Car shipping
Military car shipping when PCS orders move the household
The short answer
Military PCS car shipping moves a privately owned vehicle to a new duty station on a commercial carrier while the household goods travel separately. Orders set the report date, so the pickup window and base access matter as much as the price. What your orders cover is a question for your installation transportation office. InterCar Group books nothing.
When a PCS turns into a shipping problem
One vehicle and one driver is a road trip. The situations below are the ones that put a car on a truck.
There are two vehicles and one of you
A second car cannot drive itself across the country. Shipping it is usually the alternative to paying someone to drive it, which adds the miles and the wear you were trying to avoid.
The report date will not move
Everything else in a PCS flexes; the date you sign in does not. That makes the pickup window the thing to protect, and it is the reason to get the route in front of carriers early rather than cheaply.
The household goods are already gone
Once the pack-out is done the vehicle is often the last thing in the driveway and the family is on a flight. Someone still has to hand over keys and sign, so that person has to be arranged before the movers leave.
The installation is hard to reach
Gate hours, commercial vehicle passes, escort requirements and a base road a full-length carrier cannot use. None of it is unusual, and all of it has to be known before a driver is dispatched.
How to arrange a PCS vehicle move
The order matters here more than on a civilian move, because two of these steps have to happen before you talk to any carrier.
Ask your transportation office first
What a set of orders covers, and how a move has to be arranged for it to count, is decided by your orders and your installation transportation or personal property office. Ask them before you arrange anything commercially. Nothing on this page changes that answer.Book against the report date
Work backward from when you sign in, not from when the packers come. Carriers quote pickup and delivery as multi-day windows, so leave slack on both ends rather than assuming a date you were given is a promise.Settle access at the installation end
Ask the carrier whether it will deliver on post and ask the gate what a commercial driver needs to get through it. Where the answer is no, agree a meeting point off base in advance. A driver turned away at a gate is a wasted trip somebody pays for.Put the vehicle paperwork in one place
Registration, proof of insurance, and written authorization for whoever will sign if it is not you. If there is a lien, ask the lender what it wants to see. Carriers ask for this at pickup, not before, and that is the wrong moment to start looking.Walk the vehicle at both ends
Photograph every panel in daylight, then walk the car with the driver and read the Bill of Lading before signing. Do the same at delivery. Those signatures are what a damage claim stands on, and a PCS is exactly when nobody has time for a claim.
Upfront pricing
What a duty station move costs
These are published market ranges, not an offer. InterCar Group does not quote transport and does not take payment for it: the carrier running your lane sets the price and confirms it with you before pickup.
| Service | Typical range | What is included |
|---|---|---|
| Open carrier, 500 to 1,500 miles | $0.65 – $1.2per mile | Most stateside station-to-station moves land in this band. |
| Open carrier, over 1,500 miles | $0.55 – $0.95per mile | Coast-to-coast lanes: the lowest rate per mile and the highest total. |
| Typical US move, all in | $1,000 – $1,500one vehicle, total | The national average across distances and trailer types. |
| Vehicle that does not run | $150 – $300added to the quote | Winch loading and the trailer position it forces. It still has to roll, steer and brake. |
Estimates only. Final price confirmed by the local operator before dispatch.
What moves this price
- Distance, on a sliding scale. The per-mile rate drops as the trip gets longer, so a cross-country move costs less per mile and more in total.
- A fixed report date. Flexibility is what makes a lane cheap, and a PCS is the move with the least of it.
- Season. Summer is when most orders move households, and the corridors between large installations fill first.
- Access at the delivery end. A gate a carrier cannot use means a meeting point, an escort or a second vehicle movement, all of which cost someone time.
- Vehicle size and weight, because a carrier is selling deck length and payload rather than a slot.
- Whether it runs. A vehicle that has to be winched aboard needs a particular spot on the trailer and has to be declared before dispatch.
Where these ranges come from
- FreightWaves Checkpoint — How Much Does It Cost To Ship a Car?Checked August 30, 2026
Where these statements come from
Anything numeric or regulatory on this page carries the document it was read from and the date it was checked against it. A claim with no source is left off the page.
Published market data puts the average US car shipping cost between $1,000 and $1,500, with per-mile rates of about $0.65 to $1.20 from 500 to 1,500 miles and $0.55 to $0.95 above 1,500 miles.
FreightWaves Checkpoint — How Much Does It Cost To Ship a Car?Checked August 30, 2026
Shipping a vehicle that does not run typically adds about $150 to $300 to the quote, because it has to be winch-loaded.
FreightWaves Checkpoint — How Much Does It Cost To Ship a Car?Checked August 30, 2026
Inoperable-vehicle shipping is priced roughly 20% to 50% above running-vehicle rates, with the winch equipment surcharge alone reported at $150 to $350.
AmeriFreight — How to Transport a Non-Running CarChecked August 30, 2026
Under 49 U.S.C. 13901, a person may provide the service of arranging transportation by motor carrier for compensation only if registered with FMCSA to do so. InterCar Group is not registered, which is why nothing on this page is a quote or a booking.
49 U.S.C. 13901 — Requirements for registration (govinfo)Checked August 30, 2026
FMCSA identifies every regulated entity by a USDOT number, and the statute requires that identification on documents for business transactions involving brokers, freight forwarders and for-hire motor carriers. Ask any carrier for its number, and check it yourself, before you agree to anything.
Federal Register — Availability of Motus, FMCSA’s New Registration System, 91 FR 23144Checked August 30, 2026
Frequently asked questions
Does the government pay to ship my car on a PCS?
That depends on your orders, and the authority on it is your installation transportation or personal property office, not a carrier and not us. Ask them before you arrange anything commercially, because a move the government arranges and a move you arrange yourself are handled differently and the difference is not something you want to discover after pickup.
Can a car carrier deliver on base?
Sometimes, and never assume it. A loaded carrier is the length of a semi and needs a commercial vehicle pass, an open gate and a road it can turn on. Ask the carrier whether it delivers on post and ask the gate what a commercial driver needs. Where the answer is no, agree a meeting point off base before a driver is dispatched.
Can my spouse or a friend release the car if I have already reported?
Yes, provided the carrier is told in advance and has their name and phone number. Whoever meets the driver hands over one set of keys, walks the vehicle with them and signs the Bill of Lading. Ask the carrier in advance what written authorization it wants to see, and ask your representative to photograph every panel in daylight first.
When is PCS season, and does it move the price?
Most households move in the summer, and the corridors between large installations tighten while that is happening. Carriers price the direction as well as the route, so a lane that is busy in one direction can be quiet in the other in the same week. Notice is the lever you control: a route in front of carriers early has more trucks competing for it.
Do you arrange the transport?
No. InterCar Group holds no FMCSA operating authority, so we never quote a firm price, never take a deposit and never put a truck on your lane. We pass your route and vehicle details to licensed carriers. They quote you, contract with you and are paid by you, directly, and they confirm the price before pickup.
What should be in the vehicle at pickup?
One set of keys, and as little else as possible. A carrier is authorized and insured to move vehicles, not household goods, so anything left inside usually travels uninsured and adds weight to a trailer already near its axle limits. Take the toll transponder, the base decal paperwork, the garage remote and anything of value out before the driver arrives.
Last updated
Send the route between duty stations
Pickup and delivery ZIP codes, the vehicle, and the week it needs to be collected. We pass the details to licensed carriers, who quote you and contract with you directly. We book nothing and take no payment.
Estimates only. The local operator confirms the final price before dispatch.