$1,650 to $1,900 for an operable sedan on an open trailer, based on our recent shipments as of September 2026. A mid-size SUV runs $1,800 to $2,100 and a full-size pickup $1,950 to $2,250. Enclosed transport adds about 80 percent.

Six to seven days in transit once the car is collected, over about 2,730 miles. A truck covers roughly 400 to 500 miles a day once loading and delivery stops are counted. Add a day between December and March, when I-40 can close at Flagstaff and I-81 runs through mountain weather.

Pickup happens inside a window that starts on the date you ask for. Standard shipping uses a 6 day window and Expedited narrows it to 3 days. Your driver calls you directly as the truck gets close, so you get the day and a rough time rather than waiting all week.

Yes, and they are a large share of what we move on this lane. Read your orders first, because depending on the move the government may already cover shipping a vehicle or pay you a mileage allowance to drive it. We align the pickup window with your report date, and Expedited narrows it to three days when the date is fixed. Mention the move when you book so any military discount is applied.

Sometimes, though it depends on current base access rules for commercial carriers and on your vehicle. Naval Station Norfolk, JEB Little Creek and NAS Oceana each set their own. When on-base delivery is not possible, the driver meets you at an easy spot just outside, at no extra charge. Say it is a base delivery when you book so it is planned rather than discovered.

Partly distance, since this run is about 180 miles further. Mostly it is what is waiting at the far end. Central Florida is a huge two-way market that sends cars back west all year. Hampton Roads takes in far more than it sends out, so a driver delivering in Virginia Beach has fewer choices for the next load.

Yes, and Portsmouth is where our Hampton Roads team is based. Delivery to Portsmouth, Norfolk and Chesapeake works the same as Virginia Beach: door to door wherever a truck can safely reach, with a nearby meeting point if the street is tight. The one thing that changes is sequencing. Portsmouth sits on the west side of the water, so which side you are on decides whether the driver reaches you before or after crossing a tunnel.

Virginia Beach, Norfolk, Chesapeake, Portsmouth, Suffolk, Hampton, Newport News, Williamsburg, Yorktown and Smithfield. Name your actual city when you book rather than just Virginia Beach. The region is split by water and joined by bridge-tunnels, so which side you are on decides how the driver sequences the day.

They affect the hour rather than the day. Hampton Roads is seven cities separated by water, and the tunnels are the region's well-known bottleneck. Newport News to Virginia Beach looks short on a map and is an hour on a bad afternoon. It is why your driver will often prefer an early or late slot.

Open for anything you drive daily. Plan on about 80 percent more for enclosed, so a $1,775 open move is roughly $3,200 enclosed. An open trailer holds seven to ten cars where an enclosed one holds two to six, so each car carries more of the cost. Enclosed is worth a thought in winter, because the I-81 stretch runs through a lot of road salt.

Yes. Your vehicle travels under Carrier Cargo Insurance from the moment it loads in Los Angeles until it comes off in Hampton Roads. The coverage belongs to the motor carrier rather than to Smart Auto Move, and we confirm the authority and coverage are active before a car is assigned. Once a carrier is assigned, ask us for the certificate of insurance and we will send it.

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.

Often yes, and where it cannot we come to you a different way. Burbank, Glendale, Pasadena and most of the San Fernando Valley take a full-size carrier without difficulty. Hillside streets in Silver Lake, Echo Park and the canyons are the tightest, and Koreatown, Venice and Downtown have permit blocks with no gap long enough to load. In those cases a lot on a main boulevard minutes away is used instead, at no extra charge.

Yes, as long as it rolls, brakes and steers, and the trailer carries a winch. There is no flat fee. Expect about $200 or more above the price of the same car running, and the exact figure is worth a short conversation. Book it as inoperable up front, because a car re-rated at the curb costs more and can lose the pickup slot.

A deposit is due when you book and the balance is paid to the driver at delivery, usually by cashier's check, money order or cash. You can also put the whole amount on a credit card at booking. Cancel any time before we assign a carrier and your deposit comes back to you. After that it carries over to a later shipment instead.

February through April. Those are the quietest months, so there is more trailer space than freight to fill it. May through August is busiest, when PCS season and the summer moving peak overlap. Winter is cheap, but Flagstaff and the I-81 mountains can add a day.