Choosing the Most Dependable Shipping Options for Collectible Cars

1. What is a Collectible Car?
2. Finding Collectible Cars
3. Transporting Your Investment
4. Enjoy Your New Pastime

After years of hard work, you have reached that point in life where you can afford to spoil yourself a little bit. For many adults, that self-care can manifest itself in the collectible cars arena. Far more than just for driving to the grocery store, collectible cars are an expression of yourself. They give a not-so-subtle glimpse into your taste and what makes you tick. These mechanical pieces of art are show pieces to be treasured and admired.

What is a Collectible Car?

Gold Eagle got its start producing innovative automotive chemicals and continues to be a resource for a wide variety of car maintenance products. According to the GoldEagle.com article “What Makes a Car Collectible?”, when it comes to collectible cars, there are a number of categories from which to choose:

• Classis Collectibles – Classic Car Club of America defines classic collectibles as vehicles manufactured between 1925 and 1948 that have been completely restored. Vehicles under 25 years old are often called “modern classics”.
• Antique Collectibles – While there are different philosophies on what classifies a car as an antique, the Antique Automobile Club of America defines antique cars as being over 25 years of age. However, some collectors define antique cars as being over 45 years old.
• Muscle Cars – Defined by their horsepower and performance characteristics, muscle cars are often associated with the 1960s and 1970s. However, most car enthusiasts consider the 1949 Oldsmobile Rocket 88 as the first muscle car.
• Rare Cars – Vehicles that are hard-to-find or nearly non-existent are classified as rare collectibles. They could range from 1931 Bugatti Royale Kellner Coupe to any of the various designs of the Batmobile used in TV and film.
• Body Style – A vehicle’s unique look that puts it in high demand can qualify it as a collectible. Examples would include the sleek body and rocket-like fins of the 1959 Cadillac Eldorado.

Finding Collectible Cars

Once you have made the decision to invest in collectible cars, your next step is to start searching for vehicles. For the most part, this shopping is not going to be as simple as going to your local auto dealer. But, with a little computer savvy you will be in business in short order.

Collecting cars is a popular past time. There are individual collectors, as well as auto museums. Thanks to the Internet, finding collectible cars is actually pretty easy. Car auction sites Hemmings.com, AutoTrader.com, CarsandBids.com, and duPontRegistry.com are four auto shopping websites that have classic car subcategories. ClassicCars.com, HotRodHotline.com, and LegendaryMotorcar.com are three Internet outlets that focus purely on classic cars.

Transporting Your Investment

Once you have found your dream car and negotiated its purchase, you still need to get the vehicle home. Chances are after laying out a considerable amount of money for your collectible car, you won’t want to risk fate by driving it across country. Instead, you will want to use a top-quality collector car transportation company that uses only licensed, bonded, and properly insured carriers.

There are several shipping options available for getting your new collectible:

• Open Air
• Enclosed Transport
• Door to Door
• Luxury, Exotic, and High End

For proper transport of your collectible car, you will want to select a hard sided enclosed carrier or a luxury/high end carrier.

Open air transportation for a collectible car would be foolish. While open air transportation in which your vehicle is loaded on a rack with other vehicles is fine for run of the mill cars, it is not the best option for classic, antique, and other rare vehicles. If you cannot afford enclosed transport of your collectible vehicle, you probably shouldn’t have bought it.

A hard sided, enclosed carrier will ensure that your collectible car is protected on all sides from travel and weather conditions.

Most collectible car owners enlist luxury/high end service when transporting with a quality transportation company. With luxury/high end service our precautions include:

• Loading and unloading via hydraulic lift gate.
• Air ride suspension for the prevention of “chucking.”
• Wall and floor-mounted brackets to ensure a secure fit.
• Strategic implementation of drip guards to prevent potential leaks.

When you contract a high quality transportation company, you have the piece of mind knowing that we provide insurance and satellite tracking with every quote. Since this car purchase is an investment, you will want to consider adding additional insurance. You can typically acquire a reasonable plan through your existing insurance agent or through a third-party carrier.

Enjoy Your New Pastime

Collecting cars is a fantastic pastime. Thanks to the Internet, no matter where you are located in the country you can find, vet, and purchase collectible vehicles from the comfort of your home.