riknchar

I've recently located, negotiated, and purchased a perfect 2002 SC430 from a Honda dealer in Yakima WA, and am now debating on how to get the car moved to my home in Omaha NE (1400 miles away)...

Have any of you shipped your SC430 cross-country successfully? If so, do you have a reliable shipping company you used to make the transfer? I'm learning that the Car Shipping industry is rife with scammers, and it's been challenging trying to sort through the "real" shippers from the scam artists. I've gotten on-line bids ranging from $700-1200. Any good or bad stories to share about specific shipping companies?

A second option (and one that I'm seriously considering based on the cost and unreliability of the car shippers) is to simply fly to Washington and enjoy a nice 3-day drive back to Omaha from the Pacific Northwest. I can catch a flight to Seattle for $103, and figure I'd spend around $200 on fuel for the trip.

If I go this route, though, I think I'd probably try to have some preventative maintenance done to the SC430 before I make the trip. The car only has 43K miles at this point, but has only been driven around 3K miles over the past 9 years. The Timing Belt is still original, I don't know when/if the fluids (brake, coolant, transmission, etc.) have been changed over the past 9 years, and the tires (while showing great remaining tread) are at least 9 years old (possible "dry-rot"?). I was going to have to deal with all these issues once the car made it to Omaha anyway, so this may not be a show-stopper if I can find a good shop to do this work on the car before I get there to drive it home.

Any advice on what things I really should have done to this car before embarking on a 1400 mile journey back to Omaha?

Thanks! Rick

Taysdad

Rick,

IMO - the timing belt (and all the other stuff that goes with it.....water pump, idlers, etc.) are what I would be sure to do prior to driving it back. I would also "check" the other fluids and address any obvious problems, but I would probably wait until I was back home to do them. YMMV.

Michael

mandyfig

I have heard and have read of people flawlessly getting their SC430’s shipped across the country safely. There are reputable car moving services out there. With some research within these forums, you will read of a successful story of a good move.

However like everything else, the cost will be a factor. Treat the cost of a safe move as an investment, a value add (but not really, more of a mitigation cost).

Good luck.

Bgw70

Something else to think about, this car has been stored in a climate that is not harsh and I would guess the gentleman stored it in a garage.
If it were me, I would ask the Honda dealer to look over the vehicle, especially the belts, hoses and fluids. If the belts are not showing any cracks or fraying, I would fly out and drive the car around for several hours. If no issues emerged, I would drive it back to Omaha.

The 2002 (63k miles) I purchased earlier this year still had all of the original parts except for tires, battery and speakers. It too was owned by an older gentleman (74). I drove the car three hours from Miami and everything was fine.

Here is another thought, one of the weakest items in the car are the speakers, the rubber rots around the speaker where the cone attaches to the frame. If the speakers are still in one piece and fully functional, I would be very confident the belts and hoses are fine.

BTW, Omaha is a GREAT place to live! I lived there (LaVista) for 15 yrs, stationed at Offutt. I flew on the big white jet with the blue stripe. I'm sure you have seen it flying the approach from the west.

riknchar

BGW: As it turns out, my son who lives in Seattle is planning to move back to Nebraska in 2 weeks, so I've worked it out for him to simply tow the Lexus back to Nebraska on a car transporter (all 4 wheels off the ground) behind his U-Haul. That way I can take my time on checking everything out on the SC before embarking on any trips.

Great advice on the belts/hoses/speakers... I'm hoping the ML Stereo system is intact and working well, but you never know at that age. The car was definitely garage kept, and the climate in WA is fairly moderate year round.

I called my local Lexus technician to get his advice on things I'll need to do when the car gets back to Omaha. He recommended changing the Timing Belt, and quoted me a price of $550 for that work (seemed much lower than I was expected, but a nice surprise). He said it was up to me whether or not I changed out the water pump at the same time--that would add about $225 to the job. I'll definitely get some nice new smooth tires (Michelins or Pure Contact, I think). I'll probably have the brake fluid flushed and change out the coolant just for peace of mind.

Bgw70

It sounds like you achieved the best shipping solution!

If you do not mind, be sure to change the water pump, tensioner, tensioner pulley and idler pulley.
In addition and since they must be removed, change the upper and lower hoses and the drive belts.

All of these parts are only an extra $100.

If he will allow you to purchase the parts, Denso makes a great OEM timing belt package.

actnup

if your set on shipping it. I recommend enclosed transport if you have the $$$$$. When I bought mine I flew to Pa. and drove it back to Ga approx. 900 miles took 2 days but I wasn't in a hurry, best trip I driven in a long time

mpezely

Rick, I'm surprised your Lexus technician would even consider not changing the water pump and other parts that Bgw70 mentioned when he changes your timing belt. I think I would be more worried about the water pump than the belt. Hope you take Bgw70's advice and do it the correct way.

Mike

Coleroad

More than likely if the water pump goes your going to need a new belt again. Even if not you have to pay or do all the labor again. Doesn't make sense to not do it while it is stripped down to that point. And like Bgw said chant the change the pulleys. The timing belt tensioner is a weak point. When the tensioner weakens it allows the belt to walk on the pulleys. This is true for your main drive belt too.

riknchar

Thanks for weighing in, mpezely and Coleroad! I actually ended up finding a great local Independent mechanic since I wrote the earlier post, and have already had the complete Timing Belt "Kit" done on my car (including water pump, idler pulleys, thermostat, serpentine belt, etc.).

After everything I've read, I am also somewhat shocked that the Lexus dealer would say they don't routinely change out the water pump when they do Timing Belt changes. Oh well, I'll stick with my great new Indie shop from now on!

Coleroad

I think dealerships get overrated sometimes. Good Indy shops will tend to try and save you money while making sure that your car is repaired correctly.