Auto transport

Bob - Drive it home; you will have a blast; don't worry about the rain.

Hi Bob,

I'm planning on a Central Valley trip this weekend in my replica, then traveling to the Phoenix area in search of hot weather for some engine cooling data logging.  What's your schedule?  You can right-seat with me if our schedules coincide.  

PM me if you're interested and we'll work something out.

Depending on make Speedster (it needs to be VW pan based), a bought ($120) or borrowed VW tow bar can be used to easily flat tow it 600 miles.  The Speedster tires and wheel bearings would have to be in good shape.  Cheap $20 Harbor Freight portable towing lights would be recommended.  (You might have to remove front bumper and bracket depending on if tow bar was not slightly modified (narrowed) to clear brackets).

I towed mine over 1k miles from VA to FL through rolling hills of North and South Carolina with a 4 cyl automatic mid-size sedan with no problems.  

Drive but make sure you bring some tools and a AAA membership  

@Troy Sloan

Troy has shipped 30+ Speedsters to parts all over. PM him for some suggestions. I think he uses a guy named Tony but that's all I might know. And if his name isn't Tony then I know even less than I thought.

Call Robert Martin and tell him I referred you.   He knows that he needs to take good care of my referrals or he won't get them. 

786-802-2081

IMHO I don't assume every mechanical item is 100% for an initial trip in a car you know almost nothing about.... For the money and piece of mind,  do have it transported . 

@Bob Hampton

Methinks Mr. Hampton purchased the white Speedster. https://www.speedsterowners.com...56-speedster-replica

If so and this is your first Speedster, Welcome to the Madness. I'm sure you've already discovered this site can be a valuable resource for information. Hopefully you'll stick around share with us the details of your new Speedster and your experience with replica ownership.

Seeing as how you're in Modesto make sure you check out the details for our summer gathering in San Luis Obispo. https://www.speedsterowners.com...5#553141977955840735

I should warn you, as a newbie you'll have to buy the first round of free beer at the hotel bar between 5-7:30.

I'm with Alan - even with cars built by Speedster "Builders", you don't know the history or what might be an issue waiting to happen.  Do you want to find that out 200 miles from home?   If Troy's guy (the best alternative) doesn't work out, I would consider trailering it, but not towing it (for the same reasons).  

Come to think of it you guys are right to many things can go wrong ship it or trailer it 

If this forum was full of 18 to 25 year old members we'd all be saying, "DRIVE IT HOME, DUDE!"

Guys, I agree with Ron- where's your sense of adventure? With a cel phone, AAA membership and Visa, Mastercard or American Express, what could go that wrong?

Ron O posted:

If this forum was full of 18 to 25 year old members we'd all be saying, "DRIVE IT HOME, DUDE!"

 

That's what I was thinking - take a buddy, get a case of beer, and make it a road trip.  Drive it like you stole it.  Hoping it's not that red SAS with Subbie engine that was on ebay awhile back.

So compromise.  Have spouse or buddy with a tow vehicle and trailer to follow you.  Fun, practical, AND a tale-generating road trip.

EDIT: Dang, Greg!  Looks like you type faster than me.

This is what I did, 2,000 mile move, 356 Speedster Replica. I checked into a car hauling company, then purchased a new enclosed car hauler trailer for what I was quoted by the car hauling company for the one way trip. 

Loaded my car into my new trailer, towed it home and now store the car in the trailer.

If I wanted, I could sell the trailer for what I paid and keep the car in the garage.

I'm young at heart - Lane's is a more mature, sensible approach.

What trailer company and what are you pulling it with?

Here's the whole story, My wife, 2 dogs and I, were moving from Elkhart, IN, to a small town in the middle of no where, Pahrump, NV. About 70 miles from Las Vegas, NV.

I purchased a Pro-Lineperformance trailer  (Car Hauler 8.5' x 20' Enclosed) from the factory in Elkhart. Elkhart has about 25 trailer manufacturers within 10 miles.

I had to be in Elkhart for the Moving Company loading. I took delivery of the  trailer, loaded the car and drive to Nevada. I have a 1500 GMC pickup, so all I needed was the trailer. I did have to buy a set of wide mirrors for my pick up. I paid $2,300.00 for the trailer. If I had purchased the same trailer in the Las Vegas area, they were selling for ~$4,000. I'm guessing, the cost to transport trailer to Las Vegas and then dealer mark up, etc. accounts for the differnce in price. I'd then have to haul the trailer to Indiana and back. Just for the record, I got 1/2 the gas mileage returning, than going to get trailer and car. It also took me 3 days to get back, the GMC would not go 75 with that load.

The car hauling company commented about nothing going that direction, middle of no where, etc. etc., so I'm sure that added to the quoted price ($2,500).

The Speedster Replica was in Elkhart when I decided to buy trailer. I really wasn't sure how large of a trailer I really needed, so I went safe. Turned out, much more trailer than I really needed. I could almost put the pick up truck I was driving in that trailer. I could have gone much smaller.

Almost for got, had to buy a brake control for the GMC, trailer has electric brakes.

So that's the rest of the story. Like I said, now I have a garage (trailer) to store my Speedster.

Thank you all for your input.  It has been decided  my wife and I will drive  To Phoenix in the trusty Prius. Inspect and drive the car.  Then  if all is as it should be go to the bank and transfer funds. Will ship it using the carrier Troy recommended.  Our road trip will hopefully be this  june ,to San Louis Obispo.  It is the white vintage speedster advertised here,

Thanks for the info Roy.  Ray 

Bob Hampton posted:

Thank you all for your input.  It has been decided  my wife and I will drive  To Phoenix in the trusty Prius. Inspect and drive the car.  Then  if all is as it should be go to the bank and transfer funds. Will ship it using the carrier Troy recommended.  Our road trip will hopefully be this  june ,to San Louis Obispo.  It is the white vintage speedster advertised here,

Good plan Bob.  Robert is a broker, which is what you normally deal with in these situations.  He will work with you and the the actual trucking companies and owner/operators and find someone who the job works out for logistically at an agreed price. 

Call him now to make the connection and get the ball rolling, don't wait until you see the car. 

Bob Hampton posted:

...It has been decided  my wife and I will drive  To Phoenix in the trusty Prius. Inspect and drive the car.  Then  if all is as it should be go to the bank and transfer funds. Will ship it using the carrier...

Good choice, Bob.

That's the plan my wife and I used when we bought our car in 2013.

Four years later, we have a Speedster and we're still married.

Have talked the broker but  not going to finalize until checking out the car.  It only has 1200 miles built  by VS in 2016 so should be fine.

Contracting to transport a vehicle

Be careful.... Brokers are nothing more than people with a " bedroom office" they get 1/3 or more of the actual transport fee on top of the " $100" CC deposit  .." to secure a spot on a truck.

The difference is : Brokers only have a DOT #  and are required to only carry liability and performance a bond. A Transport Carrier will have both a DOT # AND a Motor Carrier number.  Before you contract be sure to ASK for their Motor Carrier #  Ask fora current copy of their Liability AND Cargo Insurance,  ASK for a copy of the Bill of Lading where in many cases it is spelled out that the Carrier / Driver is NOT responsible for loading damages and similar disclaimers. ASk for a current copy of their rating from Central Dispatch ( National Load Board that most Carriers  subscribe with) When the truck arrives ( it's often not on the day stated and almost never on time)  make sure that a detailed Inspection Report is completed at time of pick up and NO blank spaces are left on the BOL ( strike them out and initial)   At delivery, make sure you only take delivery in the daylight ( no exceptions) so that YOU can carefully inspect for any damages. 

Tip: You can always get a better deal than the first quote or shop around , then renegotiate even a better deal by stating  COD cash (no checks)  the Driver will make your vehicle a  move a priority.

You can email me transport questions at drclockATpa.net.

Alan  "Drclock"

Retired owner of 30 East Auto Transport LLC.

This is the reason that using a broker with a history of providing good service to other SOC members is SO important.  Robert Martin, the broker I use and have been recommending for several years, wants those future referrals.   He knows that if he drops the ball I'll drop him like a hot potato. 

If you blindly call brokers you find by a Google search, all you are to them is a one time customer.  If you use Robert, he will see you as a source of future referrals.

It's a sleazy business and I can't emphasize enough how important it is to use a broker with a documented history of taking care of SOC members.

If you use him, be sure to post your experience here and let me know. 

Robert Martin

786-802-2081

Some things to keep in mind, I had not thought of, before contacting a car hauler. I'm sure there are more.

Open or closed trailer?

Pick up window, one wanted 3 weeks, anything time during that 3 weeks and would call 12 hours before. Needed to Coordinate car hauler with moving company, more money, many would not even talk about it.

Drop off window, many said, we'll call when we get in your area.

Do they protect your car if double deck trailer, oil drips, etc.?

Some required I be there in person, for them to load, had to sign papers. One would let someone else sign with power of attorney, more money. 

Is the car running, if not more money.

It appeared that a convertible cost more to ship than a sedan, etc.

One hauler even said shipping a low to the ground car cost more, harder to attach straps.

One would not allow a car cover to be installed.

Some would allow owner insurance, with a letter from insurance, one required you to purchase their insurance.

One company would not deliver to my house, recommended pick up in Las Vegas, NV.

I have only looked into shipping once, I got the idea that they (shippers) like shipping from one dealer to another, or to a scheduled auction.

Has anyone that ships cars more often, written a tutorial on what to look for in a shipper?

This was about three years ago, I'm sure I do not remember everything. I always thought of myself as a detail oriented person, but car shipping has so many things to think about, it gave me a head ache.

It isn't rocket science eitherand you can avoid a lot of the headaches.  Just decide on open or closed, I always recommend closed, but for a short trip with no chance of bad weather, open can save some money.  Arrange the pickup date, which is usually a window of about one week.

One thing to understand is that the drivers who are looking at the Central Board (and they all are) are looking for the job that will make them the most money.   If your job is on the low side it will take longer to find a willing driver.   You need to be competitive and Robert can tell you what the other similar jobs are going for.

Again, in the end you need to trust someone and you're better off with someone who knows they will get additional business if they take good care of you. 

Hi gentlemen,

My name is Robert Martin and I am the transport broker that has been recommended by Troy Sloan. I have been working with him for about 4 years and have serviced many transports for him, his clients, and also members from this site. I just wanted to come on here and offer my services, we transport cars anywhere in the United States. You can contact me directly at robert@silverexpresslogistics.com or 786 802 2081 with any questions. I own my company and base my service and honesty and transparency in an industry that like some folks mentioned here before can be sleazy.

Also please feel free to check out my company site at:

http://silverexpresslogistics.com

Thank you for your time