Does anyone have any experience with auto transporters? I don't know whether to get the car on the top or bottom of the truck. The top may produce scratches from tree branches or hail dents, while the bottom may get leaked on by a crappy car on top. Anyone have any inputs on this or just some shipping advice in general?

On a side note, does anyone know the cost of a new/used painted 04 front bumper?

 

No one at all? Surely someone here has shipped car.

 

I got my car shipped to Las Vegas from California. The dealership took care of all the shipping for me. I thought my car would be shipped on a huge truck with a whole bunch of other cars. I was one for two. It was a huge one-level open-bed with only my car on it. It came dusty, but otherwise in perfect condition.

 

Thanks for the info. I wish mine was being shipped that way...it would alleviate some of the worry.

 

Had my car shipped from the east coast out to sunny California by Dependable Auto Shippers (DAS). The car arrived a few days late and with grooves spun into the rear tires - as if someone spun the tires against something that didn't give (like a metal grating). Other than that, the car seemed to be in fine shape. Oh...I paid extra to have it shipped in an enclosed carrier. Reasoning? I figured that people probably wouldn't ship their "beater" that way.....so, for me, it didn't matter whether the car was on "top" or not.

Hope that helps...

 

A guy bought my car off ebay and arranged shipping through DAS mentioned above. They are advertised all over ebay.

It cost him roughly $800.00 to ship from Texas to Maryland but he was happy with the end result.

 

We just shipped our Audi from San Jose to New Orleans, and it ran $900. Then they tried to overcharge us $250 when we went to pick up the car. Yes, pick it up. We didn't want to wait the 4 extra days for them to deliver it since it was sitting in a terminal 10mins from our house.

We used A-1 Auto transport. Supposedly they are one of the best, but I would never use them again. Besides holding my car ransom for more money, a mouse had found its way into the car and shat over the seats and carpet.

 

Thanks for the anecdotes. I'm using a company rated very highly with 114/118 perfect reviews. They are a bit pricier because of this, so the enclosed carrier would just be too much cross country. My biggest concern now was the question of top or bottom because I've heard from a couple of friends that it can make a difference. But I guess either way things can go perfectly or horribly wrong, so I will just have to leave it to fate.

 

My girlfriend and I both shipped our cars on the same day from LA - mine to NY, and hers to Ohio. We used DAS. I paid regular shipping for her crappy Neon and paid almost double to ship my S in enclosed carrier and on top level. Her car arrived 3 days after we dropped it off and mine took almost the full 2 wks. Her car was in great shape with no damage and so was mine. But who knows what the really do with it anyway and where they put it b/c you never see it after you drop it off or they pick it up. I figured at the time that I loved the car so much that I would pay whatever it takes to take good care of it. In retrospect I would just say pay the least and take your chances. The $800 difference would have certainly covered the cost of fixing and minor dings that supposedly could occur when shipped exposed or lower level.

Good luck.

 

That is a very good point. Plus the shippers are all fully insured to cover damages. This really sucks having to leave my new (used) car in the hands of a trucker, but what can you do. The car ships tomorrow...thanks for everyone's experiences.