China‘s solution to car shipping comes in the form of a dual-deck transporter, which is able to carry cars side-by-side on its upper level. Besides obvious safety hazards due to the high center of gravity and limited maneuverability; this type of transporter would never be allowed on United States roads due to the strict weight limits. A fully loaded truck and trailer is subject to a maximum weight limit of 80,000 lbs while traveling in US to protect the highways from accelerated destruction. The penalties for going over the legal weight are so expensive and vigorously enforced that drivers are often forced to leave a spot open on the trailer just to be in compliance.

Weight and space restrictions are primary reason why shipping an SUV or Pick-Up truck costs more than to ship a mid size sedan. An average trailer can fit a maximum of 4 medium to large SUV’s, the rest of the vehicles have to be smaller cars. Also a large SUV will weigh close to 5,000 lbs compared to 3,500 lbs of an average sedan.

Source: autoblog.com