If you are in the initial stages of establishing your car-hauling business, you may have some trouble choosing trailers. Indeed, how can you choose the best option for completing a specific order successfully? To prepare this guide, we have analyzed dozens of recommendations left by real drivers on Quora and collected the best practices of businesses with which we interact directly. So, let's figure out right now – what is the best size trailer for car hauling?
Types of Trailers You Should Consider
There are several standard types of trailers that can be used by drivers to ship cars. All of them are open as this is traditional equipment for transporting vehicles. So, let’s take a closer look at each of them. If, due to the specifics of your business, you require an enclosed trailer, you can proceed to read the next paragraph.
Flatbed Hauler
This type of trailer is quite often used in car hauling – it looks like an open 48-foot platform without sides. Thanks to the compactness and, at the same time, the spaciousness of this trailer to move car, you can easily safely secure up to four vehicles there. If you need a larger load capacity, you have to consider other types of trailers.
Extendable Flatbed Hauler
In many ways, they look like ordinary flatbed car haulers but are longer. In particular, you can choose such trailers for transporting large vehicles, up to 80 feet in length (usually, such trailers can accommodate up to 3-4 units).
Removable Gooseneck Hauler
Such haulers are often referred to by their acronym, RGN. They are small in size but can carry really heavy loads, weighing up to 42,000 pounds.
Their feature is the presence of a kind of ramp, which simplifies the process of loading cars into a trailer. Thus, they can be an excellent choice for transporting vehicles for public use, such as buses, as well as all kinds of industrial and agricultural vehicles.
Multi-Car Haulers
Finally, you can opt for multi-car haulers, which are open and have two tiers. Depending on the dimensions of a particular model of a trailer for transporting cars, they can accommodate up to 3-4 cars on one tier, that is, in total, up to 6-8 cars per entire trailer. However, you will also have to take into account the carrying capacity of your truck since not all of them are capable of safely transporting such heavy loads.
How to Make the Right Trailer Choice
To help you make an informed decision, we have sorted out the types of trailers, and now, it's time to move on to the practical recommendations that experts in the car hauling industry shared with us.
In particular, let's talk about which trailer is better – open or closed? Indeed, above we considered standard types of open trailers only. To reliably transport passenger cars, a trailer with an interior width of 7-8 feet and an interior dimension of 12-18 feet will be sufficient.
However, such trailers are not suitable for transporting SUVs, pickups, and other tall vehicles – for these needs, you may need an enclosed trailer, that is, a box trailer or car transporter. They have the same dimensions and other characteristics as the open ones, with the exception of the presence of a roof and walls. Also, this type of trailer is necessary for transporting luxury supercars, if you are considering such options.
In this regard, you will additionally need to determine the length, width, and height of the car, as well as the parameters of the trailer door. Since most trailers do not exceed 7 feet in height, you will have to make sure that the vehicles you intend to transport can fit through the door. On the other hand, open cargo trailers weigh less than closed ones, making them easier to maneuver. They also allow you to carry heavier payloads.
You may also consider using a tow dolly to haul sedans and other small vehicles. The priority parameter to choose will be the carrying capacity of your truck since it often does not exceed 4,000 pounds. And yes, remember that when towing, your truck and dolly should have as many or more tires as the vehicle being towed. Otherwise, driving with such a dolly will be unsafe (especially when maneuvering on the road).
Finally, if you're looking for a one-stop solution, i.e., the best car hauler trailer, that will help you fill the vast majority of your car hauling orders, check 7' x 16' trailers (for especially heavy vehicles, it makes sense to choose from 2-axle models with trailer brakes). Ultimately, the choice of a trailer based on open/closed type as well as its dimensions depends on the type of cargo that you are going to transport (for example, when transporting luxury cars over long distances, you should not choose open trailers as they may be damaged due to changing weather conditions).
Have You Decided on the Trailer? It's Time to Start Earning Money!
Now, knowing how to choose the right trailer to haul cars in terms of its dimensions and other physical parameters, you can proceed to the next stage – considering the specifics of the car hauling business as a whole. You will receive at your disposal a kind of roadmap that will help you gain a foothold in this business niche and begin to earn a stable income.
