Whether you’re a car enthusiast or buying your first car, you might find yourself wondering what happens after a car is manufactured and is ready to roll off the factory floor. Everyone has seen cars in dealerships in pristine, factory-new conditions, but few know the logistics behind ensuring a smooth delivery from the manufacturing plant to the dealership.
This article answers all your questions about how new cars are transported to dealerships.
The Importance of Car Transportation Logistics
The car industry relies on the efficient transportation of thousands of cars safely from the manufacturing plant to dealerships. Effective transportation processes are also important to ensure that consumer demand is met at low costs.
A big part of the automotive supply chain is ensuring timely deliveries. Dealerships need to maintain their inventory to make sales, and this means that cars have to be transported on time. Another reason why
What complicates this process is the sheer scale of operations in the automotive industry. Companies have to make sure that their supply chain is designed well to meet expectations. Cars have to be transported all around the country from factories and ports to dealerships.
Primary Methods of Transporting New Cars
For domestic car transportation, rail and truck are two main methods of transport. For international deliveries, ocean shipping is a common transport method.
Rail Transport
Rail is the most common and cost-efficient method of car transport. Cars can be loaded onto trucks which take them to the railyard. There, the cars are loaded onto racks. Usually, there are two levels or three levels to the racks. The bi-level racks are used for larger vehicles such as SUVs and the tri-level racks are used for smaller vehicles.
If luxury vehicles are being transported then they will be carried in an enclosed carrier. Such
specially designed carriers protect the cars from environmental damage from rain. Enclosed carriers are more expensive and can carry fewer cars at once.
To learn more about car shipping and the costs associated with this process, you can look at car shipping cost calculators.
Truck Transport
Another method of car shipping is by truck or by road. This method is more flexible than rail as trucks can take the cars directly from the factory and deliver them directly to the dealership. Once the cars are loaded onto the trucks, they are secured using heavy chains and secure straps.
Trucks can load between 8 to 12 cars, with the loading process taking about two hours. Like rail transport, trucks also offer the option of enclosed shipping. While this shipping method protects from weather damage and sunlight, it limits capacity to 8 cars.
Ocean Shipping (For International Imports)
For cars that are imported to the United States from other countries, the ocean is the primary mode of shipping. Ocean shipping is also used by manufacturers when shipping to dealerships in Hawaii.
For this purpose, special ships known as roll-on/roll-off ships are used. These have a ramp that allows cars to be driven onto the ship and parked. These ships have a large capacity, ranging between 5000 to 8000 cars. The United States has many ports where these ships can load cars and transport them to dealerships.
Once these ships arrive at the destination port, the cars are loaded onto trucks and taken to dealerships.
Steps Involved in Transporting New Cars
The transport process begins at the manufacturing plant. First, cars are inspected before delivery to ensure that they meet standards and have no defects or damage. In the next step, the cars are sent to a holding center. This is a centralized location, often near the manufacturing plant that stages the cars before they are picked up by haul trucks.
Holding centers can group cars according to the destination they have to be shipped to save time and improve process efficiency. Then, the manufacturing company has to decide what shipping method to use based on the destination.
In the final step, the car is loaded onto its carrier and secured for delivery to dealerships.
How Cars Are Transported to Dealerships and PricesConclusion
Most people aren’t very concerned with car shipping, but this process is just as important for buyers as it is for automakers. For the end buyers, efficient shipping means you have access to your desired vehicle at a low consumer price.
