Car Shipping from Oregon to California: Updated Auto Transport Costs 2025

Vehicle year/make/model: of course it’s going to cost more to ship a vintage Cadillac that’s 18 ft long and weighs 5500 lbs, compared to a Fiat 500  with a curb weight of 2600 lbs. Anything that’s bigger and heavier will take up more space on a transport trailer (space that could be used by other vehicles instead of being monopolized by one big one), and will require more fuel to get it down the highway. 

Fuel costs: this one’s not too hard to figure out. Gas prices go up, gas prices go down, and regardless of how the prices look, we’re all at the mercy of the gas pump. If your transport driver is spending more money to top off the diesel tanks on a commercial truck, that’s an operating cost that is going to be taken up by consumers. The good news is that rates are set by a programmatic, semi-automated system, and when fuel prices go down again, rates will be adjusted accordingly. 

Calendar period: just by its nature, the auto shipping business is cyclical, with several times a year when there’s a distinct spike in the number of people who need our services. When business is on the uptick like that, the supply/demand equation is going to bend prices upward for a bit as fewer drivers are available to handle customer orders. 

Inflation: rising prices have been a stubborn problem around the world ever since the Covid lockdowns and supply chain issues of a few years ago, and it’s not helped by a shaky global trade climate. If a transport driver is paying more to keep a truck maintained and on the road, that’s a cost that has to be absorbed by consumers. 

Cost/mile: put these factors together (along with several more) and you have an idea of what drives cost/mile, which is always one of the most basic metrics of the logistics industry.

Considering how big California and Oregon both are, this is a pretty open-ended question, so let’s put a little more focus on it by discussing vehicle shipment from Portland to San Diego.

According to a mileage guide, that’s a distance of 1072 miles by highway.

The operations guidelines at SGT say that a delivery that needs to cover 200 miles should be completed in a single day.

At the other extreme, we’d expect a delivery that involves 2000 miles of driving to take 8 to 9 days to complete.

In light of that, we could reasonably expect a delivery of a bit over 1000 miles to take a 4 to 5 day turnaround.

Please be mindful, though, of the fact that delivery times and ETAs are always going to be an estimate.

There are plenty of things that can slow down a delivery once the driver is loaded up and on the highway; things like bad weather, road conditions, detours or heavy traffic can all disrupt a schedule. 

 If it does look like things are going to be delayed and your vehicle will get to its destination later than planned, the team at SGT will give you a heads-up and will keep you apprised of the updated ETA. 

Using the quote calculator, get an estimate for your shipping costs and confirm to book your order

Our driver arrives at your pickup point at your preferred time and date, loading up your vehicle and securing it for transport

At our estimated time and date, the driver will arrive at your destination where you can sign off and take possession of your car again

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Choose from several shipping options

Adaptable for different vehicles, different situations

Please be sure all four tires are inflated, the battery has a full charge and all  headlights and taillights work 

Please leave a copy of your car’s ignition key with the driver.

You can ship up to 100 lbs of personal items with the vehicle, provided they are secured in the trunk or cargo area. 

If your car’s not in running order, please let us know ahead of time. We can and do ship vehicles that can’t start, run, steer and stop on their own power, but it requires special procedures, extra equipment and extra time on the part of the transport driver.