Why are the prices I am getting all over the map?

The hardest thing for people researching car moving companies to understand is that the prices they are getting are not hard and fast gaurantees, but rather ESTIMATES of what one company thinks it will take to get a vehicle moved promptly versus another company's opinion of what it will take. Don't be fooled, there are not carriers committed to take your vehicle at these quoted prices, the company you choose will still have to get to work getting a carrier to commit to move it at the price they quote you.

What goes into the prices I am getting quoted?

Your total price breaks down into two parts, the broker's fee (or 'deposit' as everyone calls it) and the carriers fee (your COD amount) Make no mistake about this, EVERYONE YOU ARE GETTING SALES CALLS FROM IS GOING TO BROKER YOUR MOVE. In this industry, there are brokers who try to fool you into thinking that they are the actual carriers and there are an equal amount of carriers who sell themselves on the fact that they have a truck or two but are not being honest about the fact that they broker out 90% of the orders they book. Here is a quick easy way to tell, if a company takes an up front fee, whether they call it a deposit or any other name, they are a broker. Carriers do not take any payment until the vehicle is delivered.

Should I pay a deposit before being given a carriers name and contact info?

In our opinion, you are crazy to do so. Have you ever been paid up front for the work that you perform for your employer? Why would you pay a fee up front when there are reliable and trustworthy companies like ours that won't ask for it until we provide you with your carriers details?

How long does transport take?

The average transit time from pick up to delivery on any vehicle going coast to coast will be between one and two weeks. From there you can figure your transit time based on how far your vehicle is traveling, i.e. from either coast to the Midwest might average 3-7 days.

How to Ship a Car from New York to California

Name: How to Ship a Car from New York to California | Ship a Car Direct
Brand: Ship a Car Direct
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Home | How to Ship a Car from New York to California

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Feb 21, 2024

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Instant Car Shipping Cost – No Personal Info Needed
Open or Closed Transport to Ship a Car from NY to CA
How Much is it to transport a car from New York to California?
Can I Pack my Stuff?
Clean and Prepare Your Vehicle for Transport
Find a Reliable Auto Transport Company
Instant Car Shipping Cost – No Personal Info Needed
Schedule Pickup and Delivery Dates
Confirm Your Paperwork and Insurance Coverage
Consider Ship a Car Direct

You’re relocating the family from New York to California and wondering how to ship a car from NY to CA.

Travel is stressful enough without trying to figure out how to bring along your vehicle, not to mention the miles you’ll add and the wear and tear. You’ve decided to use an auto transport service instead of making it a family road trip.

Good choice! Let Ship a Car Direct do all the heavy lifting for you. The following article outlines all of your options:

Quote Calculator

Instant Car Shipping Cost - No Personal Info Needed

Where is your vehicle now? *

Where are you shipping it to? *

What is the Year, Make & Model?

Year *

Make *

Model *

Add another vehicle

Year *

Make *

Model *

Does your vehicle run? *

Running

Not Running

What kind of car carrier service? *

Open (costs less)

Enclosed (costs more)

Open or Closed Transport to Ship a Car from NY to CA

Ship A Car Direct offers its customers the option of an enclosed or open vehicle transport.

Open transport is the standard choice for most of our customers who own a family vehicle. It’s a much quicker transport and multiple vehicles can be serviced on our trailers simultaneously.

Usually booked for sports and luxury cars, the enclosed option is a little more expensive and takes a bit longer. However, you get all the peace of mind that comes with your car being transported in a secure and safe way, enclosed from the elements and dangerous freeways.

How Much is it to transport a car from New York to California?

The cost to transport a car from New York to California is anywhere from $1000-$1500. California is a big state.

Traveling to Los Angeles is a lot different than traveling to San Francisco - a difference of approximately 381 miles or $100. This makes the cost to ship a car from New York to California vary.

The following specific factors contribute to the overall cost to ship a car from NY to CA:

Overall distance
Make/Model of the vehicle
Type of transport (open/closed)
Supply and Demand
Season

The answer to how much to ship a car from NY to CA will also vary depending on your auto transport company. With us, the best way to know what you may pay is to call one of our agents or request an estimate online. There, you will need to factor in all of the details we mentioned above. The agent can provide you with an accurate quote for car shipping rates from New York to California.

Can I Pack my Stuff?

We understand your desire to move as many of your household items as efficiently as possible. It seems like a smart-move to pack the vehicle you are shipping to the till. But, unfortunately, the cost does not cover household items, only the vehicle. We are not responsible for anything other than the vehicle you have entrusted us with.

Clean and Prepare Your Vehicle for Transport

Before handing over your car to the transport company, you need to make sure it is clean, documented, and prepared for transportation.

Take pictures of your car's current condition from multiple angles and record any damages, scratches, or dents. Then, remove all personal items from the car, including any tech devices like your GPS or car charger, and empty the gas tank to ¼ or ⅛ full.

Don't forget to deactivate the alarm and provide the keys to the transport company.

Find a Reliable Auto Transport Company

A very important step in transporting your car from NY to CA is to find a reputable company. Conduct thorough research, read online reviews, and gather quotes from different companies to compare prices, services, and experience.

Consider Ship a Car Direct, which employs a white-glove service and gives you guaranteed car protection. Call ahead and ask us anything, including “How much is it to ship a car from New York to California.”

Once you've made your selection, contact the company to discuss payment, insurance coverage, and pickup arrangements.

Quote Calculator

Instant Car Shipping Cost - No Personal Info Needed

Where is your vehicle now? *

Where are you shipping it to? *

What is the Year, Make & Model?

Year *

Make *

Model *

Add another vehicle

Year *

Make *

Model *

Does your vehicle run? *

Running

Not Running

What kind of car carrier service? *

Open (costs less)

Enclosed (costs more)

Schedule Pickup and Delivery Dates

Once you've decided on the transport company and the shipping method, you need to schedule the pickup and delivery dates.

Your auto transport company will give you an estimated date range for both pickup and delivery, depending on your preferred timeline to ship your car from New York to California.

Confirm Your Paperwork and Insurance Coverage

Before shipping your car, make sure you have all the necessary paperwork, including your car's registration, insurance coverage, and shipping agreement. Get all of your paperwork together and make copies if necessary.

Consider Ship a Car Direct

Ship A Car Direct not only offers a thorough screening (we weed out over 8,000 carriers that don’t meet our criteria!), but we also provide door-to-door service, no upfront deposit required, and a damage-free guarantee! Contact us today for a free quote!

Frequently Asked Questions

Honest Answers to Your Car Shipping Questions

Yes, we always ask for your specific pickup and delivery addresses, if the carrier can get right to the addresses you provide, they will. If the addresses that you give us are not safely accessible for a Multi-car carrier, however, you will need to make arrangements with the driver to meet at a nearby location where the carrier can safely get in and out.

People do it all the time (rarely for free) but the official answer is no.

Not what you wanted to hear, we know, but that is the honest answer.

We are not licensed to broker the shipment of household goods and, likewise, no car carrier that operates in the USA is licensed to transport them from state to state either. Despite what you might be being told by other car shipping companies you may speak with.

Remember, at the end of the day we're all salespeople, and the true answer to this question is not a great selling point.

You will hear a lot of companies tell you that you can put up to 100 pounds of items in the trunk, but that is not entirely true. That fact is that items of that amount are fairly common and the department of transportation is probably not going to split hairs and fine the trucker over items of that amount, provided they are not over their weight limit. They could fine them, however, if they see a vehicle stuffed full of personal items so the car carrier will most likely try to negotiate something with you to cover themselves against any costs they could incur. It's not something we can build into your contract though.

We have a short and helpful video on this topic in our user videos.

Only in rare cases and car carriers will usually charge a premium to make it happen.

All dates given by car carriers are typically estimates and projections.

For this reason (and to keep your cost down) we ask that you build in some flexibility and give us the earliest possible date you would be WILLING to release the vehicle, even though it may not be your preferred date.

We'll put you in direct contact with your car carrier and the driver will also typically call you the afternoon or evening before your pick up and delivery (they won't just show up unannounced, and if they do we want to hear about it). However, car carriers are out on the road battling traffic, weather and any number of other factors that can and do throw them off of their pickup and delivery projections from time to time.

If the projected dates we give you come and you are unable to make contact with your carrier, please call our office immediately so that we may help resolve the situation.

The average transit time from pick up to delivery on any vehicle going coast to coast will average 7 to 10 days. From there you can figure your transit time based on how far your vehicle is traveling, i.e. from either coast to the Midwest might average 3-7 days.

Yes!

Even better, we do not even ask for payment until we have you confirmed for pickup by a safe, reliable, fully insured, direct car carrier. If for any reason you do not ship your car with the carrier that we arrange for you, there is no fee.

The fees paid directly to the carrier however, (in most cases, their fees are not paid until your vehicle is delivered) are not directly controlled by us, so any requests for a refund of the carrier's portion would need to be addressed with the carrier directly.

Of course! And you are always backed by our Damage Free Guarantee policy.

Part of what you pay us for is to verify that the car carrier that we put you on is covered by the proper amount of insurance and that everything is up to date.

There is never any additional cost to you for this coverage, and their insurance is always primary.

View All FAQs

Instant Car Shipping Cost - No Personal Info Needed

Open or Closed Transport to Ship a Car from NY to CA

How Much is it to transport a car from New York to California?

Can I Pack my Stuff?

Clean and Prepare Your Vehicle for Transport

Find a Reliable Auto Transport Company

Instant Car Shipping Cost - No Personal Info Needed

Schedule Pickup and Delivery Dates

Confirm Your Paperwork and Insurance Coverage

Consider Ship a Car Direct

Frequently Asked Questions

Honest Answers to Your Car Shipping Questions

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