Thinking of Help!! getting into auto tansport. what do i need.

[yanko10]

so i have an 08 f250 cc with 3.55 gears. i have an sct programmer and dpf delete with a bunch of racing tunes which obviously are not going to work for my plan. i plan on buying a 3-4 car trailer and bringing cars from from virginia and illinois to florida so it will be mostly highway. the heaviest cars will be no more than 4000 pounds. so my questions are (any help would be appreciated) 1. who makes a good towing program for this setup. 2. can my truck legally haul this weight ( about 20000 lbs including trailer. 4 what type of insurance will i need. and most important 5. what kind of mpgs will i get with a full and empty trailer.

[colo_dually]

The '08 F250 only had a published towing capacity of 15,200lbs (with 3.73's, I couldn't find any numbers for 3.55's did you do a gear swap?). That truck's not going to do the job you're looking at from the legal standpoint. Here's a couple of threads here on the forum about it.

Hot Shot Trucking ???

Who does auto transport?

You're going to be over-wieght in an F250, and hauling cars that kinda distance is going to take full DOT registration, Class A CDL, insurance, etc. The truck can pull that kinda weight without issue, but it takes its toll on the drive train and stopping will be an issue. If you're serious about getting into that line of work, you'll need a bigger rig and a considerable amount of research.

I had looked into this as an option for when I get out of the service, and couldn't make the numbers work.

[f350powerstroke]

Class A? I thought thats for anything over 36,000lbs?

[colo_dually]

Originally Posted by f350powerstroke

Class A? I thought thats for anything over 36,000lbs?

Negative, the U.S. Federal DOT standard requirements:

Class A: Any combination of vehicles that weighs 26,001 lbs or towing a trailer or vehicle in excess of 10,000 lbs. (Trailer weight of 10K applies to trailers of commercial use. Personal use of a GCW of less than 26K does not require a CDL).

Class B: Any single vehicle weighing more than 26,001 lbs.

Class C: Any single vehicle or combination of vehicles that is NOT Class A or Class B, but are designed to carry 16 or more passengers including the driver, or is placarded to carry hazardous materials.

Hauling anything commercially is going to require a CDL, and doing it with a trailer is going to require a Class A.

[StarDriver]

Originally Posted by yanko10

so i have an 08 f250 cc with 3.55 gears. i have an sct programmer and dpf delete with a bunch of racing tunes which obviously are not going to work for my plan. i plan on buying a 3-4 car trailer and bringing cars from from virginia and illinois to florida so it will be mostly highway. the heaviest cars will be no more than 4000 pounds. so my questions are (any help would be appreciated) 1. who makes a good towing program for this setup. 2. can my truck legally haul this weight ( about 20000 lbs including trailer. 4 what type of insurance will i need. and most important 5. what kind of mpgs will i get with a full and empty trailer.

1. That 250 ain't gonna cut it, legally or otherwise.
2. The average car today weighs 4000+, and you'll end up with more 7000 SUVs then you'll think.
3. You'll need $1,000,000 liabilty, + cargo + comp for your truck. Expect to spend close to $5000+ for insurance. Plus your going to have to get DOT Authority, plus you might as well get into a random drug testing program. Oh, and because of all the activist groups, you'll need an EOBR for your truck.
4. Don't forget food expenses, tires, hotel,(It's not legal to sleep in your truck unless you get the sleeper conversion for it.), fuel, ($200-300 per day if you run hard.)

Originally Posted by colo_dually

The '08 F250 only had a published towing capacity of 15,200lbs (with 3.73's, I couldn't find any numbers for 3.55's did you do a gear swap?). That truck's not going to do the job you're looking at from the legal standpoint. Here's a couple of threads here on the forum about it.

Hot Shot Trucking ???

Who does auto transport?

You're going to be over-wieght in an F250, and hauling cars that kinda distance is going to take full DOT registration, Class A CDL, insurance, etc. The truck can pull that kinda weight without issue, but it takes its toll on the drive train and stopping will be an issue. If you're serious about getting into that line of work, you'll need a bigger rig and a considerable amount of research.

I had looked into this as an option for when I get out of the service, and couldn't make the numbers work.

Originally Posted by colo_dually

Negative, the U.S. Federal DOT standard requirements:

Class A: Any combination of vehicles that weighs 26,001 lbs or towing a trailer or vehicle in excess of 10,000 lbs. (Trailer weight of 10K applies to trailers of commercial use. Personal use of a GCW of less than 26K does not require a CDL).

Class B: Any single vehicle weighing more than 26,001 lbs.

Class C: Any single vehicle or combination of vehicles that is NOT Class A or Class B, but are designed to carry 16 or more passengers including the driver, or is placarded to carry hazardous materials.

Hauling anything commercially is going to require a CDL, and doing it with a trailer is going to require a Class A.

What he said.

[Ryan Rønning]

Seems like everyone is trying to break in to hot shooting these days.

[StarDriver]

Originally Posted by Ryan Ronning

Seems like everyone is trying to break in to hot shooting these days.

Well, people think, well, I've got me a Super Duty, I'll just go buy me a trailer and make big $$$$$$$$. The problem is, every Tom, Dick and Gober is trying to do it, so unless you get a good contact or are in a good area to pick up at. Plus, they don't know all the legalities involved. In my business,for every 10 that start, 7 don't make it......

[kgm656]

Originally Posted by f350powerstroke

Class A? I thought thats for anything over 36,000lbs?

No, he's right. I was a Hot shot at one time from 99-07. Went through 3 duallys 02 F350, 05 & 06 Dodge 3500's. I quit because of the illegal runners out there and the 5-10 car carriers bidding penny's on the dollar to fill in a spot on their trailer. Yes you do need every thing just like a semi. Now I just haul Boats and RV's for private owners with my 04 F350 SRW CC and it's much better.

[kgm656]

Originally Posted by yanko10

so i have an 08 f250 cc with 3.55 gears. i have an sct programmer and dpf delete with a bunch of racing tunes which obviously are not going to work for my plan. i plan on buying a 3-4 car trailer and bringing cars from from virginia and illinois to florida so it will be mostly highway. the heaviest cars will be no more than 4000 pounds. so my questions are (any help would be appreciated) 1. who makes a good towing program for this setup. 2. can my truck legally haul this weight ( about 20000 lbs including trailer. 4 what type of insurance will i need. and most important 5. what kind of mpgs will i get with a full and empty trailer.

You need a F350/3500 at the very minimum but, even with that you are going to put a major strain on that truck. Believe me I used to be a Hot Shot for 8 years and went through 3 duallys F350 and 2 3500's. You also need everything just like a semi as far as licensing and insurance to include bit inspections. You also need to have leads, know people in the business to get business, you just can't say one day that's what I'm going to do because you are just wasting your time and money. Then you have to compete with the illegal runners and the 5-10 car haulers that bid penny's on the dollar to fill in a spot and brokers that gouge the transporters. If you need more info get ahold of me and I'll try to help.

[bigboytransporting]

i got an f350 single wheel with a 7.3 , put 19.5s on it and upgraded the rear suspension only pulls about 18k.. three car trailer 46ft

my other truck is a 2008 f450 with the spartan tuner, RBP intake and exhaust , slotted dimpled rotors all around, ams oil double filter bypass and a 24k fifth wheel,

those are my fords my others are Chevy's and Pete's