Shipping a Car to Turkey in a Container
Content owner: Ferdi TOGAR (see Imprint) · Last updated:
LUNVAX ships cars to Turkey by sea from Europe, the UK, Canada and the US.
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This page covers the container option. The service runs port to port. You can drop the car at the departure port yourself, or we can collect it from your door and take it there. A quote reaches you on WhatsApp within 30 minutes at the latest.
Sea freight takes weeks, not days. It still fits many situations. From North America there is no road link to Turkey, so the car has to cross an ocean. From Europe, you can also compare our road transport. Read on to see whether the container route suits your car.
How Container Shipping Works
In a container, the car travels inside a closed steel box. The box goes on a container ship, crosses the sea and comes off at a port in Turkey. Nobody drives the car during the voyage.
RoRo is the other sea method. There the car rolls onto the ship on its own wheels. LUNVAX offers sea freight with both methods, and our RoRo page explains the second one. This page does not rank them. Ask which method your quote is based on.
The departure port depends on where the car stands. Send us the city and the country. Then ask for the departure port and the Turkish arrival port in writing.
Port to Port: What That Covers
Port to port means our service starts at the departure port and ends at the arrival port in Turkey. Three things sit outside it:
- Collection from your address. Available, quoted on its own.
- Delivery from the Turkish port to your door. Ask whether it is possible for your car.
- Customs clearance in Turkey. LUNVAX does not carry it out. More on this below.
This page does not list which cost items the sea rate includes, such as port or terminal charges. Ask for that list in writing.
Getting the Car to the Port
You have two options. You can also ask for both quotes in one message.
Bring it yourself. This works well if you live near the departure port and the car runs. Ask about drop-off hours and the papers the port wants.
Let us collect it. We pick the car up at your address and take it to the port. When the job calls for it, we use a dedicated car transporter, a flatbed truck. A car that does not run, or one that stands far from the port, is a typical case. Send the pickup address in your first message.
A message like this is enough: "Hello, I want to ship my [year, make, model] from [city, country] to Turkey by sea in a container. Please quote port to port, and collection from my address too. I will [file the export declaration myself / ask you to handle it]."
At handover, photograph the car from every side. Photograph the odometer and the fuel gauge too. Note any damage you can see. If you are present when the container opens in Turkey, compare the car with your photos and check that the container number matches your shipping documents. Report anything wrong in writing on the spot, then message us.
Price and Timing: What to Expect
Standard passenger cars cost €1,000 port to port. The rate is the same from Europe, the UK, Canada and the US.
For an SUV, a large or heavy vehicle, or a luxury or high-value car, we do not publish a rate. Send make, model and year, and you get a quote.
Think in weeks. On average the whole trip takes 3 to 5 weeks, whichever departure location you start from. Where you land inside that range depends on three things: the departure port, the vessel schedule and the route. With a deadline, say so in your first message. Ask in writing when the clock starts and stops, and request the expected arrival date. Hold off on firm plans until you have it.
Need the car in Turkey sooner? Our express vehicle shipping page covers a separate road service from Europe, with its own price and timing.
Insurance
Cars travel insured. What the cover includes is set out in the written quote. We do not describe the policy in detail on this page. If a point in the quote is unclear, ask us on WhatsApp.
Export Declarations: File Them Yourself or Leave Them to Us
A car leaving its country needs an export declaration. The name differs by departure region:
- US: AES/EEI
- Canada: CERS
- UK: CDS
- Germany: ATLAS
You may file the declaration yourself. If you prefer, LUNVAX handles it for you, and the scope and the fee are agreed in the quote. Leaving from another European country? Ask us. Tell us in your first message who will file it.
Coming for a Holiday With Your Car
Do you plan to bring your car for a holiday and drive it home afterwards? Then plan two sea transports, one each way. Request the outbound quote with the details on this page. Ask about the return on the same WhatsApp line, as a separate quote. The fixed rate above applies to cars going to Turkey. We state the return leg in its own quote.
How long a car may stay in Turkey is set by the official rules, and we do not comment on them. Check the official pages and talk to a customs broker before you ship.
Customs and Paperwork
LUNVAX is not a customs broker, and we do not carry out entry or customs procedures in Turkey. The car's owner, or a broker the owner appoints, handles customs.
Turkey's Ministry of Trade and its Ministry of Foreign Affairs both publish pages on vehicles brought into the country. Their conditions depend on three things: where the owner lives, where the car is registered, and the paperwork. Neither page has a section on shipping a car by sea. So one answer does not fit everyone. Ask a customs broker about your case before you book.
Also check the exit rules of the country where the car starts. Each country sets its own. For cars registered in the EU, our deregistration and export guide gives an overview. This page is not legal or tax advice.