This customer had come to us for enclosed delivery services to transport his 1963 Fiat 600 Multipla, which is a rare Italian microvan that not many people would actually get a chance to see. The pickup point was Cookeville, Tennessee. The delivery point was Woodstock, Georgia, 196 miles from the pickup point. The total price quoted by him came up to $900.
The pickup was scheduled at a commercial address while the delivery was supposed to be done at a private residence. This was an important point which not all customers think about.
What You Need Before Requesting an Enclosed Carrier Quote
Obtaining a precise quote for a classic automobile is not comparable to obtaining a quote for a 2019 Honda Accord. Certain information must be provided before carriers can provide an accurate quote. Omissions tend to cause delays or even sudden changes in pricing.
These should be on hand prior to making any calls.
The year, make, model, and body type are all crucial information from the start. For instance, the 1963 Fiat 600 Multipla is a classic microvan. It has a taller roof and a wider wheelbase than most compacts from that era.
The state of the car is another crucial factor. Is it drivable or will it need to be winched onto the transport truck? Non-operational cars need specialized loading tools, which increase the cost of your quote by about $100 to $300.
Dimensions and ground clearance are also taken into consideration. For low clearance vehicles, trailers that have variable ramps are required. The dimensions of the Multipla, with its boxy form and forward cabin position, impact how the car is loaded on to the trailer deck.
The pick up and drop off address type alters everything. If your destination is commercial, residential, gated or rural will determine the options available for delivery.
As far as transportation method, a vehicle from 1954 Italy should be transported using enclosed services. An open trailer exposes the vehicle to debris and weather conditions on the way to your destination. The UV damage alone should not be overlooked by any collector shipping their original condition vintage automobile.
This information helps expedite the quoting process.
Why Business Pickup Is Priced Differently
The carrier picked up the vehicle from a business address on this particular haul. It is usually much easier to pick up from a commercial address due to ample parking spots that will allow the driver enough space to place his trailer in. This is quite the opposite when it comes to residential streets as there is limited space for a 75-foot tractor to be placed.
This was also a case of the delivery being made at a residential address located in Woodstock. This is a much tougher task due to the need for the driver to survey the area first and then park his trailer in a suitable position. This is a scenario that may see the trailer placed at the edge of the road and the car being moved down the street.
Commercial pickup and residential delivery are perhaps some of the most frequent scenarios seen in door-to-door transport.
The Route
The Cookeville to Woodstock corridor spans 196 miles through the Southeast. The majority of carriers who move cargo along this lane follow I-24 south to Chattanooga before catching I-75 south into Atlanta before moving further to Cherokee County.
There are a lot of freight movements in this corridor and therefore availability of carriers shouldn’t be an issue here. However, for short regional moves such as this one, the number of bids is usually not high. The reason is simple; long distance hauls fetch more money per mile. Consequently, the trucking company will need to price the cargo properly to get any bids.
$900 charged for 196 miles means that the per mile rate was approximately $4.59. This price was above the national average rate of between $1.30-$2.10 per mile charged by trucking companies in enclosed transport. This higher price arose from the short distance and the nature of transporting a very old car.
Hauls of between 150 and 250 miles are characterized with higher per mile prices since the fixed costs are constant regardless of whether the haul is short or long.
Van vs. Sedan: Why the Body Type Changes the Price
The 1963 Fiat 600 Multipla is not a sedan, but a forward cab microvan which looks more box-like with a slightly elevated roof compared to sedans of the same size. This type of vehicle can significantly influence a carrier’s decisions on how it will be placed onto a double trailer for transporting.
It is usually more difficult to load a high-profile vehicle on an upper deck since there is a limit on height at the upper deck. If one such high-profile car is placed on the bottom deck, it limits the options of the carriers in placing other vehicles. Such a factor will reflect the price.
Sedans are relatively easy to load, tie, and secure. In addition, sedans take much less vertical place compared to vans. Therefore, a 1963 sedan in similar conditions and on the same route as your car could be transported for $650-$750 for enclosed shipping. The price increased because of the Microvan body style.
Vans and buses will cost 20 to 35 percent more than a comparable sedan on the same route.
Transport Summary
- Vehicle: 1963 Fiat 600 Multipla
- Route: Cookeville, TN to Woodstock, GA
- Distance: 196 miles
- Transport type: Enclosed
- Quote: $900 ($4.59 per mile)
