The cost to ship a car from Houston to Lakewood is typically $1,700 to $2,000 on an open trailer for an operable mid-size vehicle, and takes between 6 to 7 days in transit time. Where you land inside that range is mostly about the calendar: September through May sits nearer $1,700, and June through August sits nearer $2,000.

Six to seven days on the road once your car is loaded. That works out to roughly 340 to 390 miles a day. It is what a driver legally covers under federal hours-of-service rules, with stops and other deliveries along the way. Add your pickup window to that to get the full door-to-door timeline.

About 2,350 miles by road. It is the longest Texas to Washington lane we run, a little further than San Antonio at 2,280 miles and Austin at 2,230 miles. Lakewood, Tacoma and the rest of south Puget Sound all sit at about the same distance from Houston.

Because the traffic is not balanced. Our Tacoma to Houston page publishes $1,550 to $1,750 for the same road the other way. That gap is real, not a rounding difference. More cars want to go toward Puget Sound in the warm months than want to leave it, so northbound drivers can be choosier. If your dates are open, that asymmetry is useful to know about.

September through May. Summer is peak relocation season into Puget Sound, and it is when military orders land. June through August is the busiest stretch, so prices sit at the top of the range. A car shipped in October or February on a flexible window is the best value this lane offers.

We do, and it is a genuine advantage at the delivery end. Smart Auto Move Inc is at 5607 Boston Ave SW, Lakewood, WA 98499, and the local line is 253-200-5645. It is about 15 minutes from downtown Tacoma and sits beside Joint Base Lewis-McChord. The people coordinating your delivery know these streets personally.

No, and that is deliberate. It is a staffed office rather than a storage yard, so your car goes to the address you give us, not to a lot for you to collect. What the office gives you is local knowledge and a local number to call. On a 2,350-mile move that is worth far more than a parking space.

Houston is one of our six service areas rather than one of our four staffed offices. There is no Houston address to visit, and we would rather say so than invent one. Pickups across the metro are arranged on the national line at 888-709-9078, coordinated by our team and handled by a vetted carrier who works the Texas lanes.

All of them. Central Houston, the Heights, Montrose, Bellaire, West University, Katy, Cypress, Sugar Land, Missouri City, Pearland, Friendswood, League City, Clear Lake, Kingwood, Humble, Spring, The Woodlands, Tomball, Baytown and Pasadena. Every one of them prices the same on this lane, because 25 miles inside the metro makes no difference across 2,350 miles.

In most of Lakewood, yes. Oakbrook, Gravelly Lake, Lake City, Custer, Springbrook, Tillicum and the American Lake neighborhoods all take a full-size carrier. So do neighboring Steilacoom, University Place and DuPont. The driver brings the truck as close as it can safely get and unloads there.

Two situations. A base gate is one. A carrier cannot drive onto Joint Base Lewis-McChord without credentials, so deliveries happen at an agreed spot just outside. The other is an apartment complex with a covered entry or a tight interior loop. In both cases the driver picks a wide lot nearby, often a shopping center off Bridgeport Way or South Tacoma Way. You meet them there.

We deliver to JBLM moves constantly, and our Lakewood office is a few minutes from the Main Gate. The handover happens just outside the gate rather than on post, because a nine-car carrier cannot clear base access. Tell us at booking that it is a JBLM delivery and we will set the meeting point before the driver is on the road.

Regularly, and it is one of the steadiest patterns on this lane. Fort Cavazos, Fort Sam Houston, Lackland, Randolph and Ellington Field all send people north to JBLM. Our military car shipping page covers what to have ready, and the short version is that we can book on orders before the report date is final.

No, and this surprises people arriving from a Texas county that tests. Washington's emission check program ended on January 1, 2020 after 38 years, and vehicle owners are no longer required to have emissions tested before renewing a registration. One less errand after the car lands.

Thirty days. New residents have 30 days to get a Washington driver license and register the vehicle, according to the Washington Department of Licensing. Take your current title to any vehicle licensing office, and note the odometer reading before you go in, because the state asks for it.

Registration fees plus any use tax owed on a vehicle that is new to the state, settled at the licensing office. Washington has no state income tax, which softens the arrival. Exact figures depend on the vehicle and your county, so the licensing office is the right place to ask.

There is no single answer, which is unusual. Drivers pick between three reasonable lines. West on I-10 then north on I-25 through Denver to I-80 and I-84. North on I-45 and I-35 to I-70, then I-76 and I-80. Or the long western arc on I-10 to I-15 and up I-5. All three land within about 50 miles of each other in total, so your driver chooses by weather and by the other cars aboard.

It can, and the good news is that the driver has options. The Rockies passes on I-70 and I-80 see snow, and so do the Blue Mountains on I-84. A driver facing a closure shifts to one of the other two lines rather than waiting it out. That flexibility is why 6 to 7 days holds up in February as well as it does in July.

Open transport is the familiar two-level trailer carrying seven to ten cars, and every price on this page is an open price. It moves the large majority of cars on this lane and it is the right choice for almost any everyday vehicle. Your car collects road dust over 2,350 miles and arrives wanting a wash, which is the whole of the downside.

Enclosed runs about 80% more than open. Against $1,700 to $2,000 open, expect somewhere around $3,050 to $3,600. The car travels inside a closed trailer, shielded from weather and grit the entire way. Worth it for a collector car, an exotic, anything low to the ground, or fresh paint you do not want touched.

Yes. It needs a carrier with a winch and a driver who has loaded one before, and we have no shortage of either. The addition begins at $200 and rises with the condition, depending on whether the car rolls, steers and brakes. Describe it honestly at quote time and the figure you are given is the figure you pay.

Our standard pickup window is 6 days from booking. Expedited brings that down to 3 days, which is 72 hours. Houston is one of the busiest freight cities in the country, so collection often happens early in the window rather than at the end of it.

It can be, and it is worth understanding what it buys. Expedited shortens the pickup window from six days to three. It does not speed up the drive, because drivers work to federal hours-of-service limits. On a 6 to 7 day run, starting three days sooner still moves your whole timeline forward by three days, which matters when a lease or a report date is fixed.

Your vehicle moves under the assigned carrier's Carrier Cargo Insurance from the moment it is loaded in Houston to the moment it comes off in Lakewood. We confirm that each carrier's coverage is active before dispatch, and we will email you the certificate for your specific carrier whenever you ask.

Smart Auto Move operates under USDOT 2887232 and MC 969368. Both are public on the FMCSA SAFER system, and we would rather you checked them than took our word for it. Looking up those numbers is the quickest way to separate a real transport company from a website.

A mid-size SUV usually adds $75 to $150 to the sedan figures here. A full-size pickup or a three-row SUV such as a Suburban or an F-250 typically adds $150 to $300. Trailers have fixed height and weight limits, so a bigger vehicle takes room the driver could have sold to someone else.

Leave the car empty except for what belongs to it: the spare, the jack and the factory tools. Carriers are licensed and insured to move vehicles, so loose belongings are not covered under Carrier Cargo Insurance. Weight is the other reason, since anything in the cabin rides 2,350 miles.

About a quarter of a tank. Enough for the driver to load it, move it around on the trailer and drive it off at the far end, without hauling needless weight across seven states. A full tank on a loaded trailer can add several hundred pounds the carrier has to account for.

Someone does, though it need not be you. Name any adult you trust to hand over or receive the keys, walk the car with the driver and sign the condition report. On a lane this long, plenty of customers fly ahead and have a relative or a colleague cover one end.

It is the written inspection you and the driver both sign at pickup, recording every existing mark on the car, and sign again at delivery. Take your time over it. Photograph all four corners, the roof and the wheels in daylight before the car goes up the ramp. Hold on to your signed copy until the car is parked in Lakewood.

Write it on the condition report before the driver pulls away, photograph it, and call us that day. That note at the curb is what makes a Carrier Cargo Insurance claim straightforward, and we file it with the carrier for you. It is an uncommon situation and it resolves much faster when the paperwork happens on the spot.

Yes, and it is a common choice on this lane. Many customers send the car to a friend, a relative, a workplace or a short-term rental while their own travel catches up. Give us the delivery contact at booking and tell us early if the address changes, so the driver has the right details before dispatch.

Yes, and it usually prices better than two separate bookings. Two cars from one Houston address to one Lakewood address save the driver two stops. Ask for both when you request the quote and we will price them as a pair.

You get the driver's name and direct number once the carrier is assigned, which on a seven-day run is more useful than a map pin. Drivers will tell you roughly where they are, and give you a real delivery window about a day out. Our Lakewood team also checks in, and you can call them any time.

A deposit goes on a card once the carrier is assigned, and the balance is settled with the driver at delivery. That balance is usually cash, a cashier's check or a money order, and your driver confirms which they take when the delivery window is set.

The quote holds as long as the details hold. What changes a price is a change in the facts: a different vehicle, a car that has stopped running, a switch to enclosed, or a new pickup address. Let us know early and we re-quote it before dispatch rather than after.

Registered business address: 4208 Six Forks Rd Ste 1000, Raleigh, NC 27609. Our four staffed offices are in Lakewood, Washington; Los Angeles, California; Chicago, Illinois; and Kissimmee, Florida. This lane is handled at the delivery end by the Lakewood office.

Use the form at the top of this page with both ZIP codes, the year, make and model, and whether the car runs. You will have a real figure in minutes rather than a teaser rate that moves later. You can also call the Lakewood office directly on 253-200-5645 and speak to someone who works this lane.