shipment question concerning car door.

[qualified-merc]

I need to purchase and replace the right rear door due to existing damage. most of the on-line body parts sellers are willing to palletize a door for shipment; most are not willing to build a custom crate for a door for shipment.

My question is what might be the risk for possible damage for a palletized door traveling 1500++ miles via a shipping carrier??

[t walgamuth]

It could happen but that is what insurance is for.

[Sugar Bear]

Unless the door is uber rare I'd use normal shipping procedures, if it gets minor damage fix it, if major damage get another one. If it is essentially not replaceable I'd road trip to get it if not crazy far or pay someone to have it palletized and then shipped.

[INSIDIOUS]

Costs money to protect from the shipping gorillas. Reality of life

[Diesel911]

Originally Posted by qualified-merc

I need to purchase and replace the right rear door due to existing damage. most of the on-line body parts sellers are willing to palletize a door for shipment; most are not willing to build a custom crate for a door for shipment.

My question is what might be the risk for possible damage for a palletized door traveling 1500++ miles via a shipping carrier??

Mine was a W123 left rear door.

I bought a door from way up in Northern CA. The guy shipped it by Bus. He put some 1/4-inch plywood over the window area taped down (I would have been better if the window had been rolled down). The rest he covered with 3 layers of sturdy cardboard with a lot of tape.

Like that it could be manhandled enough to get it on a hand truck. When it arrived at the local bus station, I brought my own hand truck and put it on that, and I don't recall any trouble putting it in my van.

I don't know if insurance can be had for something like that.

Stuff on a pallet. I had a lot of industrial jobs and I have seen a lot of damage done by forklifts so even with stuff on a pallet is not entirely safe.

The thing about bus shipping is there is limited space on busses for cargo and baggage usually under the bottom of the bus. So, there is not likely to be as much larger items shipped along with it to damage it.

What is likely to be the problem with that is that the seller will not want to pay for an employee to take the wrapped door to the bus station for shipping.

If your old door is in sufficient shape to do it you could build your own crate and send the crate to the seller. Make one side of the crate so it has screws. Perhaps the seller has some banding equipment and could wrap with that also.

I don't know what size and weight shipping companies like UPS are willing to pick up and deliver.

[Clemson88]

You can find a Pic and Pull or LKQ lot and removed the door yourself. You might think it's not worth the trouble or the wait but there's nothing like picking exactly what you want.

Most of those lots have people who will pull the door for you at a price. Some work for the lot and some are independents who have signs with their numbers listed.

If you have one shipped and it's lost to damage, insurance will pay for the door but you will only break even and will still be searching for a door.