This is why I would never use Uship - must see photo!

Unobtanium-inc · 09-10-2013, 10:19 AM

We sold a 356C project to a guy recently. The shipper we referred him to (Tim Stears Auto Transport, our favorite) was on vacation when he called so he decided to get a quote from Uship. A week later these three "dudes" show up pulling a converted camper. They open the rear door and it's full of furniture. "Don't worry," says the driver, "we'll get it in there." And so they did, sliding the wrapped couch into the trailer on TOP of the 356. It's a project car that is getting a full resto, and we've learned the hard way to let our buyers make their own decisions on transport rather than try to interfere, especially at the moment of pickup. But WOW. Their next stop was Myrtle Beach, SC to "chase skirt." We sent the photo to the car's buyer so he can be sure to give it an extra full lookover when it arrives.

So I hope this dissuades anyone from getting a Uship quote. -- Matt

CCM911 · 09-10-2013, 11:28 AM

After seeing that, I think I would rather just pay for a legitimate shipper.

175K911 · 09-10-2013, 11:50 AM

I would have stopped the idiots right then and there to get the buyer on the phone to get his permission to have his new car shipped this way. Hopefully the buyer is OK with this moronic way to ship a Porsche.

CCM911 · 09-10-2013, 12:41 PM

Around here, in Pennsylvania, Thomas Sunday is the crowd favorite.

As with anything, you can go cheap(see above photo), or do it right.

djwhite · 09-10-2013, 04:18 PM

Don't blame U-Ship....like Ebay, the quality of the people on there varies widely and you need to do your homework on who you are dealing with. Clearly you didn't vet this shipper very well, or they hadn't done enough to have adequate feedback to tell. I use U-ship all the time and have always had outstanding service. The last time the truck that showed up had only 5k miles on it...and mine was nearly the only vehicle in it. Very professional and white glove door to door service.

Lukesportsman · 09-10-2013, 05:37 PM

I too have had a great experience with U Ship, but ask/demand for references! My project car arrived on a roll back aluminum single car trailer. Arkansas to Indiana for $300 door to door. I've used "legit" shippers with mixed results with some brokering the load to third parties of mixed results.

But I appreciate the warning and heads up!

Unobtanium-inc · 09-10-2013, 06:36 PM

DJwhite makes a good point. If it's possible to get more information on who you're hiring, and you feel good about it, you could end up with a high end shipping situation like he or Luke did. I guess the point I was trying to make was more along the lines of be careful who you let ship your car, because not everyone claiming to be an auto transporter is capable of doing a good job.

twistoffat · 09-10-2013, 09:09 PM

A lot of shippers use sub contractors. You book with one company and they run the order past another in your area. Sometimes its the luck of the draw but a reputable company won´t deposit a sofa on your pride and Joy. I´d send the pics to Uship and let them deal with it. I´d say they´d be shocked as well.

Cory M · 09-11-2013, 09:44 AM

I agree with djwhite.

We have used Uship twice with no complaints. Once to transport a 993 from NY to CA and another time to transport a race trailer from TX to CA.

T77911S · 09-11-2013, 10:28 AM

wow, and i thought those idiots on the the TV show where just puttingon an act.

Storage Man · Storage Man's Garage

Spoke to them three times the day of there delivery. My car was well taken care of and they seem to be as concerned about me as they were about my 911. The car above mine was one of three P cars in the world traveling back home from a show somewhere.
Great to deal with.

Schmierung · Schmierung's Garage

U-Ship... This is the last image of U-ship Josh Slusser and crew picking up my 911s from Houston in 2006. Said they were going to take it to Terrel TX to consolidate then to So Cal.

All their paperwork turned out to be fraudulant. Houston DA would not file charges as he thought the situation was "Breach of contract...Slusser just failed to deliver the car". Insurance would not touch that.

I am still looking for the car, Slusser, or pieces of the same, and will reward for information or "actions" leading to the return of car, Slusser or pieces thereof. I am serious as a heartattack.

I have warned you.

PorscheA · 09-14-2013, 05:33 PM

You usually don't even get what you pay for and if you looked for the 'cheapest' quote/price/part, then you should expect similar results.

I KNOW from experience

Rekoob · Rekoob's Garage

only real way to get things done properly...is do it yourself, otherwise the chance of disappointment can be very likely.
its pretty disgusting the things people do, and expect money for...

bike2ride95 · 09-15-2013, 01:00 PM

Here's what I would do if one of these numb-nuts showed up to pick up
my Porsche that someone bought and prefers to ship it this way:
Take a copy of the driver's picture along with a copy of his drivers license,
registration/proof of insurance and any documentations that he may present
including all paperwork that pertains to the car. Take pictures/video of car
being loaded up as well as his vehicles including all license plates. I would
also ask for a thumb print to the documents I have in possessions.
If I get screwed...I know who to hunt

DCinVA · 09-15-2013, 02:09 PM

WOW, that is just stupid.

I have never shipped a car, but if I saw a shipper attempting to do that, I would never allow them to ship the car. Take the car off the trailer, send them on their way, and call the shipper to complain. I cant imagine your customer would be happy with that.

porwolf · 09-15-2013, 06:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Unobtanium-inc

Is that considered "consolidating" in the shipping trade?

JFairman · 09-15-2013, 07:50 PM

must be a nice couch

Unobtanium-inc · 09-16-2013, 07:15 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DCinVA

WOW, that is just stupid.

I have never shipped a car, but if I saw a shipper attempting to do that, I would never allow them to ship the car. Take the car off the trailer, send them on their way, and call the shipper to complain. I cant imagine your customer would be happy with that.

I know it seems like this is the thing to do, but there are all sorts of ramifications we have run into. If we can't reach the buyer at that very moment on the phone, it's not really our call. Most of these shippers, especially Uship, have been prepaid for the haul. If we send them on their way, our buyer gets stuck with the $1000+ loss because we refused the pick up. Worse yet, they expect us to pay for their loss because we were the ones that refused to let them have it. It's very dicey money-wise. The second scenario, and almost always happens if we DO reach the buyer on the phone: they tell us to let the car go with whatever guy showed up to get it, because they THINK they have all sorts of protections built into the deal they made.

On a job like this, once the car is loaded onto a contracted shipper's trailer, we legally can't demand it be taken off. So if we told this guy to take the car off the trailer as we saw the couch going in on top, he would likely have told us to stick it someplace, and there's nothing we can do.

Auto transport can be a messy business with all sorts of characters involved. The point of all of this is to do your homework ahead of time. Be patient. Know who is transporting your car. -- Matt

fast_e_man · 09-16-2013, 07:36 AM

I've used U-Ship 4 times with great results. This is my 73E from New Hampshire to Colorado. The 73 was the only cargo in a small Atlas Van Lines truck. I think this guy called himself "The Country Picker". I was flexible on my ship date and waited a couple weeks until he lined up a return client back to NH. I don't usually select the cheapest shipper, I ask for references, get commitments on the haul vehicle that will be used and make my decision based on best value.