car efficiently and effectively. Their reviews will reflect their reputations, their service will reflect their expertise, and their prices will reflect their integrity. An informative and easy-to-navigate website is a good indicator of a reputable company, but you shouldn’t just take their word on the quality of their service. Read reviews on sites like Trustpilot to see what past clients have said about the car shipping companies you’re researching.

Lastly, check to see if the companies you’re considering offer free and accurate quotes. That will help you know what you’re getting in terms of price. We say all this because we know Direct Express Auto Transport is widely considered to be the best in the business.

Step 5: Make Sure Your Vehicle is Insured

Even reputable companies that know how to ship a car sometimes encounter accidents. For this reason, it’s important to insure your car to stay protected against costly damages. While most car insurance policies don’t offer insurance coverage for car shipping, some auto transport companies offer insurance plans to help you stay protected. If the company you are working with does not provide transportation insurance, it is up to you to purchase car shipping insurance through your primary insurance provider. Whichever option you choose, it’s vital to ensure that your vehicle is covered well before its move.

Step 6: Leave the Tank at a Quarter, Wash Your Car, and Perform a Final Inspection

If you’re shipping your car across state lines, it will be on a trailer for quite some time. There is no reason to have much gas in it. Car shipping companies would prefer if your car did not have a full tank. Gas is heavy and will weigh down the shipping truck, lowering its fuel efficiency and possibly causing problems at the mandatory weigh scales. To prep, your shipping vehicle, keep your gas tank about a quarter full. Don’t empty it more than that — you want to give your new buyer a bit of gas to work with when they pick the car up.

Before saying goodbye to your car for the last time, wash it. At this point, you might think: “This car is about to be traveling hundreds of miles on the back of an open trailer! Why do I need to wash it if it’s going to get dirty on the way to its new home?” That’s a good point. But here’s a better point. You are washing the car so that you can note any irregularities, not because you want it to be clean before its long journey.

You don’t want to note a “scratch” that was just a scuff that washed away with a bit of soap, water, and elbow grease. On the other hand, you don’t want to miss a preexisting dent because it’s hidden under a thick layer of dirt and grime on your car. Once thoroughly washed your vehicle, please take pictures of any irregularities and share them with the shipping company and the new owner. This way, all relevant parties will know what damages were present on the car before the cross-country transport and what damages were picked up along the way.

Step 7: Ship with the Best — Ship with Direct Express Auto Transport

While not a required step per se, Step 7 in our guide will make shipping your car as simple, affordable, and efficient as possible, you could say it’s the most important step of them all. It’s shipping with our trusted team here at Direct Express Auto Transport. Staffed by the industry’s top professionals, we’re trusted by thousands of dealerships and private car owners each year, and we have an excellent 94% 5-star rating on Trustpilot.

Committed to making car shipping straightforward, we proudly pioneered the free online car shipping quote calculator in 2004, five years before any other shipping company had one. We’ve refined that calculator and use it today to help drivers across North America get fair, accurate, and transparent quotes for car shipping. No personal information is required — fill in the six fields and get your quote in seconds.

But our team here at Direct Express Auto Transport knows how to ship a car. We have an A+ rating from the Better Business Bureau (BBB), and we’re here to answer any questions you might have about our service or car shipping in general. Contact us to speak with a team member directly, and ship your car across state lines with our professionals here at Direct Express Auto Transport!