Ship a car from Toronto to Florida

Every fall, a large part of the Greater Toronto Area's retirees and part-year residents head for Florida, and many of them would rather not spend three days on the drive. Shipping the car lets you fly into Tampa, Fort Myers, Fort Lauderdale or Orlando and have your own car, with Ontario plates and insurance, waiting for you or arriving within a few days.

The trip is roughly 1,150 to 1,600 miles (about 1,850 to 2,580 km), depending on where in the GTA the car starts and which coast it's going to. Jacksonville is the short end of that range and Miami-Dade the long end. Every shipment crosses the border, so it needs the paperwork described on our Canada to US car shipping page. On this lane that's routine.

Carriers out of Toronto generally take one of two corridors, and which one your car rides on depends mostly on where in Florida it's going.

• West through Windsor or Sarnia, then I-75. From the Ambassador Bridge or the Blue Water Bridge, I-75 runs almost door to door: Toledo, Cincinnati, Knoxville, Chattanooga, Atlanta, then into Florida past Gainesville and Ocala to Tampa, Sarasota and Naples, and across Alligator Alley to the Fort Lauderdale area. It's the natural route for the Gulf Coast.
• South through Niagara, then I-77 to I-95. From the Peace Bridge or Lewiston–Queenston, trucks drop through western New York and Pennsylvania and down I-77 through West Virginia and the Carolinas. They pick up I-95 into Jacksonville and run the Atlantic coast through Daytona, the Space Coast and Palm Beach to Fort Lauderdale and Miami.

This matters for timing more than price. A car bound for Naples rides a truck that's already making Gulf Coast stops. A car bound for Boca Raton on an I-75 truck may be one of the last ones off. Both corridors cross the Appalachians: Jellico Mountain on I-75 in Tennessee, and Fancy Gap on I-77 in Virginia, which is known for fog. An early-December storm in either place can cost a day.

Southbound demand builds after Canadian Thanksgiving in mid-October, peaks through November and runs into the week before Christmas. Northbound demand mirrors it from March through May, clustered around Easter. During those windows the cross-border trucks fill first, because only a portion of the car-hauling fleet runs international loads.

• For a November departure, talk to us in September or early October. Booking four to six weeks out gives you the widest choice of trucks.
• Give us a pickup window, even three or four days, rather than a single date. It's the cheapest way to get a better schedule.
• Off-season (June to August), the lane is quieter southbound, which suits people relocating to Florida or sending a second car down early.

Most cars on this lane ride on open carriers, and for a daily driver that's the sensible choice. The thing specific to this lane is road salt. By late November, Ontario, Michigan and Ohio are salting their highways, and an open carrier's lower deck catches road spray. A rinse after delivery takes care of it for most owners. You can ask for a top-deck spot; it isn't always available, but it's worth asking.

For a collector car, a low-slung sports car, or anything you'd rather keep completely out of the weather, enclosed transport is worth the premium. Fewer enclosed trucks cross the border, so book them earlier than you would an open carrier.

A loaded car hauler is around 75 feet long and can't get into an underground garage, a tight cul-de-sac or most downtown side streets. Door-to-door means the driver comes as close as the truck can safely and legally get. In practice:

• Downtown condos (CityPlace, Liberty Village, the Yonge and Eglinton towers): plan to bring the car down to a wide street or a nearby lot. Your building's loading dock rarely fits a full car carrier.
• The 905 suburbs (Oakville, Burlington, Mississauga, Vaughan, Markham, Richmond Hill, Pickering): pickups are usually straightforward, often right at the end of your street or in a plaza lot nearby.
• Farther out (Barrie, Peterborough, Kitchener-Waterloo, London, Niagara): all workable, and London and Niagara sit right on the carrier's path to the border.

Drivers try to stay off the 401 at rush hour, so morning pickups are common. Take your own photos before the driver arrives, and remove your 407 ETR transponder.

Florida delivery comes with its own logistics. Many snowbird communities are gated, and some HOAs don't allow car carriers past the gatehouse. In that case the driver meets you at the clubhouse lot or a nearby shopping center. Give the guard your delivery window ahead of time. Our city pages cover the local details for Naples, Miami and Orlando.

Afternoon thunderstorms are routine much of the year, and drivers prefer daylight for a proper delivery inspection, so expect morning or early-afternoon windows. Have someone there who can check the car against the pickup report before signing the bill of lading.

Your car enters the US as a nonresident's vehicle for temporary personal use: duty-free for up to one year, not for sale. Because you aren't crossing with it, the file includes CBP Form 3299, the DOT HS-7 and EPA 3520-1 declarations, your signed authorization letter, a passport copy, your Ontario vehicle permit and, if the car is financed, a lienholder letter. The carrier files its manifest with CBP before reaching Detroit, Port Huron or Buffalo.