We just finished transporting a 2025 Land Rover Range Rover Evoque from Valley Cottage, NY to Boynton Beach, FL. It involved traveling 1,258 miles in a closed car carrier for the cost of $1,700.00 – that is, $1.35 per mile.
The Evoque was driveable at pick-up. It is high time we defined what enclosed transport is all about since we are using the term all the time.
The route
The drive of 1,258 miles between Valley Cottage and Boynton Beach is the East Coast corridor practically in its entirety.
Valley Cottage is located in Rockland County north of New York City. The drive goes south through the New Jersey Turnpike, and drivers get onto I-95, driving past Philadelphia through Delaware to Baltimore.
From there the interstate drives past Washington DC, through Richmond in Virginia, through Fayetteville and Florence in North Carolina, and Savannah in Georgia before going into Florida north of Jacksonville.
The drive then continues south through Daytona Beach, Melbourne, and Fort Pierce. Boynton Beach is located in Palm Beach County, so the delivery is made either at I-95 or Florida Turnpike depending on the destination address.
This is one of the most traveled lanes of traffic in the US, and enclosed carriers travel it all the time.
What enclosed transport actually is
What is enclosed is not just one thing, and the distinctions are more important than most people appreciate.
Hard-sided trailers have walls made of metal and roof made of metal. Complete protection from weather and road debris and visibility. This is what everyone thinks of and the highest level commonly available.
Soft-sided trailers are a metal frame with heavy-duty fabric sides. Still completely enclosed from road spray and debris, but a lighter structure than hard-sided and also less expensive. An acceptable solution, not a second-rate one, although hard-sided is better for high-end vehicles.
Then there is two-deck or single-deck. Most enclosed trailers have double-decks. Single-deck carriers have fewer vehicles but with more space and this is usually what a collector or an owner of exotic needs.
With liftgate or ramps. The hydraulic liftgate allows raising the vehicle to the level of the deck, eliminating any angle of approach. Absolutely necessary on a low car and completely unnecessary on an SUV.
The capacity is why the difference in price. An open carrier usually transports seven to ten vehicles. An enclosed trailer usually carries two to seven vehicles. Fewer cars on the same cost of gas and the same driver time and mileage explains most of the price difference.
But it is not climate-controlled. This is the most popular misrepresentation. Enclosed transportation provides protection from the weather and debris. It does not provide temperature control, and whoever says it does is exaggerating.
What $1.35 per mile reflects
There are two factors behind this number.
The first is enclosed service. The fewer number of trucks per shipment, the high cost of operation, as well as less trucks of the company’s fleet operating on the route all contribute to the premium and this premium does not depend on the route but applies to every enclosed booking. If the truck had been left open, the number would be much lower.
Distance makes the opposite impact. As the distance is 1,258 miles, the cost of fixed expenses such as pickup, loading, securement, and delivery have quite a long distance to distribute over, which makes it lower compared to a shorter enclosed route.
Another factor is a lane. It is one of the busiest lanes in the country for trucking, and enclosed trucks are moving in both directions there throughout the whole year.
Transport summary
- Origin: Valley Cottage, NY 10989
- Destination: Boynton Beach, FL 33472
- Distance: 1,258 miles
- Service cost: $1,700.00
- Cost per mile: $1.35
- Vehicle: 2025 Land Rover Range Rover Evoque
- Condition: Operable
- Trailer type: Enclosed
- Route: Valley Cottage, NY → New Jersey Turnpike → I-95 south past Philadelphia, Baltimore and Washington DC → Richmond, VA → Fayetteville, NC → Florence, SC → Savannah, GA → Jacksonville, FL → I-95 south through Daytona Beach and Fort Pierce → Boynton Beach, FL
