[CamboKarma]

I will be leaving my post in SE Asia soon and will be shipping my Karma back to the East coast.
The car will be shipped on a boat (I guess that's why they call it "Shipping").
Does anyone have any advice on prepping the car for shipping? I am mostly concerned about the batteries being dead when it reaches the port on the East coast.
I let the car sit once for a couple of months and had to use the key to open the passenger door and then had to put the small battery on the charger for a while before it would recognize the key fob.
I'm worried that the shipping company will not have a clue what to do if it arrives with a dead battery....they might try and tow it or something :-(

Certainly there was some sort of prep for shipping from Finland to the USA....

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

CamboKarma

 

[Fabulist]

I will be leaving my post in SE Asia soon and will be shipping my Karma back to the East coast.
The car will be shipped on a boat (I guess that's why they call it "Shipping").
Does anyone have any advice on prepping the car for shipping? I am mostly concerned about the batteries being dead when it reaches the port on the East coast.
I let the car sit once for a couple of months and had to use the key to open the passenger door and then had to put the small battery on the charger for a while before it would recognize the key fob.
I'm worried that the shipping company will not have a clue what to do if it arrives with a dead battery....they might try and tow it or something :-(

Certainly there was some sort of prep for shipping from Finland to the USA....

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

CamboKarma

@CamboKarma,

I am having my car shipped from the West Coast to the East Cost in the US, and even though it's a much shorter move, I have to deal with some of the same issues.

I am having the 12 V Battery disconnected during shipment by doing half of a hard reset. Since the shippers have no clue how to do any of this, I created a short home-made Youtube video demonstrating what needs to be done and sent the shipper the link.

I am not sure if this possible with your shipper, but if you want the link, PM me, and I will send it to you.

Unless the shippers allow having a trickle charger connected to your car in transit, I think disconnecting the 12V battery is your only option. Of course, greater experts on this topic should provide more detailed advice.

 

[FiskerPhilly]

If its not too long a fully charged 12v battery should be fine especially on a large ship where there isnt alot of movement. A couple weeks is withstandable on a good battery. But if playing it safe, pulling the 12v plug as Fab suggested is the way to go.
from a manufacturer standpoint most modern cars now have a transport mode that is set via a scan tool. This is a special state which the vehicle cant be driven over 20 mph. And most electric functions are disabled as well as all electric draws are shut down completely when jey is turned off. Meaning no clock or processor memories stay alive. This is how cars arrive to dealers and we reactivate "normal mode" with our scan tool.
I also advise raising the tire pressures to 60 or so to avoid flat spots as they will tie the car down tight putting additional force downward.
Good luck and safe travels to you and your Karma. Depending on where on the coast you are, either Harleyguy or myself will be looking forward to seeing you.

 

[CamboKarma]

Thanks Fabulist, PM sent.
Pretty sure that a trickle charger will not be allowed inside the shipping container, and if it were I don't think there is electricity....

Looking forward to seeing the video.

 

[P90XMC2]

i shipped my car from the west coast to Israel and back, the only thing you should do is disconnect the big cable clip on the passenger side under the hood,
just make the hood stays open or the drivers window so you can open the hood and plug the cable back once the car reaches the destination.

 

[Harleyguy]

The last two cars I shipped to Africa the shipper wouldn't let the owner disconnect the 12 volt disconnect . One reason was they had to move the car around before loading it into the container . The other reason they wouldn't want to be liable for any problems .

Both cars had problems when they finally made it to Africa . If they allow you to disconnect the 12 volt after it goes into the container that would be great . The other problem is when they unload the container from the ship they probably won't let you into the port to reconnect the car after they open the container .

 

[CA_MP4]

It depends of course on the shipper - you could always deposit exact instruction on how to resuscitate the car with the shipper, even leave an instruction leaflet in the car, making a picture/text step by step manual.

In any event - if you ship the car in a container, there is a good chance this works - unlike ro-ro, in which case they need the car to be under power.

The last two cars I shipped to Africa the shipper wouldn't let the owner disconnect the 12 volt disconnect . One reason was they had to move the car around before loading it into the container . The other reason they wouldn't want to be liable for any problems .

Both cars had problems when they finally made it to Africa . If they allow you to disconnect the 12 volt after it goes into the container that would be great . The other problem is when they unload the container from the ship they probably won't let you into the port to reconnect the car after they open the container .

 

[CamboKarma]

Thank You everyone for the advice!!
I will put together a pamphlet on how do disengage the battery for transport mode.
I will have someone here translate it into Khmer so it's in English and Khmer. Hopefully they can read.....

Cambo