Will car shipping companies transport an old car that barely runs?

Posted by jamesrandson@reddit | Autos | View on Reddit | 16 comments

I’m in the middle of moving to another city and ran into a bit of a dilemma with one of my cars.

It’s an old VW Golf that, honestly, isn’t worth much on paper. It’s got rust in a few spots, it’s definitely not a collector’s item, and it’s probably not something anyone would go out of their way to buy. But to me it means a lot. It was the first car I ever had.

My dad and I bought it together years ago, and he’s the one who taught me how to drive it. Not long after that, he had a heart attack and passed away. Since then, I’ve owned a few other cars, newer, nicer ones... but I never got rid of the Golf. I know it sounds sentimental, but I just can’t bring myself to sell it.

Now that I’m moving, I’m not sure the car would even make the drive to my new place. It technically runs, but let’s just say it’s not exactly road-trip material.

So I started looking into shipping it instead and found a few companies. Do car shipping companies actually move older, beat-up cars like this, or do they mostly deal with newer vehicles?

Just trying to figure out if this is a realistic option or if I’m barking up the wrong tree.

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Historical-Nebula755@reddit

Most companies will ship older cars, but condition matters a lot. If it does not run, expect higher costs and fewer options since not all carriers handle that.

Most companies will ship older cars but condition matters. If it doesn’t run, expect extra fees. Also some carriers are picky if it looks like it might leak or break.

They usually will, but older cars can be tricky if they do not run. You might pay more or wait longer, so be upfront about condition.

Yeah they usually will, but condition matters. If it does not run or has issues, expect extra fees or limited options. Definitely mention everything upfront to avoid problems later.

docitsonlyascratch@reddit

Yeah I work for one and we do. Some cars run like shit but we still move em, if it’s too bad then we just push them and charge the customer more.

jamesrandson@reddit (OP)

Good to hear

KY34TR@reddit

Will you pay them to ship said car? If their business model is to take money and ship a car, I can’t imagine why they wouldn’t

As I said, I don't mind paying

Tikkinger@reddit

uhm.. can the car drive onto a trailer?

then it's the same as every other car.

Yeah, on trailer yeah, but not somewhere far

dml550@reddit

Yes. It costs more, though.

If you can get just get your car to the point where it will start, steer, and stop enough to get safely on and off a transporter you will save $$.

I don't mind paying, I just heard that companies avoid that

Hot_Exchange3294@reddit

Absolutely man u/jamesrandson they can even ship a non-running car and older model that's fine, it's not only about newer vehicles no.
You can reach out to me i can direct you to someone who do this constantly, he will handle it for you just send me a DM James

trailrun1980@reddit

I did this with the grandpa's old car that had sat pretty untouched for a decade

If the car can move under it's own power, that's a huge plus. My car had issues and old tires, but was OK for a few blocks of residential driving

I Hired a smaller trailer (3 cars instead of a dozen or whatever) and he could get into smaller spaces, still, had to drive a few blocks to a parking lot to load/unload, to have a fully non op car that needs to be winched on and off will be a lot more, almost a dedicated single car hauler

ko51bay@reddit

You don’t say what country you are in, but I am in the UK and just about a month ago I had an old completely non running (but still rolling) car moved by a car moving company. It was no issue. Also, initially for the quote I forgot to tell them it was a non runner, and when I got the requote it was only £40 more (£260 versus £220) and I was moving it 3 hours drive away! The guy just arrived, I helped him push the car into a slightly better position, and then he just winched it onto the trailer. At the other end he was happy to help me push it into place after rolling it off the transport.

LeadfootYT@reddit

If it can drive from the driveway to the street, it is running for the purposes of loading onto a trailer.