What size car?

malcolmgb · Post by **malcolmgb** » Mon Nov 30, 2015 2:57 pm

What would be the smallest car/vehicle I could fit a CA78 in? The story is;

I have a CA78 in Cleveland OH which I am hoping to ship back here to the UK, I can ship out of either New York or Chicago.

The plan is to have a road trip, rent a car then transfer to a shipping port sometime during my drive.

Your thoughts and assistance would be very welcome.

OldScrambler · Post by **OldScrambler** » Tue Dec 01, 2015 12:55 pm

Any mini-van will do but be prepared to loosen the bars. I had to tilt a CB77 with no bars or tank to get it into a Ford Escape.

I recently shipped a CB750 to Sweden. Although the title and other paperwork was inside the crate that I built with a pallet bottom..........I disassembled the bike so the frame with motor was siting on the pallet. Other parts were packed on the sides and in small boxes. It was now declared as a parts-bike and shipped at a lower rate.

Hamamatsu Nippon · Post by **Hamamatsu Nippon** » Tue Dec 01, 2015 1:08 pm

You can transport a CA78 in a PT Cruiser if you get inventive. You have to remove the rear seats and the passenger seat. Remove the CA78 front wheel and fender and slide on an 8" wheel from a wheelbarrow. The small wheel will allow you to roll the bike up a ramp. The engine may ground onto the ramp but an upward heave will get it in. With the seats removed you will see perfect tie down anchors on the floor. You may have to remove the tail light. The handlebars have to be pulled lower.
Another option is the extended Dodge Caravan, with the hide-away-seats. The bike should load up with little modifications.

malcolmgb · Post by **malcolmgb** » Wed Dec 02, 2015 2:09 pm

Thanks for your comments, I should have added there will be 2 people in the car, wife and myself, so the PT Cruiser is out.

Will any Dodge Caravan work or does it need to be a certain model? A limiting factor could be the fact it will be a rental car.

With the CA having smaller wheels than the CB I was hoping the relatively smaller size would help, does the Ford Escape still fit the bill?

Minimum dismantling is best as the shippers just require me to deliver a rolling machine, they then put it on a pallet ready to put in the next available container, importing as spares creates all sorts of problems with licensing in the UK.

brewsky · Post by **brewsky** » Thu Dec 03, 2015 5:44 am

I would look for a small pickup, like a Ford Ranger or similar size.

malcolmgb · Post by **malcolmgb** » Fri Dec 04, 2015 2:47 pm

An interesting choice for a road trip but security could be an issue.

brewsky · Post by **brewsky** » Fri Dec 04, 2015 5:00 pm

Enterprise has compact cargo vans available.