Car/Vehicle Shipping Cost from San Jose, California to Mexico City

Budget: The shorter the distance, the more cost-effective it is to drive instead of ship your car. Regardless of the total distance, look at your total moving budget and how much you can afford to spend on car shipping services compared to a cross-country drive.

If you are visiting Mexico on a tourist/visitor permit, you can import your foreign-plated vehicle to Mexico using a Temporary Import Permit (TIP). Your vehicle permit when you enter as a visitor will last for a maximum of 180 days and cannot be renewed or extended beyond this time period.

The cheapest way to ship a car internationally is generally Roll-on/Roll-off (RORO), where cars drive onto and off the ship, costing around $900-$2,500+ depending on destination, as it avoids packaging and crane costs. For more protection, Shared Container shipping (grouping cars) is the next cheapest, while booking through platforms like Shiply or using companies with price matching, like SGT Auto Transport or Sherpa, can also find competitive rates.