How to Prepare a Car for Shipping: Car Shipping Checklist

Moving from one house to another opens up a highly transitional period which will definitely put your decision-making abilities to the test. And while nobody knows or can actually predict with noteworthy accuracy what exactly will happen during the busy moving preparations or on moving day itself, one thing is crystal clear whenever there’s a house move – there will be an overwhelming number of decisions to be made when moving across the country.

Undoubtedly, one of these decisions will be how you and your family will reach your new home. And in case your informed decision is to fly to the new residence instead of to have a long road trip with your family car, then the question, “How should I prepare my car for shipping?” will surely be looking for a good answer.

The following detailed vehicle shipping checklist will teach you what you should do to prepare your car for shipping.

What To Know Before Shipping Your Car Within The USA

The decision to have your car shipped to your new residence should only be made after weighing carefully the options that lie ahead of you. All in all, you have to choose between two relocation scenarios and should pick the one that will work best in your specific moving case.

Scenario 1: You drive to your new home with your own vehicle

This is a very common relocation scenario where you choose to have your household items and personal possessions packed /an additional moving service/, taken out of your current home, loaded, transported and delivered to your new residence by a team of reliable professional movers.

After you wave your movers goodbye, you:

1. load your pre-packed essentials boxes and valuables into your car,
2. call to your family members /pets included/ to take their pre-designated places inside the family vehicle, and
3. sit behind the vehicle and buckle up your car seat belt, impatient to initiate the long relocation trip to your new home and find out what your new life has in store for you there.

Scenario 2: You fly to your new home while your car is being shipped

The other standard moving day scenario is to hire the services of a reputable auto shipping company to transport your vehicle to another state while you and your family members take advantage of the fastest transportation mode available and catch a plane to your destination to save valuable time.

After you wave your household movers goodbye, you:

1. take the required steps to prepare your car for shipping /described in detail below/,
2. take your carry-on bags containing your most valuable and essential items and head to the airport, and
3. sit down on your plane seat and buckle up your safety belt, impatient to initiate the short relocation flight to your new home and find out what your new life has in store for you there.

Relocation scenario 1 vs. Relocation scenario 2

It shouldn’t come as a surprise that both relocation scenarios mentioned above have their clear advantages and disadvantages, and therefore the decision to select one over the other must be an informed one – that is, to be made after taking into account all the pluses and minuses of each case.

Whether you realize it or not, embarking on a fun road trip in your family car has a number of pros that are likely to tip the scale in favor of this transportation mode. First of all, a road trip for the whole family is generally less expensive than a flight across the country although that is not always the case. Secondly, a cross-country drive gives the unique opportunity to pass through amazing cities and visit amusing local attractions and awe-inspiring historical places which you wouldn’t normally get the chance to see and experience. And thirdly, a long car journey like that can often end up bringing the family members closer than ever before.

However, if time is ticking away mercilessly or if your new residence is located in the other end of the vast American continent, your better option is probably to board a plane and arrive at your destination in a few hours’ time. Precious time will surely be saved when flying to your new home but besides paying for your plane tickets, you will also need to dig deeper into your pockets to cover your vehicle transportation costs as well. As it turns out, convenience has its proverbial price tag too.

Step-By-Step Car Shipping Checklist: How To Prepare Your Car For Shipping Across Country

If you have reached the conclusion that flying to your new city will be the better relocation option after having consulted your moving budget /money/ and your moving calendar /time/, then you’re going to need to familiarize yourself with the required consecutive steps to prepare your car for shipping.

Knowing what steps to take to prepare your car for shipping will go a long way towards securing your automobile while in transit. So, take advantage of our detailed step-by-step car shipping checklist to be 100% ready when your car shipping company shows up to load your car into their moving truck.

How to prepare a car for transport across the country?

Step 1. First things first. Before you start preparing your vehicle for shipping, you need to find an experienced and reliable vehicle transportation company. For this purpose, access our database of reputable auto transporters and spend some time reading moving reviews about the car shippers in your state. What past customers of specific vehicle shippers have said about the quality their services does matter and will enable you to locate the car relocation partner that will fit your allocated budget and meet your specific requirements.

Step 2. Once you set your eyes on a few auto shippers that look like they will do a good job transporting your car to another state in a fast and safe manner, request a car shipping estimate from them to find out how much it costs to ship a car, and compare carefully the received offers before deciding on a highly reputable and experienced car transportation company.

Step 3. So far, so good. Soon enough, you will realize how important the above two steps have been for the smooth cross-country transportation of your car. Now it’s time to turn your sole attention to your vehicle and make sure it is more than ready for safe transport.

Step 4. Begin the necessary vehicle shipping preparations by washing well the exterior of your car. If you have enough time, you can clean its interior space as well although it makes more sense to leave this task after the transportation of your vehicle is over.

Step 5. Having removed any dirt, dust and other filth from your favorite four-wheeler, it’s the right time for a thorough visual inspection in order to register any damage it may have suffered until this very moment. Look for signs of scratches, paint chips, dents, rust and any other minor and not-that-minor defects along its surface. Whenever you locate such signs of damage, photograph them with the help of either your smartphone camera or dedicated camera and make sure that the close-up photos show the imperfections clearly. Don’t forget to turn on the date imprinting function of your photographing device too.

Step 6. When you’re done documenting any minor or major signs of damage on your car, take additional broader photos of your vehicle in order to be able to prove later, if necessary, that any damage not visible on the photographs was done while your car was in the vehicle shipper’s custody. You can include these photos as evidence in the inspection report you are expected to receive and sign prior to and after the actual transportation.

Step 7. Inspect visually your car for fluid leaks /the engine compartment and underneath the car chassis/ while paying special attention to any noticeable leakage around the fuel tank. If you do notice any leaks no matter how small they may seem, have them fixed at all costs before your auto transportation company is scheduled to arrive.

Step 8. Speaking of fuel tanks, the gas tank of your vehicle must be left to only 1/4 of its capacity to avoid adding extra weight to the shipment. In reality, there’s no need for more fuel than the above-stated amount simply because your beloved car will, for a change, be in the passenger seat this time around.

Step 9. Make sure your car battery is completely charged and secured in its bracket against undesirable shifts and movements while on the road.

Step 10. Check whether the tires are in good condition and fully inflated.

Step 11. Double check whether the emergency brake of your vehicle is functioning properly as this is an important requirement when preparing your car for shipping.

Step 12. Our auto transport checklist continues with securing your car’s exterior. The best way to protect your removable parts from the exterior of your car /for example, non-permanent racks for bikes, skis or baggage/ is to take them down before your vehicle is loaded onto the moving truck. Also, retract fully or remove your car’s antenna(s) if possible.

Step 13. Safeguard the exterior car parts that cannot be removed /spoilers, additional lights, side-view mirrors, etc./ with protective sheets of bubble wrap taped in place or special protective coverings.

Step 14. Car transportation to another state can present certain dangers. You must remove any personal effects /electronic devices, important documents, expensive jewelry pieces, etc./ from the interior of your vehicle as the insurance of your car shipping company won’t cover such possessions in case they go missing during the transportation. Definitely don’t leave any dangerous items or hazardous substances in your vehicle either. You are allowed to leave a child seat if you wish so.

Step 15. Disable or even remove, if possible, the alarm system of your vehicle. Have in mind that the car carrier driver may be authorized to stop an untimely activated car alarm system by any means possible.

Step 16. If you own a convertible, secure well its top to avoid possible damage from inclement weather on the road.

Step 17. If your car is equipped with automatic parking passes or toll tags, make sure you deactivate them before your auto shipper arrives.

Step 18. There’s no reason why your standard car equipment shouldn’t stay intact in your vehicle. Your spare tire, emergency kit, jack, hand tools, etc. can be safely left as they are. The license plates must not be removed.

Step 19. While preparing a vehicle for auto transport, check with your auto insurer whether the primary insurance for your car is and will remain active until your four-wheeler is safely delivered to your new address.

Step 20. Just to be on the safe side, write down the digits of your car odometer and keep the readings in a secure place.

Step 21. Our tips on how to prepare a car for shipping are closing to an end. There are just a few more steps to complete so that your car is completely ready to be shipped to another state. Arrange for an extra set of car keys to hand over to the truck driver and keep the original one with you.

Step 22. If you are familiar with any mechanical problems that your automobile exhibits, tell the truck driver about them regardless of how minor they may be. If necessary, prepare written car handling instructions and give them to that same driver.

Step 23. During the periods of pick-up and delivery of your vehicle, careful inspections will be performed by your car shipping company. You or another person you designate as a representative must be present at those vehicle inspections in order to sign the Bill of lading and the condition report both at origin and destination.

Step 24. When your vehicle is delivered to your new home, you must confirm your car’s condition and duly note down any transportation damage on the Bill of lading before the truck driver leaves your new residence.

Step 25. Well done! You have successfully prepared your car for transport.

What To Do After Shipping Your Car To Another State

The very first thing you should do after your vehicle has been delivered to your new home without problems of any sort is to open a bottle of champagne or special vintage wine and celebrate the occasion. After the celebration party is over, you should know that there are a few post-relocation tasks regarding your vehicle that you are expected to complete without delay.

Post-move task 1: Once again, this is the perfect timing to wash thoroughly your freshly delivered car. It’s a good idea to devote more time to cleaning its interior, especially if you skipped this step while preparing your car for transport.

Post-move task 2: If you just performed a move to another state, you are required to register your car in that new state within a specific time frame unless you are willing to pay a penalty. Have in mind that some states give 10 days for vehicle registration /Florida/ while others go as far as 30 days /New York/. Visit your new state’s local DMV office in person to take care of this task. Also, you’re going to have to transfer your out of state driver’s license, so take the opportunity to do it while at the local office of the Department of Motor Vehicles.

Post-move task 3: In order to complete your car registration successfully, you will be asked to present a vehicle title in your name and have your car pass a safety inspection and an emissions check. Moreover, you will also be asked for a proof of auto insurance. Interestingly enough, even though your car insurance is valid in any U.S. state you cross with your vehicle, moving to a new state requires you to purchase insurance from that same state in order to register your vehicle.

Car shipping within the U.S.A. can be a smooth relocation experience from start to finish only if you know what steps to take to prepare your car for shipping. Follow the car shipping steps above so that you and your car both reach your new residence in perfect health.

Do you have any experience in having your car shipped to another part of the country? What other practical tips for preparing a car for shipping can you share with us?

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