[angel222]

Wondering if anyone can recommend a car transport company...I need to ship my car to Long Island NY from Florida. Ive never done this before so im really lost...Any information would be appreciated.
Thanks,

[Mack184]

We looked into this going the other way from up north to Florida. We were going to drive one and have the other hauled. What we found is that for the most part you can't be sure that they will move you when you want to be moved, and many companies work on a "bid" system and if your quoted price isn't enough for the haulers, you won't get picked up.

The very best of the car haulers is Reliable. They haul a lot of antique & exotic cars. They are expensive, but they have a fine record.

In the end we decided it wasn't worth the hassle and just drove both our cars down.

[Villager Dude]

Originally Posted by Mack184

We looked into this going the other way from up north to Florida. We were going to drive one and have the other hauled. What we found is that for the most part you can't be sure that they will move you when you want to be moved, and many companies work on a "bid" system and if your quoted price isn't enough for the haulers, you won't get picked up.

The very best of the car haulers is Reliable. They haul a lot of antique & exotic cars. They are expensive, but they have a fine record.

In the end we decided it wasn't worth the hassle and just drove both our cars down.

I saw an add in todays paper offering to drive your car while you fly home. Not sure the cost but I thioght for the right person it would be a big help. I have outgrown long drives in my lifetime.

It was in the classified section.

[Bill-n-Brillo]

If you do decide to go with a transport company, ask them a few questions:

- Will they broker the transport of your car to another company? (getting an additional party involved can complicate things....and some companies that represent themselves as transport companies are exclusively brokerages!) Many, many companies are exactly that - brokerages. They own no equipment and employ no drivers. They simply make arrangements for other companies to transport your vehicle.

- How many times will they off-load and re-load your car between your old house and TV? (every time someone moves your car, there's potential for problems)

- How tightly will they guarantee a pick-up date/time and a delivery date/time?

- Will they provide door-to-door service? (some transport companies will want to specify a non-residential pick-up and drop-off points)

Read and understand the contract presented to you and understand how problem resolution works with them.

As Mack mentioned, Reliable Carriers is an excellent company. Some other large, national carriers: Exotic (they're out of Orlando), Horseless Carriage, Passport Transport, DAS (Dependable Auto Shippers), Intercity Lines, Waggoners.....there are plenty of good ones. They will likely be the most expensive as well as most are enclosed carriers. Open carriers will be less costly. Smaller businesses that do their own work will probably be less expensive as well. Brokered jobs are most likely to be the cheapest.

Here's a source for some other transport companies:

Classic Cars and Parts for sale | Hemmings Motor News

Hope all that helps!

Bill

[Tom Hannon]

I use a very reasonable transport company who shipped my car to The Villages from Ronkonkoma Long Island. $745. I filled the car up stuff that needed to be sent to TV and saved a lot of money not having to mail the stuff down. If Bill remembers, i called him on this company before i used them and Bill found no negatives. If interested let me know. I have their phone number somewhere in my files.