Shipping a car coast to coast

Good news! I got a job on the west coast! Unfortunately everyone in Cali is adamant I have a form of transportation. So I want to bring my old Jetta out with me. It's originally a Cali car, so it'll be nice to bring the old girl back to its homeland (well I guess technically Mexico is its homeland). Anyways I have no idea how shipping a car works. I'd consider driving it, but honestly it's an old car with a rather weak A/C system and shipping just seems more convenient. I'm on the east coast now, and I was wondering if anyone has used a shipping company they would recommend based off of quality of service and price. I paid $2k for the car and I'd prefer to invest less than 50% of the overall price in shipping, but honestly I have no idea if that's even a possible price point for such a long journey. Any help or suggestions is appreciated! Thanks!

I don't think you'll get it shipped by anybody reputable for less than $1500.

I'd sell it and buy something in CA.

^^ yea

I paid about $900 to have my classic Mini shipped from L.A. to Philly through a shipping broker.

Ian F wrote: I paid about $900 to have my classic Mini shipped from L.A. to Philly through a shipping broker.

You got a great deal. I tried having a car shipped from WA to SC but couldn't find anyone to do it for $1200 or less. All was over $1700 to $3000. :( Ended up selling the car without ever seeing it in person for $500 more than I paid for it.

Selling it and buying something else is an option. But if you really want to bring it, I'd recommend www.uship.com I've used it several times. It's basically an Ebay style auction for shippers. You list what you have and shippers will bid on the job. The cool thing about it is that the shippers get reviews from past customers, so you can get a feel for how good/bad they are. I've had nothing but good experiences doing this. I even had one shipper who delivered a car on Christmas day.

Thanks for the responses! I probably should just sell the car, but I'm a little bit attached to the thing (and addicted to the VR6 noises) that I kind of just plan on keeping it until it dies.

@Klayfish uship has some great rates being bid by companies and it looks like I will be using a service from there.

Thanks again!

My friend worked with Uship to ship a car from CT to Portland, OR. Total cost was about $1300, the car arrived in good shape, communication was so-so.

They were pretty lazy in trying to get to my house (where the car was stored), and dropped the car off on a crowded street a mile away from his new address. At any sign of trouble, they seemed to take the lazy way out.

In reply to Sine_Qua_Non:

I think the rate was based on the volume of cars going in and out of L.A. which I'd guess to be greater than most cities. Volume = competition = lower prices.

A friend of my mother used the same broker (Don Weaver if you're interested in searching for him although I can dig up his contact info tomorrow if needed) to have her car shipped from Philly to Seattle. IIRC, it was about $1200.

I had 2 cars shipped from Maryland to Arizona and overboard, read here about international car transport company that i used. My advice is take some of digital photos of your vehicle if its possible, before they load it up and keep them until your car is transported. Don't look for the cheapest prices, sometimes it's worth the extra costs so its better to use reputable companies.

I have used DAS a few times, and when I just had my Cressida shipped from Seattle to Massachusetts it cost me $1050 hub to hub. The seller dropped it off at the hub near him, and I picked it up at a local hub. It really is the best way to go if the car runs of course. If it doesn't run you pay a lot more.