I know what a ridiculous title for a thread but it's all inter-related.

We, (Stepfather, sister, brother-in-law, wife and myself) are considering entering a business of car-moving/hauling. My sister and bro-in-law have started a moving business, doing well going on four years now. Started building a mini-storage, have a lot of people in line waiting to get in there. She approached my stepfather and I about a business venture of the car hauling. She and her moving biz are generating a tremendous amount of questions about can or will they facilitate transport for whomever they are moving the household belongings for. She approached me and Dad since we are and have traveled far and wide with truck and trailer to retrieve a car or truck. Most recently to Indiana for a 66' Caddy for him.

We are thinking of utilizing some of the acreage of the storage facility for a transport facility, gravel lot for interim storage of cars, loading and unloading, truck and trailer parking. They (Sis & BIL) have 10 acres of nothing but empty field.

We have a lead on some business for a large towing company, taking cars to auction lots a couple hours away and transporting between their several large lots to the main lot. We are also talking to various brokers before we jump in and trying to calculate fuel costs, insurance and other stuff.

Ok, so there's a brief synopsis of some brief thinking. Now for the thoughts on equipment. We have a Ford F350, its a 2001 drw, crew 4x4. Believe it to have the 4.10 gears and auto tranny. My Dad and I are looking at 5th wheel, 3-car haulers. I'm sure everybody's seen them before. Most are triple axles, some have double axles.

We don't have anybody close that sells them, so I'm hoping someone here can help me understand the GCVW and stuff. Dad has towed TT's a bunch and we have pulled many cars/trucks including my 79' F150 and my 65' Galaxie on his 18' car hauler. I trust his experience pulling and driving, but want to be prepared to discuss this at length regarding numbers of weight and extra large trailers. No point in pursuing this and getting everything setup to find out we're going to be heavy from the git-go or that it'll kill the truck.

I've seen people pull these trailers before. I paid a fellow from Tennesse to haul 3 of mine when I moved to AZ. But I never talked to him about weights, gearing and what all he had done to his truck.

Does anyone know the weight of these 3-car haulers dry? I know the payload would differ regarding what you are hauling, trucks versus cars versus SUV's, but how can a F350 pull that much weight. IF the GCVW is say 26,000. THe F350 is what 8500#? That leaves 17,500# + or -. So if the trailer comes in at say 8,000#, (I have no idea what to estimate) but they average 50' long, that leaves 9,500# for the cars. So if I have 3 Vw's to put on the trailer, thats around 3200# for each car. Even for a VW that seems to be too light and I'm completely assuming, I think it would actually be heavier. The dude that hauled mine, had my 65' Gal, my 79' F150 4x4, and my Windstar. His truck looked bone stock. But I never talked to him about it. Is this something that can be considered doable with a stock truck? My sister and BIL have a line on a 4-car hauler to pull behind his D*dge. Thay have a 2004 DRW cummins. We are still in the discussion phase as a group.

I'd rather discuss this a little further not to mention get a little education for myself. The idea is for me to run the Ford while my Dad gets his plumbing business ready to sell. Then he'll get another truck and trailer and we'll keep going from there. Sis and BIL will run the snot out of the Dodge. I'm concerned about investing my money for this without having proper info for the trailer and weights. I figure a trailer dealer is gonna see us coming in that truck, and be like "sure, you could pull 5 cars if you wanted, I got just the trailer for you". SO, in short, are these trucks capable of this duty, I'm talking 3 cars no more, and if anyone has relatable experience, I would love to hear some about this enterprise we have proposed.

Thanks for your input and any advise you may have,
Blair

 

If you want to know how much your truck can move down the road, I dunno.

I can tell you that your truck has a 20,000 pound GCWR. It weighs around 8k, so that leaves 12k for the trailer and load. Not all that much.

Do people tow more than that? All the time. And some break expen$ive parts. And some are not licensed or tagged for that weight and get big $$$ fines.

Since you will be commercial you should check into a class A CDL. You might also want to look at a bigger truck or a 2 car trailer.

 

I can't add anything on the technical side, just wondering if there's really that many requests to haul three rigs at once. But I guess there must be! If so, maybe an 18-wheeler that could haul 6, with an over-the-road driver, and go big time.

The car owner won't care if you fried a tranny getting his three Corvettes to his new digs in the foothills. So you oughta bill for the fact you'll need something big replaced down the line. Consider every haul will take away a piece of it. Your rigs will wear out quicker and be high-mileage units with lower resale value when you trade them off.

One comment on open fields for temporary storage is it won't take long for mice and other critters to see some new "condos" being erected. Next worry is theft and/or vandalism.

For sure there's a need for this service. I have four rigs myself, one's a kinda rare '67 Jeepster pickup parked with no brakes. I'd have to sell it, buy a trailer for the MG roadster, and both of us drive a rig.

The MG weighs only 2314, while the Rodeo weighs 3605, the Jeepster's 3410 and the F-150 is 3513. Oh yeah, I have an 18' travel trailer, too!

-Smoky

 

Yea , I don't know how many people are doing it and frying stuff all the time, but I see an s-load of folks running one tons drw and pulling the 3 car haulers. Just saw 2 of them running together on I95 near Fredericksburg Saturday. Those boys were holding 70-75 too.

We have found a hauler (6car) in Maryland with a F650 crewcab and chassis setup. Guy has it for sale and we plan on looking at it this week. That is probably more along the lines of what we need. Thanks for your input,

Blair

On edit: I talked to the transporter at length that just brought me back from out west. He said loads like mine aren't rare (3 cars-1 family), but aren't an everyday thing either. most of those guys run through brokers who get a little off the top for securing the runs themselves. He told me they pickup the cars somewhat close together, then that truck delivers them to somewhat the same area. He deliveredto Phoenix the same day he picked me up in Tucson. WE have a connection here that would have us ferry cars from storage lots to auction lots mostly. Probably fill in voids with my sisters moving connections. We're still working on it..............

 

I was looking into this last year as I too have a friend that is a private hauler. He's got an enclosed that will fit 2 vehicles and it's mostly high end. The problem he has is insurance. It's sky high! I think he said he was paying $900 a month. So, you would have to be movin all the time. That's alot of cordinating pick-ups and drop-offs. People do it all the time though. Good Luck!

 

I lease to a company which pickups and delivers cars near Chicago for nationwide transport companies.

I have a Kaufman 3 car trailer - they are in Lexington NC ( kaufmantrailersinc.com). It is a 2 axle dual wheel, 102" wide, 50' long. I opted for second tool box, second spare tire, and winch. It came with 6' long steel ramps, which were worthless, and replaced them with 14' aluminum to load anything without any extra fooling around. Manufacture's empty weight was 6700 before options - ~7700 with.

I would also look at Take-3 trailers - more expensive, but a better tie down system. They do have a super single 2 axle option and 8' aluminum ramps. They are in Texas.

There are a lot of 3 car trailers on eBay. They are there for a reason - some upgrading, some busted (their business, I mean). It can be a tough business. I would look there first to see what is near by - there were some good deals.

Expect to pay $8000 per year for full coverage insurance - including garage keepers, business liability, etc. Expect to be plated for 30,000 or better and in multiple states with IRP plates. Expect to be over GCWR frequently. Expect to have a CDL license. Expect to drive over weigh scales. Expect to do log books. Expect to get an IFTA sticker. Expect to do quarterly fuel reports. Expect to get some authority to move vehicles. Expect to get a DOT number. Expect to do lots of paperwork.

If you are still reading...

It's not a bad business to be in if you get the right connections. You need to be loaded all the time - difficult, but possible. There are a number of hot shot car haulers out there and rate charges and methods vary. Our rates are based on areas, not exact mileage - it all works out in the wash. Fuel costs are starting to impact profit and we are looking at raising rates.

1 car and 2 large SUVs will push you to 30k. In our case, household goods are not to be in vehicles - people will try to pack them sometimes. They are supposed to only have 1/4 tank of gas, but that doesn't always happen. Generally, the scales are not concerned about the manufacture GCWR, but tire rating, axle weight, and plate weight are what they use.

On a safety point, you should have 4 tie down points for each vehicle. I've seen too many guys running around with 2 loosely attached straps. Makes me sick.

While my truck was in the shop for 2 weeks in the peak of our season, I kept thinking I should have gotten a Dodge... but all is well again. I can cruise the flat lands of Illinois, Wisconsin, and Indiana without too much problem. I will say that 65 mph or less is best for mpg (9-10), but going faster will cut mpg to 7.5-8.5 quickly.

Having 10 acres is a good thing. We only have 1+ and have over 200 cars stuff in. We also have 24 hour security as we are open 24/7 for the road trucks.

Hope this helps!

Jim

PS. Get a 5th wheel mount - not a goose neck. Get the heaviest 5th wheel hitch you can find - I have a Pullrite 25.5k. Don't be concerned so much about having a clean bed when the hitch is out. It should not be out - you should be hauling cars!

 

I just witnessed a hauler that had crashed last friday. A tandum axle dump truck crossed over and with swerving hit the class 8 hauler on the passenger side head on, piling cars (one 40s gm product) up on the roadway. I guess the chains got slightly over stretched.

Big ugly mess, S. I-85 was locked down for hours.

I know that the classic owner knew he was making the right choice to move his car.

sorry bout the rambling

John

 

Jo,

Sucks to see any bad wreck. There was a 3 tractor trailer accident on I95 here yesterday. It was a mess.

JimReitz and Mastertrim,

We are trying to find a way to be profitable. With two trucks and haulers, the expense, especially getting started with insurance and whatnot is a little unsettling. We have lots of folks trying to talk us out of this business, but I think it can be done with the right planning and resources. It's like you said, if you have the contacts, and you keep rolling, then you may have a fighting chance. Nothing is a sure bet but you'll never know if you don't go after it.

Jim, how is your truck holding up? From the sounds of it you're not running it hard, how is your tranny and suspension doing? If I may ask, what was it in the shop for? Rear airbag suspenions have been brought up by a guy my Dad talks to. Says it can help carry the weight better, smoother ride too.

We'll have to keep the 5th wheel mount in mind. Lots of trailers around, a close friend and his brother apparently are considering this business too. We had some beers Saturday evening and I was telling him of our business thoughts and he brought to my attendtion that he and his bro are looking into this as we speak. They are looking at 4 car haulers, they found a trailer with weight of 7K, gross of 32k I think he said.

Lots to consider. None of us are CDL licsened, is that due to length and being a commercial truck?

IFTA? Fuel reports? Log books? I reconize some of the terms, but don't know specifics, is there more reading somewhere I could do?

Is there a how-to involved with getting the DOT # and some of the other issue's?

Lots of things still need to be researched before we jump in, but posts like yours are a wealth of info to us. Thanks for your time and input,

Blair

 

My truck is doing well. I have been running pretty hard - approximately 2500 miles a week since June 1. I do my own service regularly, although it was in the shop because it quit running. There was a failed O-ring on the high pressure splitter tube. I had to rent a tractor to run while it was down. The truck has 42k miles now and brakes, tires, suspension, trans, etc seem to be working just fine. I do change the external trans filter every 10k miles and had it flushed at 30k. I have a little issue with the trailer brake controller (Ford) as it seems like the ABS kicks in if I hit a bump and I loose full trailer brake. Off and back on the brake pedal brings it back to normal.

You will need a CDL due to the commercial business, crossing state lines, and plate being over 26,000. Many get by without it... for a while. I think there was a thread here where someone got caught and the fine was a lot. Just get one. You don't have to do the air brake portion, so it's not too bad.

I believe that by the beginning of next year, all commercial trucks must display a DOT number and not other numbers - like old ICC. From what I understand, the ICC numbers (the authority to transport between states) is being transferred to be included with the DOT number. You may also need a State authority if you intend to transport within your state.

There is a site where you can apply for the DOT number and sites where you can apply for authority. Do a search, I don't have one handy. I have my own DOT number, but it was only to satisfy a requirement for my IRP plate. Since I'm leased, I use the companies DOT number and authority.

You might look at leasing to a local towing company for a while. It might help you get off the ground with your business.

Jim

 

That's some great info Jim.
Know anything about the guys doing small loads with the flat bed trls with thier pickups? I see more and more on the highway, but can't find any info on line about it. Been thinking about that.

I drove Big Trucks for a while when I retired from the Army, and toy around the idea of the small load stuff.

 

You need a DOT# if you are driving commercially and your CGVW is over 10K. Tough to stay under 10k unless you're in a lowend F150 with a single axle trailer. You need a CDL 'B' if your CGVW is over 26K and your trailer is under 10K GVW. You need a CDL 'A' if your trailer GVW is over 10k no matter what your CGVW is. A multi car hauler and an F350 will require a CDL 'A' and a DOT# to legally drive it.

Good Luck.

 

Many thanks for you replies fellas. Lots of good info like Wiskey6 said already. We're looking into everything, probably be a little while longer now, I just bought a house and without fully realizing the cost of getting started, this may be something we pursue later in the fall or winter.

Thanks again,
Blair

 

I was thinking of quitting dump truckin and giving the car hauler deal a try, out here in CA there are tons of guys doing it probably because there are so many people here and soooo many cars going to auction and dealers and all that. A couple of days ago the CHP was "set up" had their cones out and everything, they waved me in(truck & pup) rolled me over their portable scale then were preparing to do a full inspection of my junk. All of a sudden the cop hands me my papers and says get moving, they were all excited to see a dually with a 3 car hauler roll up on em. I stuck around and watched them all shake their heads as they weighed him, he had a suburban on top and a pathfinder and a compact, The cop said they were really cracking down on these guys because alot of them buy a set up without going through all of the proper channels. Anyhow sorry about the ramble, I have been an O/O for about 15 years no real complaints but in my opinion trucking is just a little bit better than a sharp stick in the eye! Good luck to you and get the F650 you will be $ ahead with a med duty truck.

 

I'm glad I came across this thread...I know this is a bit late.

Jim, nice truck! That's what I'm looking at buying if I get into this short haul business. I already passed 5 DPS tests to get a CDL...the air brake test really wasn't too bad as long as you studied the booklet they gave you. All that is left for me is the road test. Does anyone have any advice for me before I go and drive? What to expect?

 

I work with the CHP and the above is true, 3 axle car haulers with light duty trucks are easy to find violations! All 3 axle trailers are over 10k and require Class A commercial with valid medical card. You need the CDL and CA/DOT #'s, propper insurance and so on. Also need 4 independent tie downs per vehilce on the trailer. Many are not licensed and risk loosing their truck/trailer and load plus the unlicensed driver citation, which really does not look good on your driving record from the insurance companys eyes.

As a side note, when I worked in LA, a brand new at the time Chev 3500 dually with 100 miles on it towing a 3 axle loaded car hauler shreaded the right side dually wheels, both of them, clean off of the tow rig. That was a mess, plus Im sure it was not cheap!

Also, around here lots of guys are running the medium duty flatbed tows, with an extra flatbed above the cab, and a stinger in the rear for short haul jobs, to the auctions near the border. They handle three nicely without the need for a trailer.