how much to ship a small truck?

[bigchillcar]

toyota 4x4, regular cab. looking at autotrader and they have them all over the country..what's a ballpark estimate for shipping? say, from washington state..or colorado..or arizona..places like that. guessing it's based upon the distance? trying to figure this into the purchase cost. any help appreciated.
ryan

[artplumber]

Distance usually plays into the price. More important is reliability - time of arrival, car in one piece ctc. Best way is to get a series of quotes and then check them out on the local BBB. Some people swear by DAS, but they are just brokers like a whole bunch of others and have had plenty of complaints. I shipped my 930 in an enclosed carrier door to door SoCal to Florida with Horseless Carriage for less than DAS open terminal to terminal would have cost.

[bigchillcar]

peter..thanks for the recommendation. i'll be sure to check out horseless carriage..
ryan

[artplumber]

Ryan,
No prob. They were great, but I don't think they'd do a 4X4, they're more a classic and sports car hauler - my pickup date was delayed because I was moving the same time as Pebble Beach (Concours D'Elegance) and all of the trucks were tied up. But they showed up on time, completely professional drivers, didn't grind any gears, went over every chip, swirl mark, etc.

I used some no-name folks based in AZ to ship the Audi same distance for $900 (IIRC) on an open trailer with good results.

[bigchillcar]

i may wind up just flying to the location i find a truck and driving it home. i've been checking flights to locations where i've found trucks and it;s hard to beat $150-300. of course there's the gas to get home..lol. but i'm hunting a 4 cylinder.
ryan

[Joeaksa]

Ryan,

Find a vehicle somewhere that SouthWest Airlines flies. You can get to most of their places for under $150. That way you can look at the vehicle in person and make a better decision. If its what you want then you can drive it home. Take a AAA card for the trip back...

[bigchillcar]

joe..good advice. so far, i've just checked fares for all airlines on expedia.com..i've found lots in the $150-250 range. thanks.
ryan

[Rot 911]

Ryan, check your other thread where I posted about a Toyota truck that might fit what you are looking for.

[bigchillcar]

kurt..checked it. thanks. maybe it will turn out to be just a little older..
ryan

[javadog]

Ryan,

A word of caution about Horseless Carriage. They shipped a Ferrari for me in 1998, from California to Oklahoma. They had a WW2 era halftrack truck in the same load that deposited sand all over the car. They then screwed it up further, by deciding to cover my car with plastic, after it got dirty. The resulting scratches were endless. They also screwed up the paint on all four wheels, with the type of straps they used to secure the car.

I had to have all four wheels painted, the stainless hubs had to be re-polished and the whole car was lightly color sanded and polished. The repairs cost more than the shipping. The manager at Horseless Carriage agreed to pay for the repairs through his insurance, right up until the point that my check for the shipping fees cleared the bank. After that, he told me to go screw myself. Nice guy. Some day, when I'm in his neck of the woods, I'll stop by for a little chat.

I use Passport now. Several trips and no problems.

JR

[bigchillcar]

j-dog...thanks for the heads up.
ryan

[vash]

i seem to remember reading something about extra cost for shipping trucks with larger than stock tires. heads up.

[pbs911]

I just arranged shipping a BMW from Cali to Florida. I have nothing specific to add but just to let your know he quotes were all over the board with DAS being the highest. The price range was from $1,600 (door to pick up location) to $740 (door to door). Good luck.

[bigchillcar]

wow..that's some range. looking more like i'll fly to durham, nc. found a truck there and have been back and forth with counter-offering and may have finally worked something out. i'll probably fly out on southwest with a 7-day advance for like $89 and then drive back to little rock.
ryan

[bigchillcar]

actually, i'm now considering greyhound. i have a lot of studying to do and that would force me to do it. fare is $120. anybody ever take greyhound?
ryan

[Joeaksa]

When I was a kid! Not since then but its worth a try. Look into a night trip with as few stops as possible, otherwise I would do a last minute ticket or SWA to somewhere close-by and go from there...

[bigchillcar]

oh boy..may have found one all the way in friggin' renton, wa. crap, that's a long haul. weighing either having it shipped or possibly flying and taking a nice trip across america back with it..might be fun..might be long as a mother****er, too..lol.
ryan

[javadog]

I've driven from Tulsa to Seattle and it wasn't very thrilling. It's hard to figure but there's not a lot of decent scenery between the two points. Not at all what I expected. I'd find a closer truck, if I were you.

JR

[bigchillcar]

j-dog...the truck deal in north carolina worked out. i'm riding greyhound for 24 hours to get there, though..whew! cheapest way to go and i can do some studying i need to do anyway.
ryan

[Seahawk]

Ryan,

If you don't mind...what year, mileage and price.
My Dad is looking at selling a 1991 truck I gave him a few years ago (I bought a Tacoma).