Ship a car from Michigan to Florida

Few lanes are as simple on a map as this one. I-75 starts at Sault Ste. Marie in the Upper Peninsula, runs through Saginaw, Flint and Detroit, and doesn't end until it reaches the Miami area. That straight line is why Michigan has such a deep connection to Florida's Gulf Coast. Sarasota, Fort Myers, Naples and the Tampa Bay suburbs are full of Michigan plates every winter.

Distances run about 1,100 to 1,550 miles. Metro Detroit to Tampa is at the short end; Traverse City or the U.P. to Naples or Miami at the long end. Michigan also ships a lot of full-size trucks and SUVs, which take more room on a carrier. Our SUV and pickup truck shipping page explains how that changes the quote.

From Metro Detroit, the truck takes I-75 south through Toledo, Dayton and Cincinnati, crosses Kentucky and Tennessee, and comes down through Atlanta, Macon and Valdosta into Florida. Inside Florida, I-75 runs past Ocala and Tampa and down the Gulf Coast, so a car going to Sarasota or Naples rarely needs a detour. Cars from west Michigan usually join the corridor through Indiana or Ohio by way of US-131, I-69 or I-94, depending on the carrier's other pickups.

The usual delay points are the Brent Spence Bridge between Cincinnati and Covington, Atlanta's Downtown Connector, and the mountain grades in Tennessee when the weather turns. Atlantic coast deliveries (Palm Beach, Fort Lauderdale) are still easy to arrange; they just come later in the truck's run, after the Gulf Coast stops.

Michiganders tend to leave after leaf season and before the first real snow. Southbound bookings build through October, peak in November and taper off by mid-December. The return is spread across April and early May, as people wait for the weather to settle up north.

• Book three to four weeks ahead for a November pickup, and earlier if the car is a full-size truck. Fewer carriers have space for one on a given run.
• Spring frost laws limit truck weights on many Michigan county roads for several weeks after the thaw. If your return delivery is a rural address up north, expect to meet the driver on a state highway.

Open transport is the standard here, and it suits the work trucks and family SUVs that make up so much of this lane. Size matters more than usual, though. A lifted pickup or a full-size SUV with a roof rack may not fit under the upper deck, or may only fit in certain positions, so mention any modifications up front.

Metro Detroit also has a deep classic-car culture, and plenty of those cars winter in Florida. A restored muscle car or a low-mileage collectible deserves an enclosed truck. Enclosed space on this lane books up fastest in late October.

• Oakland County (Troy, Rochester Hills, Bloomfield Hills, West Bloomfield, Novi): subdivision streets often have tight cul-de-sacs, so a meeting point on a main mile road is common.
• Macomb County and Downriver (Sterling Heights, Shelby Township, Wyandotte, Trenton): mostly easy curbside pickups close to I-75 and I-94.
• The Grosse Pointes have narrow, tree-heavy streets. Meet the truck on Mack Avenue or another main road.
• Ann Arbor and Lansing: near campus, streets and parking are tight, but the suburbs and townships are straightforward.
• Grand Rapids (East Grand Rapids, Ada, Rockford, Grandville): west Michigan's lake-effect snow belt can push pickups back in December, so leave some flexibility.
• Northern Michigan and the U.P. (Traverse City, Petoskey, Marquette): fully workable with a wider pickup window. High winds can hold trucks at the Mackinac Bridge.

This lane's deliveries concentrate on the Gulf Coast. In Sarasota, many are to Lakewood Ranch or to the barrier keys, where bridges and island streets need some planning. Tampa Bay deliveries spread across Pasco, Pinellas and Hillsborough counties. In Naples, gated golf communities often have rules about trucks. Fort Myers, Cape Coral and Bonita Springs are routine stops in between. If your community has a gatehouse, ask about truck access before pickup day, so the driver isn't turned away in Florida.