Auto Shipping Glossary: The Winch
If you’ve ever shipped a non-running vehicle you likely know what a winch is, but if not you should read up a bit on it. A car transport winch is a special tool that’s attached to an auto transport truck. It allows drivers to manually winch a car onto the back of their truck then position it into place themselves.
Winches don’t come standard on auto shipping trucks; rather, they’re an aftermarket addition that can run anywhere from $250-$500 or more depending on the strength of the winch. Most standard winches can winch up to 11,000 pounds at a time – that’s generally plenty of strength for even the heaviest of pickup trucks.
However, they’re really a pain to operate, and because of the fact they have to be purchased separately not all shippers have them.
This generally means that those that do have a winch charge more to ship non-running vehicles. Vehicles that operate and drive just fine can easily be driven onto the back of an auto transport truck, positioned into place quickly and easily, and then secured just as easily.
With a winch, all that driving turns to manual labor, as more often than not the winch has a special handle that the driver has to crank manually.
The winch helps a ton with weight distribution and allows a vehicle to be winched by a relatively strong human being, but it’s still a lot of work, and loading a non-running vehicle can often take a half-hour or more depending on the strength of the driver and the condition of the winch.
The work involved with loading and unloading a non-running vehicle deter some shippers from buying a winch or using them, so finding a shipper with one can take more time if you’re shipping a non-running vehicle. Keep this in mind when searching around for auto transport quotes as well, and you can learn more auto shipping terms here.
If you are interested in getting a quote to transport your vehicle, you can fill out our free online auto transport quote request form to get a free quote right away. We work with only top-rated carriers who are fully licensed and insured, so you’re in good hands from booking to delivery.
You can also call our toll-free telephone number to speak to one of our helpful representatives. They can answer questions, give you a free quote, help you book your shipment, and more. Just call us any time at 800-930-7417 to get started.
Since 2007 Dave has written all the content and blogs for American Auto Shipping and during this time added the duties of customer support and transport logistics.
He currently resides in Washington with his three kids and their mom and cat. A fan of Marvel movies and good stories, when not shipping cars Dave can be found working on his novel, enjoying a good book or playing some tournament HALO.
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