How to start a car hauling business in the US

A car hauler isn't “buy a trailer and go”. The order of steps here is as strict as the loading order: skip one and the next won't work. Below is the sequence owner-operators follow into this business.

Step 1. Company and paperwork

1. Company registration and an EIN – everything else starts here.

1. MC and DOT: your own authority through FMCSA. Without it you can only run under someone else's company.

1. BOC-3 and UCR – mandatory filings that get checked at the very first setup.

1. IRP and IFTA if your trips cross state lines, and for a car hauler they almost always do.

Fee amounts and deadlines change, so check them on the FMCSA site and with your state, not in articles – including this one.

Step 2. Insurance

In car hauling insurance costs more than for a dry van of the same weight: on top of liability you need cargo coverage for the value of the vehicles on the trailer. Nine sedans and nine new SUVs are different amounts, and the broker looks at your certificate before handing over a load. Enclosed requires even higher limits: collector and premium cars ride there.

Step 3. Truck and trailer

• A 2–3 car wedge: cheaper to get in, a lower revenue ceiling, easier to maneuver in town.
• A 5–7 car stinger: the workhorse of the market, a compromise between price and volume.
• A full-size 9-car hauler: maximum slots and maximum demands on sites and on the driver.
• Enclosed: a separate premium market, different clientele and different rates.

Hydraulics and cables are the main source of downtime for a new owner. Inspecting a trailer before buying costs less than the first breakdown on the road.

Your own authority or running under someone else's

Under someone else's company you start faster and cheaper: insurance and setups already exist and you take your share. In exchange you don't choose loads, you don't build your own history with brokers and you depend on other people's decisions. Your own authority costs more up front and demands discipline with paperwork, but it is what turns a truck into a business.

Licences, hours and the electronic log

• A class A CDL for a combination rated at 26,001 pounds or more – which is nearly any car hauler.
• A medical card and renewing it on time.
• Hours of service: the loading schedule is built around them, not the other way round.
• A working electronic logging device (ELD).

Step 4. Money at the start

Count more than the purchase

Brokers pay on their own terms, while fuel, insurance and parking are needed every week. A reserve for two months of operating isn't caution but the condition under which you can turn down a bad load.

Step 5. First loads

Broker setups, load boards, calls and the first reviews are the most labor-intensive part of the first month. You can run it yourself, or hand it to a dispatcher and focus on the road. How it looks with us is described on the How we work page: the conversation, the written contract, the free first week.