Moving a car is not an easy task, whatever the reason. Deciding if you should drive the vehicle or ship it is the first consideration. It can often prove more beneficial to ship the car to save the large amount of wear that driving it would give. However, car shipping costs money, and there are different factors that affect that cost. Here are the factors that affect how much it costs to ship a car to give you a good idea on what to expect and plan for.
The Biggest Factor
Once you have found an auto logistics transport such as Beacon Shipping LLC to ship your automobile, the next big thing to consider is the pricing. The price of shipping changes based on many factors, but the main one is the location of the pickup and drop-off. The price of the transport is calculated by factoring in the locations, and the route the truck must take to get to the final destination. This includes the gas prices and all the miles that the truck will accrue due to the transport. This means that the further the drop-off location is from the pickup, the more it will cost. It also means that popular, crowded places cost less than small places. Namely, transportation to cities with high traffic like Chicago or Las Vegas costs less than in rural towns, as there are more trucks going to these larger cities; in turn, rural places require more driving due to a lack of major roads leading to them. This all adds up to dictate the price of the transport and is definitely a large factor in that equation.
Shipping Type
Another large factor in the cost of the shipment is dependent on your decision of what kind of shipment you wish for your vehicles. The two types of shipping that are available include enclosed shipping and open shipping. Open shipping is the more common form of shipping for autos. It features a truck with an open back that carries the vehicles where they need to go. It is less expensive than its counterpart, as the truck physically carries less weight, which saves gas and cost. It is also easier to find open shipping transports, as they are more common and have more trucks on the road than enclosed shipping. Enclosed shipping carries the vehicles it transports in large cases that protect the vehicles they carry from the outside. This prevents any weather or wind from dirtying the vehicles during transport. However, the heavier carrying system and limited space of the enclosed transports means that the cost is higher than open transport.
Vehicle Transport Season
Just as it is with many industries, transporting vehicles is often done at particular times of the year, which forms an industry season. This season is meant to represent the best time to transport a car using these services. The season exists as most car shipments happen because people have major life changes, like moving to a new city or going off to college. These events are often at the same time for many people and cause a natural season of sorts. The seasons also take into account the traffic of cities and weather patterns such as snow. The increase in auto shipping in these seasons lowers the overall price of the transport. Trying to move a car outside of this shipping season will most likely increase the cost and make it harder to find a conveniently timed transport without setting a date. The difference between shipping in or out of season is not usually that big.
Your Vehicle
The last factor that has a big influence on the cost of transportation is the state of your vehicle that you want shipped. The weight of the truck that is driving the vehicles is very important to the cost of the move, as it requires more gas the heavier it is. This in turn increases the price that you have to pay as the customer. That is why the weight of your vehicle is so important to the cost, as each pound your car weighs will increase the price at the end of the move.
The size of your vehicle will also play a factor in what you have to pay to ship it. There is a limited amount of space on each transport truck, which limits the number of cars it can take. This means that your automobile’s size is important to how many vehicles can fit on each transport. As such, the bigger your automobile is, the more it will cost to ship. Another way that your auto might impact the price is if it has any modifications. You should remove any modifications that you can from the vehicle before transport to save yourself money. Each modification usually adds extra weight to the car, and it can also add additional size. Some modifications may need special handling, which can increase your cost as the shipping company has to do more work. For example, an add-on of lights on top of your vehicle will increase its height and weight. The extra weight will increase gas use, and extra steps may be taken to make sure your vehicle fits because of the extra height. The last major thing of note is the transport of personal goods in the vehicle. By leaving items inside your car, you increase its weight. Insurance does not cover the items inside the car, meaning that if anything happens to the items in the transport, there would be no way to recover any losses. Some shipping companies even have rules in place to prohibit the transfer of personal items using your car during an auto shipping.
These are most of the factors that affect how much it costs to ship a car, but there are still a few smaller things you can do. Not refilling on gas as you drop off the car can save you some weight, for example. Here at Beacon Shipping LLC, we also a door-to-door shipping service that costs a bit extra. However, that extra cost means that your vehicle is picked up from where you want and taken to where you need it. Otherwise, you will most likely need to bring it to certain locations to start the process and pick it up from predetermined places.
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