Maintaining a collection of rebuilt classics can be challenging at times -- especially when you're faced with the prospect of moving your vehicles (along with the rest of your household belongings) across the country following a job transfer or other life event. Even if most of your cars are in good working condition, driving them may not be advisable from either a value preservation or a liability standpoint. However, paying to have multiple cars hauled across the country may sound like an expensive prospect. What are your best options when it comes to moving your vehicles from one home to another? Read on to learn more about the most efficient and cost-effective ways to move your classic cars to your new home in another state.
How can you move multiple cars at once?
When it comes to loading and transporting multiple vehicles across state lines, you have a few options. The first is a car hauler, the same type you may see on the interstate transporting brand-new vehicles from the manufacturing facility to the dealer lot. These haulers can allow you to load and haul multiple vehicles at once without requiring them to incur any wear or tear or gasoline costs in the process. In some cases, you may be able to rent a car hauler from a company like Route 12 Rental Co Inc. on your own, while in others, you could be required to hire and pay a driver to load and drive your vehicles from your old home to your new one. However, either option is fairly inexpensive, with most single car haulers available for between $65 and $200 per day. Multi-car open-sided trailers can be purchased for anywhere from $2,000 to $10,000, making their rental a similarly inexpensive option.
In other cases, you may be able to ship your vehicles in a solid-sided storage container. Unlike moving trucks, which are driven from place to place, these storage containers can be loaded onto a ship, train, or airplane and transported just about anywhere in the world. Depending upon the size and condition of cars you're planning to transport, either of these options could be a viable choice for getting your vehicles to your new home.
What is your most cost-effective car moving option?
The right car moving choice primarily depends upon the number and condition of cars you're planning to transport. For vehicles that are operable, a car hauler may be the easiest choice, while those that require manual loading and unloading may be better suited for a shipping container. If your current home is still on the market, a shipping container may be your best choice of places to park your cars while your home is being shown to prospective buyers. After loading your vehicles into this container and securing them inside with ropes or chains, you'll have the versatility to have this container shipped by plane or train upon short notice while keeping these vehicles out of the way of potential buyers inspecting your property. By improving your property's appearance and removing your vehicles from the yard or garage before prospective buyers see your home, you may be able to realize thousands or even tens of thousands of dollars more upon resale.
Regardless of whether you choose a car hauler or solid shipping container, you'll want to talk to your insurance agent before your vehicles hit the road. If any of the vehicles you're shipping are inoperable, it's unlikely they're covered under your auto insurance policy, so you'll need to ensure you've purchased additional homeowner's or umbrella coverage so that you can be reimbursed if your vehicles are damaged or totaled in transit. Your moving company or container rental agency may also provide some insurance coverage against loss or damage in transit, but relying on this coverage without investigating your own can be an expensive mistake.
