Should I drive or ship my car?

Shipping your car

It is very easy to get an online quote to ship your car. You can use whatever search engine you like and type in “Car Shipping Canada”. Usually, the best companies will come up first, although these days, the best companies are not necessarily the ones that have the most up-to-date, optimized for search engine websites. So, as it happens, some of the very first results may be undesirable.

In the table below, you will find a comparison of quotes from five (5) shipping companies that were listed on my google search results.

Reviews and ratings

Notice the Better Business Bureau (bbb.org) rating in the table. There are a lot of new and inexperienced car carriers out there; be sure to opt for a reputable car shipping company in Canada. If you receive a lower quote from a carrier you are unsure of, present the quote to a company you trust and see if they can adjust their price. The shipping industry is very competitive; most, if not all, of the quotes I received mentioned that the company would match lower estimates from competitors.

Truck or train?

One thing to be aware of is the lack of precision in shipping schedules. Most companies will not guarantee any dates for departure and arrival, as many factors will affect delivery. Make sure you are not on a tight schedule to receive your vehicle.

Drop-off location

Carriers will often offer terminal-to-terminal shipping, door-to-door shipping or a combination of both. The most affordable option will always be terminal-to-terminal. If you choose to have your vehicle dropped off at work for example, you will be charged an extra $150 or more.

Driving your car

I made a list of all the expenses to expect if you drive your car across the country. Some of them, like gas, are pretty obvious, while some you need to think about a little more. Aside from fuel for your vehicle, you will need to budget for accommodations, meals, maintenance fees such as an oil change and tire or brake usage, car depreciation and in some cases, the daily loss of income if you need to take extra vacation days.

The table below shows the inputs for my mock move.

Note that these values are subject to change, depending on the person and the move conditions. For instance, I set my food budget at $15 per meal, three meals a day. In my case, I will most likely have a small breakfast, stop three times for coffee on the way, eat a sandwich for lunch and have a good meal for dinner. That’s personal. If you are well equipped, camping may also be a cheaper alternative than motels; while most hotels will be more expensive than $65 per night. Gas prices vary constantly over time, and also between provinces. I used a mean value as of June 2015. As for maintenance and depreciation of your vehicle, I used values from a study conducted in Canada by the Corporate Fleet service. If you are driving an older car, the depreciation cost per kilometre may be lower. Maintenance and repairs will also vary with manufacturers and models.

Finally, the second table gives the detailed results calculated from the inputs above. One striking fact is that nearly half of the cost does not actually occur during your move. Your car depreciation, for instance, will only be felt when selling your vehicle.

If these results do not represent your situation, I invite you to use this spreadsheet to calculate the cost of your own move. Please leave comments if you have trouble with the spreadsheet.

Insurance

Something I have not talked about so far is insurance. This cost is really hard to evaluate since it will be different for everyone, and for every province. I would only suggest that you should advise your insurance provider before leaving and ask what they recommend in such situations. There might be an added cost for the extra distance driven.

Should I drive or ship my car – Conclusion

Let’s wrap up the price comparison. In the first part of this article, we found out that a reasonable price for shipping a four-door sedan Terminal-to-Terminal would be approximately $1,650. In addition to this cost, you will have to consider the following additional costs: flight ticket, food for the travel day, transportation to and from the airport, transportation to and from the terminal (to drop off and pick up your car) and maybe a rented car while yours is being shipped. If you are lucky, someone is waiting for you at your destination and you will spare most of the transportation fees. 

For this particular trip, driving your car is probably the least expensive option, although probably not the most comfortable or the safest. Make sure you evaluate your trip with your own inputs to make a proper decision. And, oh, this is a long drive so you will need to be mentally prepared for it!