Dallas to Norfolk Car Shipping

The cost to ship a car from Dallas to Norfolk is typically $1,100 to Norfolk and up to $1,300 to Virginia Beach or the Peninsula, on an open trailer, and takes between 4 to 5 days in transit time. The same range covers all of Dallas-Fort Worth and all of Hampton Roads.

From our own published Dallas lanes. Dallas to Raleigh is $1,025 to $1,225 over about 1,180 miles, and Dallas to Charlotte is $975 to $1,175. Norfolk is about 150 miles past Raleigh on the same trip, so its range sits just above.

About 4 to 5 days on the road. The trip is about 1,330 miles, and most loads deliver in four days.

No. The whole of Hampton Roads shares one range, from Norfolk and Virginia Beach to Chesapeake, Portsmouth, Suffolk, Hampton and Newport News.

No. Dallas, Fort Worth and the suburbs share the same range. About 30 miles barely moves a 1,300-mile trip.

Pickup happens inside a window that starts on the date you ask for. Standard service is a 6-day window. Expedited service is a 3-day window. Dallas is a busy pickup city, so cars often go early in the window.

Yes. Read your orders first, since some cover shipping a vehicle and some pay you to drive it. Book as soon as you have dates. We deliver to a lot outside the gate.

We meet outside the gate. A car carrier is about 75 feet long and the driver has no base pass. A lot outside the gate takes ten minutes and keeps the day simple.

Push the move back and your deposit carries over to the new date. Cancel before we assign a carrier and the deposit comes back to you.

Open is the right call for most cars. Plan on about 80 percent more than open for enclosed. A $1,000 open move is roughly $1,800 enclosed. A hard-sided trailer holds two to six cars where an open one holds ten, so each car carries more of the cost. Worth it for a classic, an exotic, fresh paint, or a car too low to clear a ramp. For a daily driver, open is the right call.

Yes. Your car is covered by the carrier's Carrier Cargo Insurance from pickup to delivery. Once your order is assigned to a truck and carrier, we can send you the certificate of insurance right away.

Smart Auto Move is. We place your car with a carrier we have vetted and worked with, and we stay with the move from pickup to delivery. We will get your car moved, or your money back.

Usually yes, within reason. Most drivers will take a few things as a courtesy. Keep it under about 100 pounds, pack it neatly, and keep it out of sight from outside the car. Think a few boxes in the trunk rather than a carload. The one thing to know is that you are paying to move the vehicle, so the carrier's insurance covers the car itself. Keep anything you would hate to lose with you.

Yes, wherever a 75-foot carrier can safely reach. Older streets in Ghent and Olde Towne Portsmouth can be tight. There we meet at a nearby lot, at no extra cost.

Wash it so the inspection is clear. Take photos from every side. Leave about a quarter tank of fuel. Take out toll tags, garage openers and loose valuables. Tell us about any leaks or problems with starting. Then hand over one key.

One to two weeks is enough most of the year. Give a little more in the summer moving season, when military moves peak. Booking earlier does not cost more.

We take a deposit when you book and the balance is due at delivery. Drivers usually take a cashier's check, money order or cash. You can also put the full amount on a credit card, but only at the time of booking, so the funds are ready for the carrier.

Cancel any time before we assign a carrier and your deposit comes back to you. Once we assign one and send you the driver's details, that money is spoken for. It is not gone, though. You can push the move back and use it on a later shipment.

Check its USDOT and MC numbers on the FMCSA site, and read its reviews on the BBB and Google. Smart Auto Move is USDOT 2887232 and MC 969368, with a BBB A+ rating. Be careful of a quote far below the others. Ask that company if the rate is confirmed, then look for complaints about the price going up later.

A deposit means we only work with committed customers, and it shows we are confident we can book a carrier at the price we quoted. A company that takes nothing up front is often not sure it can. Those are often the ones that come back later with a higher rate.

Title your car within 30 days of moving to Virginia and register it within the same 30 days. It needs an annual safety inspection. Hampton Roads has no emissions test.

Most loads head east on I-30 and I-40, then cut across to Virginia. It is about 1,330 miles and four days of driving.

Ship it if you can. The drive is about 20 hours, plus motels, meals and gas, and often a flight back. Drive it only if you are moving anyway and want the car with you on the road.

Yes. A non-running car needs a winch or a carrier with a lift, so it usually costs $200 or more above the same car running. Tell us when you book. We will talk it through and give you an accurate price.

You get the driver's phone number for calls or texts, plus email updates from us. GPS tracking is there when the carrier and the truck support it. We will tell you which applies once your carrier is assigned.

We have service areas at both ends: McKinney, Texas, north of Dallas, and Portsmouth, Virginia, in Hampton Roads. Our national team handles bookings at 888-709-9078.

The driver calls ahead with a time. You walk around the car together and compare it with the pickup report. You note anything new on the Bill of Lading, sign, and pay the balance. Then the car is yours.