Posts: 195
Threads: 32
Joined: Jan 2006
Just a bit of friendly advise to anyone who might now, or in the future, be shipping a car to Hawaii. Try to avoid using Matson if you can. I know that in some cases (such as my own) they seemed like the most convenient, and inexpensive option, but I am regreting taking that option now. I dropped my van off at Matsons terminal at the port in Seattle the last week of January. Here it is March 7th and they still can't tell me when I will be able to pick up my van! All they will tell me is that it's in transit to Hilo, and the vessel might arrive in Hilo on the 8th, but they can't say when I will actually be able to pick it up. Apparently you have to pay for their "premium service" to get that kind of information.
Sorry, I just had to blow off a little steam.
Aloha,
Mark
Posts: 773
Threads: 83
Joined: Dec 2005
WOW not good. We shipped two cars on 3/3 using an East coast local company. (Autolog)
They ship from NJ to Cal then shipped to Honolulu then barge to Hilo. They confirmed a window of 4/3-4/17. I will let yous guys know how we make out.
If you think health care is expensive now, wait until you see what it cost when it’s free...now here come the taxes.....
Posts: 12
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Joined: Feb 2006
Yikes! Thank you for that information Mark. We had planned on using Matson as we live in Washington and thought it would be convienient. I will definitely re-think that idea. We have also thought about driving down to California, going to Disneyland and dropping the van off at a port there then flying out of California. Does anyone have a recommendation of who to ship with from California? Hope you get your vehicle soon!
Lori
Posts: 208
Threads: 6
Joined: Oct 2004
I haven't done this yet, but the shipper that appears the best to Hilo is Pasha.
http://www.pashagroup.com/
It seems that with a little planning, you could have your vehicle in just a few weeks. Two other very strong points are the vehicles are shipped completely enclosed (instead of being on deck, exposed to the sea elements) and they ship directly to Hilo – no barging over from Oahu.
Good Luck!
David D
Posts: 645
Threads: 19
Joined: Jul 2003
jim, it sounds like they screwed up , maybe forgot to load it?? unless something has dramatically changed it was taking around two weeks or less and they could almost give you an exact date. my friend recently shipped over a bulldozer from seattle and it got here in less than two weeks. good luck!
Posts: 179
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I had good luck with Pasha from San Diego and Matson from Seatle. Pasha was faster by far. A little damage by Matson but they got right on the claim and paid it. Over all, my vote would have to go to Pasha.
Posts: 195
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Joined: Jan 2006
I've been told that Horizon Lines is a good one to use from the West coast, fast, and they tell you when your vehicle will arrive. That is the other one I was considering, and I believe that they were only slightly more expensive than Matson.
Aloha,
Mark
Posts: 2,014
Threads: 46
Joined: Jun 2003
We have shipped 2 vehicles, 1 pu in 2004, 1 suv in 2005. Both times used Horizon, through their
www.shipmyvehicle.com broker (DAS). We shipped from Atlanta, but only difference vs west coast is the overland portion. Cost between Matson vs Horizon was not very much. In both cases, the vehicle arrived in Hilo in expected timeframe. No damage, quite pleased with service.
David
Ninole Resident
Ninole Resident
Posts: 282
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Joined: Feb 2006
JM my husband had to wait almost 7 weeks for his truck and after several phone calls found out it was in HNL and had been there for almost a month! Apparently SOMEone had to rip out his wires to turn off the alarm (which had already been deactivated) and when the truck finally got here, they told him he would need to call a wrecker to move it! Sometimes it helps to have a temper because that is what it took to get them to pay for the wrecker to the Toyota dealership and to pay for what they broke. The guy on the phone tried to weesel out of it saying the truck had mechanical problems when it was delivered and that they were not responsible. Having rode all the way from Bush Intercontinental in Houston (he picked me up after work and we hit the road) I can attest that it ran just fine all the way to Long Beach and the alarm never made a peep. Call the person you dropped it off to (I think you have a contact person for the whole way, it's on your paperwork) and find out exactly where your car is, bug 'em untill they do their job. Nine months later my truck got here in a little over a week. No rhyme or reason to explain how they operate. Good luck and keep calling them untill you get satisfaction. pj
Posts: 70
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Joined: Oct 2005
We drove to San Diego from Florida and dropped off the car to PASHA.They were very efficient and were able to tell me the exact date my car would be in Hilo.They were slightly cheaper than Matson when we came over last October.
