car delivery services

[imported_paul]

I have a friend travelling to America later in the year for a 3 month touring holiday. I remember reading about collecting an automobile at point A and delivering it to point B. Does any one know of any firm working out of the east coast ( ie Boston, New York) who runs such a business?

I went to www.shipcar.com and got a quote from them. I have not made reservations because I need somebody to guarantee that the car will arrive on time. Most of the outfits I have seen on the web are brokers and they can't guarantee delivery time.

[imported_paul]

thanks paul for the name www.shipcar.com However this is not the type of agent i am looking for.I am not looking to purchase a vehicle. I am looking to deliver it for a third party. IE collect the vehicle from the supplier and deliver it to the purchasers home address, no matter what part of the country they live in.
i will keep looking through local newspaper web sites and maybe i will get lucky

[Mark Sedenquist]

Paul,
The only company we know that uses "casual" drivers ( not professionals) is Auto DriveAway. They have offices in most major cities. We don' know a lot about the firm, but we do know that drivers need to be licensed and insured. For more information check out: http://www.autodriveaway.com/driveropp.htm

There is a book that is a good primer for such information and has a good section on being paid to deliver RV's around the USA. Check out "How to Get Paid $30,000 a year"... about 1/2 way down the following page: http://www.roadtripamerica.com/read/guides.htm

Editor

[Lifemagician]

Hi Paul,

In 2001and 2004 I spent the best part of 9 months (total), tripping around the US relocating cars for the above company. In all I travelled some 50000 miles and relocated just on two dozen vehicles.

It is a great way to travel and see the country, but it won't work if you have a tight itenary or need to be in a given place at a given time. Neither will it suit you if you already have a list of places you want to see. Chances are you will never get a vehicle going in that direction. If you are flexible and can meet the requirements of the company, it works really well.

What I used to do on arrival at the office, or on the internet, or by phone, is enquire what vehicles they had which need to be moved and where they need to go. I would always choose one which was going to a place of which I had never heard. Then check my maps, see what attractions there were along that route, and what my accommodation choices were, and off I'd go. The time allowance usually allowed me to visit two or three attractions along the way.

All you need is a driver's licence, valid visa and passport. If the licence is not in English then an International Driver's licence is prefered. I have never had, nor have I ever been asked to have insurance. While moving the car, you are fully insured under the car's and company's policy, and of course your own travel insurance. (Don't leave home without it.)

It is a good idea to keep an eye on the national car list, on at least a weekly basis to get a feel for how many vehicles are being moved and the directions in which they move. Recently I have noticed that there is not much choice of cars, and many offices have closed or merged. Back when I was driving there were dozens and dozens of cars available, so much so, that I would be able to pick up a car, and at the same time, reserve a car in the city near where my car was to be delivered, and so on.

When delivering a car to a destination which is not near one of the company offices, I would take a greyhound to the nearest city with an office. Sometimes I would stay in one place for a few days, and rent a car to do some local sightseeing, before picking up my next vehichle. The beauty was that, at some offices, the staff would organise all this for me. On picking up a vehicle, and delivering it, I would always make sure that I was dressed in a professional manner. On the road, anything goes. But I wanted the company offices to know that I would look after the vehicle, and present to them a professional manner.

If you have any questions, feel free to ask. I feel I could write a book on my experiences relocating cars for Auto DriveAway Company.

Lifey

[Southwest Dave]

Great info and a nice offer Lifey, but this thread is from 2002 and Paul doesn't appear to be active.

[Midwest Michael]

um, Lifey, you're responding to a post that is practically a decade old! I think it is safe to say that "Paul" moved on many many years ago!

BTW, the "imported" before a username means the user registered in a previous version of the forum (Basically before 2005) and didn't update their account afterward.

[Lifemagician]

Dave, I had not even noticed. (But it did come up when I clicked on 'new posts'.) But not to worry, it may be of use to someone.

It is 3am, I have been at convention all day, and will be again tomorrow, so not too bright. lol