Car/Vehicle Shipping Cost from Tokyo to Riverside, California

Shipping from Japan to California varies greatly by method: Express Air (DHL, FedEx) takes 1-4 business days, Standard Air/Priority Mail (USPS, EMS) takes 5-14 days, while Ocean Freight (sea cargo) is much slower, ranging from 2-6 weeks, with post office surface mail potentially taking 2-3 months. The biggest factors are speed versus cost: air is fast and expensive; sea is slow and cheap.

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.

Three years after purchase, every new car has to go through an expensive inspection process, and once every two years after that. Furthermore, vehicles older than 10 years have to pass the inspection every year. As a result, most car owners in Japan write off their cars after 10 years and buy new ones.