I Was One Of The Lucky Ones
Written: Nov 06 '06
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Arrived 6 days earlier.
Friendly sales people.
Flawless online tracking.
No damage whatsoever to car.
Cons: Thankfully, none....for me.
The Bottom Line: I was lucky. Exceptional positive experience, no damage whatsoever, and arrived early !! However, with all the negativity in the industry overrall, I was still nervous.
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| cintoman's Full Review: Dependable Auto Shippers |
This is my very first epinion review, and the reason I am writing this is because I feel as though I should provide you with my experience in shipping a vehicle using DAS (Dependable Auto Shippers).
Like many reviewers, I read through hundreds of reviews on the different shipping companies available, and the good, bad, ugly, and utter nightmares that people have experienced in shipping their vehicles. After digesting all of this, I decided to go with DAS for the same exact reasons most people choose DAS: They've been around since 1954, they're eBay's "only preferred carrier, transporting vehicles for thousands of satisfied Buyers each year!" (their words), and they offer cool online tracking of your car.
And, like most people who chose DAS, I too justified my decision to go with them because of the same statements everyone else has running in their heads when thinking about choosing DAS: "They've been around for over 50 years....how bad can they be?" and "They're eBay's preferred shipper, so they have to be doing something right."
But then, like most savvy internet users, you come across epinions, and start reading all the horror stories. Uh oh...what's going on here? They can't be THAT bad....c'mon, 50 years.....eBay's preferred....probably just someone's bad luck. And then you find the great reviews. So now what? Surely you'd have many more opinions from people who had horrible service because the ones that have great service usually don't write about them. Lastly, you realize that this is true of most auto shippers, unless you decide to go with the premium white-glove treatment. But those 2 statements above still run around in your head, and you decide, like me to go with DAS.
Well, I pretty much had the assumption that shipping a car would be a roll of the dice...you're either lucky or you're dreadfully unlucky.
Fortunately, I was one of the lucky ones, and this is why I'm writing this epinion.
A little background: I live in Rhode Island, and have been searching for a fairly specific vehicle. I was looking for a 2005 Mercedes-Benz C230 Kompressor in dark blue with very specific options. In RI, the blue is very rare, with greys, silvers, blacks, whites, and golds the more common colors. Blue is more common in California. I finally found one at a M-B dealership in Belmont, CA, and chose DAS to ship my vehicle, choosing to go terminal-to-terminal which would save me $306.00 versus door-to-door. My salesman gladly dropped the car off at the DAS Terminal in San Lorenzo, CA on Friday 10/13/06, where they performed a grueling inspection. So much so, that my salesman called me and mentioned that they went over e-v-e-r-y single nick/ding/scratch possible. I was buying a Certified Pre-Owned Mercedes, which already goes thru a grueling inspection process, and from the pics he had sent me, the car looked flawless. Now this is my first "new to me" vehicle in over 10 1/2 years, and was by far the most expensive purchase I have ever made with the exception of my home. So you can imagine my nervousness in transporting my new baby over 2,600 miles away.
I originally paid $799.00 to ship the car. They had a special "top-loading" deal for only $50.00 (regularly $150.00), so I chose to top load my car. This price also included the full coverage insurance versus their meager standard insurance which pays you $250.00 (minus their $100.00) deductible, for any damage to the car. Total was $849.00. However, at one point I wanted to get the phone number for my local terminal, and the only way to do so was to put in all your shipping info (make, year, model, to, from, etc). After doing this, it came back with a price of $739.00. Hey....so I called my rep Scott, and after confirming that I put in all the same info, he checked with his Manager, and they determined that there was a special going on beginning in November, which included a lower shipping price. Being still October, apparently the website already made the change. So without much hassle, they dropped my price to $739.00 + $50.00, for a total of $789.00.
Drop-Off date was 10/13/06 at San Lorenzo, CA
ETA was for 10/31/06 at Woburn, MA
I was eager to check out the online tracking. It was at "To Be Dropped Off" for a few days, until Sunday 10/15/06 it changed to "At Origin Terminal". WOOO HOO !! The following day it switched to "To Be Loaded." And then on Tuesday 10/17/06, it was on its way, changing to "In Transit." The tracking worked flawlessly, changing, at some times, as often as 1/2 hour. It actually made me realize the driver was driving overnight, resting during the day. It also made me realize how fast he drove. By the end of the 17th, he was in Fresno, CA. Then nothing until 10pm on 10/18: Kingman, AZ. By 10/20, he was already in Tennessee, basically following I-40 all the way East. On the 21st, he arrived at the major DAS terminal in Linden, NJ, where it remained all of the weekend as well as Monday 10/23. On Monday night, it was on its way to Woburn, MA, and arrived there around 1:00pm on Tuesday 10/24, a full 6 days earlier than the ETA given to me !!!
On my 60+ mile drive to Woburn from RI, I was dreading seeing the damage that was certainly bestowed upon my new baby. But upon arriving and seeing the car, it was as flawless as when it was first dropped off in CA. There was absolutely no damage whatsoever. In fact, when doing the walk-thru inspection, there were countless instances where certain areas were marked on the car diagrams on the bill of lading, that I could barely even notice on my car. And I'm one of those people who notice every minor thing. Scrapes/scratches that were marked were SO minor, fully 95% of the population would never notice it. My only gripe was that the destination terminal should have done a quick car wash. It was just a little dirtly, mostly tiny dust spots on the hood/roof/trunk. But that's really nitpicking.
So I definitely consider myself a lucky one. It seems these reviews are either 1 star or 5 stars. I have to give DAS 5 stars all the way and a resounding 2 thumbs up.
The best way to sum this up would be to consider my above experience with them. I would definitely use DAS again if I HAD to ship a car, but would still be biting my nails and crossing my fingers, hoping it arrives fine. Unfortunately, because of how negative this industry has been portrayed, and rightfully so, I do have to say that I don't know if I would ever buy a car so far from me that I would have to have it shipped. Instead, I would look closer to home, and instead drive it myself a couple hundred miles. Basically, during the entire transport, I was frequently stressed and pretty much a nervous case until I finally saw my car completely undamaged. No one should have to go thru this nervousness and stress. I only hope the industry betters itself to a point where shipping a car is a stress-free as having a TV delivered to your house from a local retailer.
Recommended:
Yes
Punctuality: Showed up early
Ease of Filing Claim: N/A
Lost Goods: No
Amount Paid (US$): 789.00
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Epinions.com ID:
cintoman
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Reviews written: 1
Trusted by: 0 members
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