Tips for Stress-Free Nationwide Auto Transport

Making Nationwide Auto Transport Stress-Free

Shipping a car nationwide can be very stressful for people, especially for those who have never done so and preparing for it for the first time. A variety of reasons can cause that stress, from budget to uncertainty and time. Tempus Logix understands all these factors and tries to eliminate them when serving its customers. We always offer the best price without being hungry to make an extra profit, we are fully transparent, and the timeframe for pick-up and delivery we provide is the narrowest. Of course, eradicating these major stressors still will not entirely rid the anxiety related to car shipment.

Here are some tips to reduce stress while using auto transport services.

3 Tips for Reducing Stress during Auto Shipping

The number one on our list is the company with which you intend to have your vehicle moved. It is indispensable to choose the right service provider from the beginning. Every problem will most likely stem from having picked the wrong team.

The Internet provides a good starting point for finding a reliable carrier. Google and Uship reviews can say a lot about car shipping services. We should note, however, that there is not one perfect vehicle transportation company that has satisfied every customer at all times. When reading the reviews, we believe the ones that need the most attention are the ones from customers who were not happy with the service. They will reflect the companies’ character and quality by demonstrating how they answered those reviews and how they planned to amend the situation. Some companies will move on after they have closed the deal and got their money. You want to stay away from those. They will cause maximal stress. 

By law, all auto logistics coordinators must only work with insured carriers. However, some companies are so eager to find a driver to move a car that they forget to check their carriers’ insurance status.

Tempus Logix always views the active status of the insurance on paper before assigning a shipment. Customers are free to inquire about insurance, but a conscientious shipping company must confirm this long before they do so. Not only do they have to confirm that immediately, but they also have to say how they are going to help them when a claim is made. Again, certain companies that know that under the law they are not liable when something goes wrong during shipping will simply redirect customers to the carriers, and nothing more.

A good car shipping company will always be by their patrons’ side to continue coordinating smooth transactions. They will do more than just redirecting. They will follow up all the time until the matter settles.  The last one but not least on our list is the communication that auto transport provides. We think effective communication is what alleviates customers’ stress. Not every company has the ability to exchange information with their clients. When asking questions and getting answers and the time it takes, the consumer may have a sense of proper communication. From the beginning, the customers should verify the information provided. If it has the slightest hint of untruth, the customers should not trust them. If they overlook that, they may go through constant headaches in the process of their shipment.

What’s the Cheapest Way to Ship My Car?

In Tempus Logix, we think the greatest price determiner for auto transport is the company you hire to truck your car. The reason we say this is that some factors that affect price fluctuations are general and pertain to every company in auto transport across the platform regardless of companies own pricing for a shipment. If it is a busy time of year, then it is a busy time of year for everyone. The price shift from high to low will be relevant for all the companies. The same goes for other factors—gas price, traffic, weather, to name a few. Correspondingly, then we have some generic factors that inherently cause a significant change in the increase or decrease in the price of moving a car.

Let us do a quick review of these factors.

	Lower Prices	Higher Prices
The vehicle type	Smaller size and weighs less	Bigger size and weighs more
The carrier type	Open transport	Enclosed transport
Distance	Longer distance*	Shorter distance*
Location: near highway/freeway	Closer	Farther
Timeframe	Extended	Expedited
Vehicle condition	Operable	Inoperable

All of these factors boil to one estimated and somewhat a standard price for all auto-shipment companies to bid and discretionally change it for their profit. Therein lies the rub. The real change in price happens at this point. That’s why it is indispensable to go with a company you can trust. Tempus Logix always offers affordable prices to its customers and gives many discounts. Tempus Logix does not burden its customers with the interplay of factors that affects price changes. Tempus Logix does all the calculations and price comparisons for its clients to choose the best one that suits them and not the company. Tempus Logix assists all its clients through its effective communication to sort out all the information necessary to yield the cheapest way to ship a car.

Is It Safe to Ship a Car?

To answer this question, almost all the articles on the web say that it depends on what company you choose to do the transporting; customers should do their research to mark their checklist in terms of safety. Then, they also say that the transportation type, that is an enclosed vehicle transport or open transport type, would also affect the risk factors and costs.

However, it also happens that some companies in their articles falsely claim that it is safer to transport vehicles with companies that own their trailers, and not with the ones who contract the shipment, such as broker companies. The truth of the matter is that no one company in the States has that many personal trucks to meet the demand for car transportation. So, the very same companies who make these erroneous claims turn into semi-broker companies themselves because they cannot process all the orders on time. Had this not been the case, then there would have been one big company doing all the transporting. Naturally, with no choice, it forces companies to outsource either way.

Tempus Logix has done thousands of cars and heavy equipment transport nationally with no issues.  Our secret is not a secret at all. The key to our success lies in the relationship with our carriers. When we are processing an order and coordinating the pickup, we do not just assign the job to any given carrier on the board to transfer our customers’ valuable property just because we can make some money. We consider all the variables, even the drivers’ personalities. Having done this many heavy equipment and car shipments, we got to know the people whom we trust. Besides, we take other things into account as well. For instance, there is a carrier who transported a car safely, but was rude to our customer and our customer did not like the whole experience. The next time when we are about to do business with the same driver, we think twice because we consider all the feedback from our patrons. Nevertheless, we know many excellent and responsible drivers whose professionalism makes it possible for us to trust the transit of our customers’ property in a safe and timely manner.

Tempus Logix is a company comprised of people with values and understanding. It is not a system where it does things mechanically. Our specialists care for every car or heavy equipment transported as they would have cared for their own most valuable property.

So, is it safe to ship a car? We cannot speak for others, but with Tempus Logix, we guarantee safe and secure car shipment.

How to Prepare Your Car for Shipping

You just finished talking with Tempus Logix, and you got the best car transport price, car delivery timeframe, and the type of trailer in which you want to transport your car. Tempus Logix’s experts informed you that the driver would contact you 24 hours prior and then again 4 hours before the actual pickup. You are responsible to prepare your car for shipping before the driver’s arrival.

At this point, you might have wondered, “what do I need to do when the driver comes? Just hand him the keys?”

In actuality, that is all you need to do—meet him, watch the inspection of the car, sign the papers, and say your goodbyes. After this, you merely wait for your car delivery to your assigned destination.

But, if for some reason you wonder if there is any other thing you could do to prepare the car for the pickup, here are some tips:

Wash the car

Lather up, PW, and dry the car! Now when it is clean, you can start a visual inspection for any existing scratches, dents, or damages. If there are any, you may photograph them for your and carriers’ record. 

The transporter has to do this either way, but for you doing it beforehand can save some time. Besides, it will be easier to notice any changes to your car when delivered. With Tempus Logix, the vehicles arrive in the same condition as carriers have loaded them onto the trailers. Say if some does happen—Perish the thought!—the indemnity will follow faster because of your preparedness.

Empty the car

It is better to have the car empty of personal belongings before the shipment. But if you have to move some things with your car, then packed it neatly, put it in the trunk, and try to keep the 100 lbs free of charge limit. Make sure no loose parts/objects are on or in the vehicle. You do not want anything flying out or bouncing inside the car during the transit. Also, check for any leaks due to mechanical issues. It can cause damage to other vehicles if it is on a multi-level multi-car trailer.

Keep the tank low

For weight reasons, carriers prefer transporting cars that have less than 20% of fuel in the tanks. One gallon of gas weighs 6 pounds. 20% is equal to about 2.5 to 3 pounds. These numbers, compared with the weight of a full tank (72-90 pounds), makes a big difference for the GVWR, not to mention, adding them by 2-9 for multi-level multi-car trailers.

If you had filled up the tank and then you planned to transport the car, obviously you are not going to empty it. However, getting the car prepared before shipping will make the transit just much smoother.

The documents needed for shipping a car

Shipping a car involves two entities: the shipper who owns or possesses the vehicle and the company that takes on the shipping. On both ends, the process requires or prefers some paperwork to get the moving done. We are listing all the documents associated with interstate auto transportation and its corresponding explanations.

Dock Receipt: Tempus Logix provides this document to recognize that the freight is under our responsibility, and the customer allows us to transport it.  This document sets up the starting point for drafting the bill of lading for the cargo.

Bill of Lading (BOL):  It is an indispensable piece of paper because it serves as a contract between our customers and carriers. With its carriers, Tempus Logix generates this form of paperwork. The first purpose for the Bill of Lading, which means a bill of loading, is to record the cargo, its destination, delivery time, and the name(s) of the shipper(s) and carrier(s). The second purpose is for noting the condition of the car for reference, just in case something happens during the transit, so the carrier can reimburse our client. It serves as proof of damages. Without it, it would be hard to know if anything happened to the car.

Insurance: The client can have the car insured or not insured, but for the carrier, it is mandatory. The customer can ask about carriers’ insurance for transporting his or her cargo. Tempus Logix only works with insured transporters, and we make sure of that at all times.

Original Title and Registration: This collocation is two separate documents.  The title (aka pink slip) shows a vehicle’s ownership; the registration, obtained at one’s state DMV, identifies vehicles as roadworthy and allows them to have license plates. A customer may or may not provide these documents, depending on to what state the transit takes place.

Authorization from a lienholder: If a vehicle has a lien on it, then a customer needs to provide a notarized letter from the lienholder, permitting the car shipping. This document is mandatory for ports.

Gate Pass: A carrier needs authorization for the pickup or release of the car from/to ports or auto auctions before arriving there. We generate the gate pass along with the dock receipt, BOL, and Delivery Order (a document that allows the carrier to move the cargo). 

Photo identification: a customer provides any valid document identifying the shipper and the receiver of the car.

Our experts at Tempus Logix are always ready to answer any question about the paperwork needed to transport your car. Please feel free to make a call and we will be more than happy to assist you.

Shipping Heavy Equipment

To transport heavy equipment, you take the same steps with Tempus Logix as you would take when transporting a car. It all starts with a quote. Get a quote with the help of our heavy equipment calculator. Our professional representatives will get back to you with the best quote in the market.  Our coordinating team of experts, remarkably experienced by years, makes the process of shipping heavy equipment seamless. Our knowledge of Federal Highway Administration’s regulations relating to heavy equipment transportation will be at your disposal upon contacting us. Understanding the process may seem complicated, but with Tempus Logix, it is not. Our company does not discriminate against weight for heavy equipment loads, as long as we can keep it legal, we got it covered.

We will help you with all the steps necessary for transporting your heavy equipment. These include but not limited to:

• We will assist in categorizing the type of heavy equipment, which may need special oversize permits from your state.

• We will find the most professional driver with a top-notch trailer that can safely and timely transport it.

• We will guide you on how to prepare it for the pick-up and drop-off.

• We will map the routes that meet the regulations and has the best climatic conditions for it to move through smoothly.

Just as we are at our customers’ side throughout the process of transporting a car, we will be there all the way through for you to relocate the heavy equipment. And if you are returning patron, then you know how well we do when it comes to transporting heavy equipment and cars.

The Cheapest Season to Ship a Car

When you got to do the moving, you got to do it regardless of it being cheaper at different seasons. The car or heavy equipment needs its relocation, then sometimes that’s all it is relevant. Ok, maybe price and timeframe are always pertinent enough as well for you to pick one company over the other.  Before we talk about seasons that make auto transport prices cheaper, allow us to say how Tempus Logix makes the prices at its lowest at all times.

Please consider this approach. To find out whether the price and timeframe are right, you may do multiple quotes with different companies and choose the one that best fits your budget.

We say this with confidence: Tempus Logix offers the most competitive prices for the current market for trucking a car. Not only because we do not go for the high end of a bid, but also because we offer many discounts at different times. It makes it possible for us to say confidently that Tempus Logix offers leading prices for cars or heavy equipment shipping, and the best timeframe in which it happens. To check this, one only needs to do those multiple quotes with different companies to see it for themselves. Everything written here pertains to 365 days in a year. Meaning, prices, and timeframes’ inherent fluctuations, which yield a model price for all the companies, do not affect our standard approach to make it at its lowest. Even at that lowest cost, we keep the highest quality and fastest delivery.

With this said, let us now explore the seasons for cheap car transport.

The first important thing that you may wonder as a customer is how much the price shows its difference during seasons. If the difference is not much, why should anyone wait 2-3 months for the price to drop to move one’s car?

Well, it is about a 10-40% difference in price just considering shipment among various seasons, without factoring in the other conditions mentioned in What Is Cheapest Way to Ship a car.

Auto Transport Seasons

In the auto transport business, seasons are classified not by winter, spring, summer, fall, but by its separate terms:

The season of:

Winter Visitors snowbird season (people who migrate from brisker north to warmer south during early winter (around November) and back again before early summer (around May)). Because of this migration from north to south (vice versa), prices may be higher, but not for the opposite direction from west to east (VV).

The Hottest Months relative to the states: The prices tend to be higher because the demand for auto transport increases, so does the price.

The Coldest Months relative to the states: The prices tend to drop because the demand decreases; thus, the cost becomes cheaper.

To summarize, if you are moving a car or heavy equipment from North to South (VV), the best price that you might get would be either before the snowbird migration or after it.  The price for the hottest months compared to the two seasons mentioned is somewhat higher but not always, especially with Tempus Logix with its great discounts. For the coldest months, prices decrease. However, sometimes it may increase even more than any other season due to adverse climatic conditions that cause route closures. 

Take away

Tempus Logix is always at your service, no matter if it is sunny days, snowy days, or any other days. We will get you the best price possible in the auto transport business throughout its seasons.

Can I Ship Personal Items in the Car?

Regulation for Shipping Car and Belongings Together

For shipping a car or personal belongings, Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) regulates them separately. These regulations mean to hold carries responsible if damages happen to the property. Having personal belongings in a vehicle during auto transport will require recording of those items one by one on the Bill of Lading (BOL), which we do not do.  In other words, auto transport carriers take responsibility only for transporting a car, and carriers who transport household goods assume responsibility for their type of cargo.

Admittedly, to regulate property separately is a good idea for other reasons as well. Since securement rules for each type of cargo are different, mixing them up only complicates things for everyone. After all, FMCSA wants to keep the public safe during freight transportation and hold those who transport them liable in the event something does go wrong.

Rules and Weight Limits when Shipping Car with Personal Items

FMCSA and Tempus Logix care for the safety and liability of your property. Accordingly, we do allow personal items during your vehicle transportation free of charge if the total weight does not exceed 100 lbs. Also, we ask that you nicely pack the items and store them either in the trunk or below the window level, away from the driver seat. However, because of FMCSA regulations, the carriers cannot be responsible for any of the personal property inside the car and will not insure it. If you do want to put property over 100 lbs., please know that it might be subject to an additional charge simply because weight affects the cost in an auto transport business.

Although our carriers do not insure your items in the vehicle during car transportation, we believe it should not cause any problems. Yes, a slight risk of theft indeed exists, but that risk does not involve our carriers because they are not thieves, that is for sure. Whether others can steal the property, we think this can happen for anything else that we own, regardless of where it might be. We know that theft is a crime punishable by law irrespectively. If somebody tries to steal the property, he or she will be punished when caught, without any distinction if it is insured or not.

When you want to ship car and belongings together because you think it is more convenient than shipping it separately, please talk to us, and we will try to arrange that for you. Tempus Logix is always here to make things easier for their customers.

The Early History of Car Transportation

Alexander Winton, an inventor, and automaker designed the first known semi-truck (a car hauler) in 1898 because he wanted to transport and deliver cars to his customers without the wear and tear from long miles of driving.

A year later, although Winton was successful at selling his new invention, it did not continue proving itself the best choice of auto transport in the following years. It was capable of transporting only one car in one fell swoop, but the upsurge of the auto industry necessitated better alternatives for cars and heavy equipment transportation.

In 1914, August Charles Fruehauf, a blacksmith shop owner at the time (later the founder of Fruehauf Trailer Company), received an order from a lumber manufacturer to make a carrier that can be attached to his Ford to transport his boat from one location to another. The lumber merchant was so satisfied with the heavy equipment transporter that he ordered more to move his lumber as well. Four years later, success ensued, and Fruehauf established his company, naming his merchandise semi-trailer.

Necessity is the mother of invention. Having these great ideas exposed made it possible for other individuals to work out the problems that came with the original creations and improve them as time passed. One of these individuals was John C. Endebrock and another one, George Cassens.

John Endebrock made a trailer that only one person could attach and detach to the back of Ford. His creation later evolved into a modern-day fifth wheel. He founded the Trailmobile Company.

Just like A. Winton, George Cassens, a car salesman, needed to ship cars to his customers without running miles into his commodity. His invention was a type of trailer that could haul four cars by a 2-ton Dodge truck of his day.

Learn more about the Evolution of Automobile Trucks

How to Save Money in the Process of Your Car Shipment

After many years in the auto transport industry, we’ve learned where you can safely cut costs and still get your vehicle to your desired destination.

Before trying to get a quote for vehicle transportation, you should first be aware of the factors that affect the price you pay when you ship your car. It’s important to understand these factors so you can judge the price you are quoted for.

What Factors Can Affect Auto Transport Prices? 

Shipping Distance

The first and biggest factor that impacts the price you pay to ship your vehicle is how far you need it moved. If you’re moving it from one state to the one next to it, that’s obviously going to be a lot cheaper than moving it from coast to coast. The reason for these prices isn’t just the distance. You’re paying more because an expert driver is giving more time and hard work to transport your vehicle safely from one place to another.

Auto transport is more affordable than many people think. It’s not that cheap. But it’s more affordable than people think.

Another thing that affects the price is the size of your vehicle. Bigger vehicles like trucks cost a little more to ship than smaller vehicles like compact cars. But prices don’t just double when the size of your vehicle does. And you should be very careful of any company that makes this excuse.

Open and Enclosed Car Shipping

When you transport your vehicle, you have 2 decisions to make. You have to choose between an enclosed car transport or open car transport.

Open car transport simply means that the car will be exposed to the weather conditions as it’s transported from point A to point B.

Enclosed car transport means the vehicle will be put inside a sealed auto hauler.

Open is the most used car moving service and it’s generally recommended for most auto transport, especially if you are willing to ship on a low budget.

But if you have an expensive, classic or a brand new car, an enclosed car moving service is more recommended for you. But be aware that enclosed is more expensive but can make sense if you are moving an expensive vehicle.

Seasonal Fluctuations

The month or the time of the year can also impact your vehicle shipping costs. Even if you’re not experiencing rain or snow, the driver may face them on his way to the locations.

Just be aware of seasonality when you’re thinking about the cheapest car shipping company. And be advised that if you can move your shipping date, you can save some money. Get in touch with one of the chat agents of an auto transport company to know what is the best time to ship your vehicle.

Drop-Off and Pick-Up Points

When you want to ship your car, it’s most likely going to go on the bed of a big truck. And those trucks are hard for them to get through small roads and tight spaces. Try to find big parking lots because it’s easier for the truckers to load and unload the vehicle. So sometimes it means a bit of driving for you but it could also result in getting some money back in your pocket. Choose your pickup and delivery spots carefully. All these factors contribute to the price you pay and how much you save.