Anyone ever shipped their vintage car to Europe to drive while on their vacation?

[gregleck]

Am tentatively planning to spend a month in the UK next summer and have toyed with the idea of shipping a car over and driving it while touring the country.

 

There are roll on - roll off (RO-RO) ships which take vehicles, as well as bureaucratic red tape to contend with, but nothing insurmountable.  

 

Anyone here ever done this?

 

 

 

 

[Gtjoey]

Yes….

If we are talking about by boat.

There are two main ports from the U.S.

New Jersey and Texas.

Depending on where you live.

You will need a gallon of fuel in the tank.

It will take 3 weeks on average to ship .

If you travel all of Europe you will need tax stickers pre paid to get through customs from country to country.

If it’s a Sports cars say a Lambo or Ferrari you can get hit with fines if your exhaust is too loud in some country’s like  Swiss or Belgium .

Its a pain in the ASK but well worth it for the experience.

If you hit a certain stage of life , shipping by plane is ALOT easier but a lot more expensive!

Safe travels!

Gtjoey1314

ps the size of the car makes a big difference as well for cargo shipping

double ps picture below….Germany Auto Baugh average speed !    2005 Ford Gt Around the world …Almost😁

[Walt G]

I never shipped a car there and back but did buy one there , had it mechanically sorted and drove it for a month or more - this was 30 years ago and it came back here by boat and landed in NJ as Joey mentions. The car was a 1947 Bentley Mk VI with body by James Young. I only toured in England and Wales with it not on the continent.

[Gtjoey]

Walt, Funny I bought this out of Whales

[Terry Bond]

If youd like to drive a new car there, VW offers a program called Tourist Delivery. Order a new Vw and have it delivered to the UK. You can enjoy it then ship it home.  Look for details online. Just Google VW Tourist Delivery Scheme. Assume that other countries are involved,perhaps other car makers. 

Terry

[bryankazmer]

2 hours ago, Terry Bond said:

If youd like to drive a new car there, VW offers a program called Tourist Delivery. Order a new Vw and have it delivered to the UK. You can enjoy it then ship it home.  Look for details online. Just Google VW Tourist Delivery Scheme. Assume that other countries are involved,perhaps other car makers. 

Terry

Other OEM’s offer similar. The key is that you are buying a US spec car, not a car you could buy at any European dealer

 

I’m sure many here have tales from the “grey market” days of bringing in Eurospec cars, but that has largely gone away

[Terry Bond]

Right. When we did it years ago the new US spec VW we bought was delivered to a VW dealer in Aberdeen Scotland where it was serviced and delivered to us. Drove it around and later shipped it back to the US. There are special shippers affiliated with those programs who handle everything.  

 

Of course were talking about new cars. The OP seems to want to ship something older. I think it might be a bit more difficult.  I know there are folks who shop cars over for the London to Brighton Run but they dont drive them around while on vacation.

Terry

[edinmass]

Having done it three times, be very well aware of the down sides. There are many. Let’s just say don’t ship a car that is important to you. They treat them as routine packages………..I was very, very unimpressed. In the customs lock up they kept driving forklifts by the car at 15 mph three feet away. They absolutely didn’t care about safety or damage. And I shipped a Duesenberg. When I told the boss the value of the car they almost passed out and let me move it. Long story short……….consider your options, but none of them are good. PM me if you want more advice. And there is NO insurance coverage on a ship or plane. 

Edited September 16 by edinmass (see edit history)

[Lee H]

43 minutes ago, edinmass said:

And there is NO insurance coverage on a ship or plane. 

That would be disconcerting.

[TAKerry]

About 10 years ago a fellow on a Trans Am forum bought a low mile original Tenth Anniversary Trans Am. He lived in Australia and had it shipped there by boat. During the journey the ship encountered rough seas in a storm. He eventually ended up with pictures of the hold. There were a dozen or more cars, most some sort of antique/muscle car and all of them were topsy turvy. They were just strapped down and I suppose when one let loose they all started going. His car was totaled. He did get an insurance settlement to buy a new one. I wouldnt ship anything that I cared about.

[gregleck]

On 9/16/2024 at 8:09 PM, TAKerry said:

 I wouldn't ship anything that I cared about.

Damn.  It is an older vehicle, exempt from a lot of the fees in UK as long as I bring it back.  I put 5,000 miles a year on it, 20,000 since I've owned it.  Love driving it, and it makes friends wherever it goes.

 

Will have to look at this more closely, but I would love to drive along the B and C roads, village to village in England for a month.

    

[Gary_Ash]

You could put the car in a container and ship it that way.  A friend shipped his old Bugatti in a container to Ireland for a trip.  

 

I'm not sure about driving it on the C roads, though!

The grandchildren checking out a narrow English road.

[edinmass]

Cargo containers with cars in them have NO insurance coverage while on the ocean. You can not dictate where on the boat the container goes. When a big storm approaches and they have to start dumping boxes overboard, it may be hard to get you car if it’s parked by the Titanic on the floor of the Atlantic. Yes, container dumping can and does happen. You have to purchase special insurance if you want coverage on the sea. Only way to insure your car is safe is to fly it…….and that costs just a little bit more than a container. Been there, done that.

[Terry Bond]

I'll add also that most Americsn land-yachts are unsuitable on many of the back toads in the UK. When we lived on Scotland our VW was fine but I knew many Yanks who brought their American cars over and eventually planted them into stone walls, including at least one Corvette and a couple of pick up trucks.  

 

Look into renting a "Classic" car there and doing it that way. Vintage Jags, MGs and other more suitable cars might be available at much less than the cost of shipping 

Terry 

[hidden_hunter]

17 hours ago, Gary_Ash said:

The grandchildren checking out a narrow English road.

That's practically a highway in some parts of the UK, we got "upgraded" to a Volvo SUV on our last trip and there were roads where the only pavement was between the wheels... 

[edinmass]

15 hours ago, Terry Bond said:

I'll add also that most Americsn land-yachts are unsuitable on many of the back toads in the UK. When we lived on Scotland our VW was fine but I knew many Yanks who brought their American cars over and eventually planted them into stone walls, including at least one Corvette and a couple of pick up trucks.  

 

Look into renting a "Classic" car there and doing it that way. Vintage Jags, MGs and other more suitable cars might be available at much less than the cost of shipping 

Terry 

 

Driving a short wheelbase Model J we had several turns in the old villages that were impossible to maneuver through.........we kept getting lost because we couldn't follow the tour directions...........but it was still a fun time.  Photo below is a turn we took to try and do a drive around.......ended up on a one way dirt road for seven miles. Notice no buildings or power lines........or cell service. We accidently crossed from England into Whales............road was terrible. Lots of brush hanging into the road.......and the car? A Pebble Beach Best of Show winner. Oops! 

 

 

 

 

Edited yesterday at 02:36 PM by edinmass (see edit history)

[CChinn]

44 minutes ago, edinmass said:

 

Driving a short wheelbase Model J we had several turns in the old villages that were impossible to maneuver through.........we kept getting lost because we couldn't follow the tour directions...........buy it was still a fun time.  Photo below is a turn we took to try and do a drive around.......ended up on a one way dirt road for seven miles. Notice no buildings or power lines........or cell service. We accidently crossed from England into Whales............road was terrible. Lots of brush hanging into the road.......and the car? A Pebble Beach Best of Show winner. Oops! 

 

 

 

Now this is would be a “Great Day for a Car Ride in the Country” post as well. Beautiful country side and car (of course)!  Thanks for sharing 

Edited yesterday at 01:01 PM by CChinn (see edit history)

[Frank DuVal]

The time we were driving in England was our honeymoon in a rented small car (at least it had four wheels...). We were last in a 4 car line heading up a hill on a road similar to the grandchildren picture, outside of Bath (don't go into Bath in a large car!) except hedges taller than the car on both sides, almost touching the small car. As we got to the top of the hill the hedges were gone so we could see. At that point a car turned onto the road heading downhill. I guess the rules are people going downhill are not to back up the hill. Everyone stated backing down the hill, so I had to also, all the way to a driveway or such (might have been another road 😁) where I could wait for everyone else to get out of the way of the car coming downhill. Then we all went back up the hill again.👍

 

Please see Oxford Blues!

 

 

[31 LaSalle]

22 hours ago, gregleck said:

Damn.  It is an older vehicle, exempt from a lot of the fees in UK as long as I bring it back.  I put 5,000 miles a year on it, 20,000 since I've owned it.  Love driving it, and it makes friends wherever it goes.

 

Will have to look at this more closely, but I would love to drive along the B and C roads, village to village in England for a month.

    

you will have to be careful of the potholes in the uk roads

love the car

[Richard36233]

I have shipped a number of veteran cars to Australia from the US, and a classic car and motorcycle from the UK. All were in containers and all were insured for the trip by the company arranging the shipping. All were undamaged ,so I never had to claim to test it.

[playswithbrass]

Be aware also that they are not just narrow roads. There could be any kind of wall hidden in that hedge. You are also driving on the wrong side of the road. I would not risk that rather beautiful car. It is quite the eye candy and probably will be parked in the open in your small villages overnight. Local picturesque pubs do not have underground or monitored parking. There are good historical reasons why the British had Morris Minors, the original Mini and baby Austin’s.