Vehicle Transport Between Dealerships: How to Optimise Your Logistics Flows

A multi-site dealer or automotive group moves dozens, sometimes hundreds, of vehicles per month between its various showrooms, reconditioning centres, auction depots and end customers. These flows represent a significant cost centre — often poorly managed and rarely optimised. Here is how the most efficient professionals approach the subject.

The Problem of Unplanned Flows

Most dealerships manage their transport logistics reactively: a vehicle arrives, someone urgently searches for a carrier, and they pay the spot rate. This is the most expensive way to operate.

The reasons it persists:

• No one is clearly responsible for transport logistics within the team
• Flows are perceived as unpredictable (variable stock, purchase negotiation timelines)
• Tools to centralise and plan are lacking

In practice, even the most chaotic flows have exploitable regularities. A group buying 30 vehicles a month in Germany inevitably has recurring rotations — mapping them enables volume rate negotiations. Check updated pricing on our most popular corridors: Germany → France, Belgium → France and Netherlands → France.

The Four Main Flows to Distinguish

1. Supply flows — purchasing used vehicles abroad (Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands) or locally (BCA, Autorola, Alcopa auctions). These flows are often high-volume but batch-based. They lend themselves well to pre-negotiated volume contracts.

2. Inter-site flows — stock rebalancing between showrooms within the same group or network. One site over-stocked on SUVs, another short on saloons: inter-site transport avoids unnecessary purchases and accelerates inventory turns. These flows are often underestimated in volume.

3. Flows to reconditioning centres — used vehicles purchased that need to go through a prep centre before being listed for sale. These flows are predictable and recurring: this is where framework agreements with a dedicated carrier make the most sense.

4. Customer delivery flows — delivering a sold vehicle to the end customer, sometimes in a distant department or region. These flows are inherently difficult to consolidate, but can be grouped geographically to reduce costs.

How to Cut Costs by 20–30 % Without Changing Carrier

Consolidate Your Shipments

This is the simplest and most effective lever. Instead of sending vehicles one by one as soon as they are ready, build weekly batches by geographic corridor. A fully loaded car carrier leaving your depot costs 20–30 % less per vehicle than a series of individual transports.

In practice: if you regularly buy vehicles in Germany, schedule a weekly delivery rather than triggering a transport for each purchase. By accepting that a vehicle waits 3 to 5 days before leaving, you automatically reduce the unit cost.

Exploit Return Flows

The principle of "empty return runs" is a reality of transport: a truck that delivers to Lyon has to head back north. If you have vehicles to bring back from Lyon, or to send to a point along the return route, you can negotiate very competitive return rates.

The condition: having visibility over your inbound and outbound flows far enough in advance to match the carrier's rotation. A platform like EsyLoads makes this easier — you state your need, and carriers passing through that corridor submit their best rates.

Differentiate Between Urgent and Standard

Not all your shipments have the same urgency level. A sold vehicle with delivery promised within 72 hours justifies a priority transport at a higher cost. A used vehicle you just bought that needs to go through the prep centre can wait 7 to 10 days — in that case, include it in a consolidated rotation.

Classify your transports into three tiers: urgent (< 48h, premium cost accepted), standard (3 to 5 days, optimised price), consolidated (7 to 10 days, lowest price). This simple distinction will reduce your overall transport spend without affecting customer satisfaction.

Tools and Processes: What Actually Changes

Centralise Requests

In many dealerships, several people independently trigger transports: the used car manager, the salesperson, the workshop. This fragmentation prevents any volume negotiation and creates duplications.

The first step is organisational: designate a single transport coordinator who centralises all requests before processing them in batches. Even without any dedicated tool, this one change immediately creates visibility over flows.

Measure Real Costs

How much does vehicle transport actually cost you per month? Most dealership managers cannot answer that question precisely. Yet without measurement, there can be no optimisation.

Build a simple tracking sheet: total transport invoice ÷ number of vehicles transported = average cost per vehicle. Track this metric monthly. A 15 % improvement on a volume of 30 vehicles per month at an average of EUR 250 per vehicle saves EUR 1,125 per month.

Standardise Handover Forms

Incomplete handover forms generate back-and-forth, delays and disputes. Prepare a standardised template that systematically includes: registration number, VIN, mileage, vehicle condition (with photos), exact pickup and delivery addresses, on-site contact, fuel level, and special instructions (alarm, keycard, etc.).

The Question of Framework Agreements

For recurring volumes (above 10 vehicles per month on a given corridor), a framework agreement with one or more preferred carriers is the most effective solution over the medium term.

The framework agreement sets a guaranteed unit rate for a given period (typically 3 to 12 months) in exchange for a minimum volume commitment. Advantages:

• Budget predictability: your transport cost is fixed, regardless of seasonality
• Loading priority: during high-demand periods, your vehicles take precedence over spot requests
• Trust relationship: the carrier knows your vehicles, your processes, your sites

The downside: you lose flexibility. If volumes drop, you are committed to a minimum. For groups with stable flows, the advantages easily outweigh this. For smaller operations or those with seasonal flows, a mix of framework contracts and spot market via a platform is often more appropriate.

Dashboard: The 4 Metrics to Track

These four figures give a complete picture of your transport logistics efficiency. Monthly tracking is sufficient to identify areas for improvement.

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Optimising vehicle transport logistics is not a question of scale — even an independent dealer shipping 8 to 10 vehicles per month can cut costs by 15–20 % by applying a few simple principles. Step one: gain visibility over your flows. Step two: consolidate them.

For professionals who want to test a more structured approach, create an EsyLoads account — access to 1,200+ verified carriers, real-time tracking, and a corridor-level dashboard.