Shipping a 2016 Land Rover Discovery Sport from California to Maryland

Recently, we transported a 2016 Land Rover Discovery Sport from Arcadia, CA to Baltimore, MD. This luxury SUV covered a distance of 2,635 miles via an open trailer transport. The total cost of this move came to $2,270.00, which comes to $0.86/mile. In comparison to a compact sedan, the cost is higher due to the fact that the luxury SUV is a bigger vehicle compared to other cars.

Coast-to-coast transport is one of the longest domestic transports in the auto shipping industry. Hence, through this move, it becomes clear how the cost of a cross-country transport will be calculated for a bigger vehicle. This can provide an idea for anyone who is planning on moving between two opposite ends of the country.

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The Route

from Arcadia, CA, 91006 to Baltimore, MD, 21205

Arcadia to Baltimore transportation is based on the typical west-east connection that involves two main interstates. Generally, the carriers start traveling from the LA area towards the east, taking the I-40 route near Barstow. It runs from the desert southwest via Flagstaff, Albuquerque, and Amarillo. It is one of the most traveled routes for freight transportation.

Once the carriers are in the central part of the United States, the direction of travel becomes northeast. At first, they take the I-40 interstate to Oklahoma, and then connect via Missouri to the St. Louis area and then continue along the I-70. This interstate covers the remaining distance to Baltimore via Indianapolis, Columbus, and through the Appalachians.

As it takes more than 2,600 miles to go from west to east along the described route and the route passes through quite diverse terrain, it takes around six to eight days to complete such transportation. The I-40 route is available all year round under any weather conditions, except for Flagstaff area and Appalachians stretch of I-70 during winter period.

Why Vehicle Size Affects the Cost

This is why the price tag of $2,270 for this run is as high as it is; auto transport rates are determined by the size and weight of the vehicle to be transported just as much as by the distance. A mid-size luxury SUV takes up more deck space and weighs more than a normal car, which makes transporting it more expensive on the same route.

Large vehicles influence the carrier’s load capacity in two aspects; they occupy the deck space where other vehicles could have been loaded, and their weight will consume more fuel over the long-haul distance. This factor is included in the rate when calculating the transportation of any vehicle over a distance greater than 2,600 miles.

All things considered, the cost per mile ($0.86/mile) for transporting this vehicle is still quite reasonable for a cross-country trip for such a vehicle. Longer distances tend to cost less per mile than shorter distances since the fixed cost is divided among many miles of travel. Thus, transporting a mid-size luxury SUV across the country is still a moderate charge and not a premium one. Neither Baltimore nor Arcadia in LA are remote areas.

Open Transport

Open transport is the most common type of vehicle transportation, and it proved to be appropriate for this Discovery Sport. Open multi-car transporter will be used to ship the SUV. This vehicle transporter is exactly the one that you usually see on the roads while driving along the highways transporting cars. Several vehicles can fit into this transporter, thus making the price per each smaller.

But one should take into account that there is risk involved in such kind of transportations because all the automobiles in the transporter will get exposed to rain, dust from the road and other elements of the weather. But this is not the case for most vehicles because the price for enclosed transport is too high for this short exposure period.

Open transport is used for the majority of cars and SUVs transported across the country every year. There are more disadvantages than advantages of using open transport for a 2016 Discovery Sport. SUV is intended to drive on the roads, thus being transported across the country using open transporter will expose the vehicle to much less damage than driving it for 2,635 miles.