Overview: Car Shipping & Auto Transport Companies
Auto transport moves a car you are not driving yourself. A cross-country move, a student's car going to school, a purchase from a seller in another state, a classic heading to a show, or the seasonal run south in the fall and back in the spring. The car rides on a truck. You never sit in it, and usually you never meet the driver who loads it. The first thing to sort out is who you are talking to. A carrier owns the truck. A broker sells the job and hands it to a carrier off a load board. Most of the advertising you see comes from brokers, which is normal in this trade, but it decides who answers the phone when the car arrives with a dent. Ask for the name of the carrier that will actually haul it. Interstate carriers are federally regulated and carry a motor carrier number, so you can check the company that is really doing the work. The rest is choices. Open trucks are how most cars move and they cost the least. Enclosed is for low, rare or freshly painted cars. Door-to-door means as close as a long truck can legally get, which may be a lot down the street. Use the state and city lists to see which services quote pickups in your area. This is route work, not neighborhood work, so the right company may be the one with a truck passing through next week.
Data verified September 27, 2026
