The Pinch Points
Why Car Haulers Come to Us Instead of Their Bank
Car haulers front the carrier, the fuel, and the gate fees across long lanes before a dealer pays net-30. Banks won't price a specialized trailer; our lenders read the lanes. Sound familiar?
Ramps Down, Three Cars Lost a Load
Your 7-car hauler trailer needs new hydraulic ramps — $14K. Without working ramps, you can only load 4 cars. That's $600/load in lost revenue on every trip.
Dealer Volume, $130K Rig in Four Weeks
A dealer network wants you to handle 50 units/month — guaranteed volume. You need a second truck and trailer ($130K total) to handle the contract. The first loads ship in 4 weeks.
Snowbird Season, $20K to Capitalize
Peak season is here — snowbirds moving cars south. You need $20K for fuel advances, tolls, and driver expenses to capitalize on 6 weeks of premium rates.
Lift Gate Burned, $600K Waiting
Your enclosed carrier's lift gate motor burned out — $9,200 repair. Without it you can't load the top deck. That drops your capacity from 6 cars to 3 and you've got a dealer shipment of luxury vehicles worth $600K waiting.
Auction Volume, Third Driver First
An auction house wants you to handle 80 units/month from 3 locations. You need a third driver ($5K/month), CDL training reimbursement ($4K), and $8K in additional cargo insurance before they'll sign the contract.
Seven Units to Win the Volume
Dealer and auction contracts go to the carriers that can move seven and nine units a trip — but the open stinger carrier that wins that volume is a six-figure asset banks shy from.
What an operator said
“Snowbird season doubled our lanes and our fuel float overnight. The working line carried it until the dealer settlements caught up.”
Sergio M. · auto-transport carrier · Phoenix, AZ
Start Here
See Your Range in 60 Seconds
No credit check, no documents to start, and an estimated funding range on the spot. No one contacts you until you’re ready to move forward.
What Happens When You Start
Estimate Your Capital Range
Slide to your annual gross revenue. We size capital off your top line — not your credit score.
Estimated Capital Range
A conservative range based on 10-15% of annual revenue — many businesses qualify for more with strong receivables or assets behind them. Lenders return real term sheets once they see your file.
60 seconds · No obligation · Estimate only
Built for the Trade
What We Fund for Car Haulers
Fund the Carrier Rig, Section 179
Put the tractor and multi-car stinger carrier on a single Section 179 buy, and the write-off outpaces the cash down.
Cover Fuel and Gate Fees
A working-capital line covers fuel and gate fees across long auction-to-dealer lanes before settlement.
Advance on Dealer and Auction Invoices
Pull cash from dealer and auction receivables with an A/R line rather than floating net terms across every load.
Reserve for a High-Cycle Carrier
A maintenance reserve line keeps hydraulics, decks, and tie-downs road-legal across a high-cycle carrier.
Carrier Acquisition Financing
Dedicated acquisition financing for open and enclosed carriers as dealer volume grows — approved on carrier-lane revenue, not collateral on the trailer.
Add Enclosed or Open Carriers
A term structure adds enclosed or additional open carriers as dealer volume grows.
Match Your Situation
The Cash-Flow Gaps We Fund for Car Haulers
Match your situation to the structure. Every one of these funds on your revenue, not a perfect credit file.
| What It Looks Like | Funding Solution | Amount | Speed | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Multi-car carrier acquisition | A 7–9 unit open or enclosed carrier wins dealer and auction volume — and is the asset a bank won't size. | Equipment Financing | $120K–$350K | 3–7 days |
| Hydraulic ramp and lift-gate repairs | A carrier stuck loading half its capacity loses hundreds per load until the ramps or lift gate are fixed. | Working Capital | $75K–$150K | 1–3 days |
| Peak-season fuel and tolls | Snowbird season pays premium rates for 6 weeks but needs fuel, tolls, and driver advances upfront. | Working Capital | $75K–$150K | 1–3 days |
| Capacity and driver ramp | An auction contract across multiple locations needs an added driver, CDL training, and cargo insurance. | Working Capital | $75K–$200K | 1–3 days |
| Dealer-invoice receivables | Dealer and auction loads pay net-30/45 while fuel and the next gate fee are due now. | Invoice Factoring | $75K–$5M+ | 1–2 days |
The Products
How Auto Transport Financing Is Structured
Most auto-transport files fund between $75K and $5M+, structured to the carrier, the lane, or the contract in front of you. Larger lines available when revenue, cash flow, and story qualify.
| Amount | Term | Best For | Funding Speed | Typical Structure | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Equipment Financing | $75K–$5M+ | 2yr–10yr | Open and enclosed multi-car carriers | 3–7 days | Equipment serves as collateral |
| Working Capital | $75K–$5M+ | 6mo–10yr | Fuel, gate fees, driver and insurance ramp | 1–3 days | Often unsecured, daily/weekly ACH |
| Invoice Factoring | $75K–$5M+ | Per invoice | Dealer and auction net-30/45 receivables | 1–2 days | Invoices secure the line, no PG typically |
| Business LOC | $75K–$5M+ | Revolving | Hydraulics, decks, and tie-down reserves | 1–5 days | Unsecured line, no PG by default |
Tax Strategy
Section 179 on a 7-Car Stinger Carrier Rig — Worked
If last year was strong and you’re about to write a check to the IRS — stop. Acquire qualifying equipment with as little as 10% down, finance the rest, and write off the full purchase price in year one. Section 179 covers it up to the annual cap; 100% bonus depreciation — made permanent in 2025, with no cap and no income limit — carries the rest.
At the top bracket, that first-year deduction can return meaningful tax savings — and for an established business with strong cash flow, it’s the difference between writing a check to the IRS and putting the same money into your own equipment. Your CPA models the exact numbers for your bracket and structure.
Worked scenario · top bracket · illustrative
You financed the machine and put down a fraction of its price — but you deduct the full price in year one. The write-off is bigger than your down payment, and the equipment keeps working the whole time.
Scales with your numbers
Illustrative only. Actual savings depend on your tax bracket, entity type, state conformity, and CPA guidance. Section 179 and bonus depreciation are elections your CPA makes for your situation; above the Section 179 cap, 100% bonus depreciation carries the balance.
Terms reflect credit, revenue, time in business, and each lender. Every file is unique — see what the desk structures for yours in the 60-second qualifier.
Bobby’s Take
“Dealer and auction volume goes to the carrier that moves seven and nine units a trip — and that open stinger is a six-figure asset banks won't size. Fund it on carrier-lane revenue. §179 writes off more in year one than the down; your CPA runs the number.”
Bobby Friel · Founder · 20+ years in banking and finance
How It Works
From Application to Funded
One application, 70+ lenders competing, a dedicated specialist, and most files funded in days.
60-second estimate
Enter your numbers — no credit check, no documents. You see an estimated funding range on the spot.
A specialist is assigned
A real funding specialist — not an algorithm — reviews your file, usually within 24 hours.
70+ lenders compete
Your application goes to the marketplace. Competing offers typically land 24–48 hours later.
You pick the offer
Compare structures and terms with your advisor. No obligation until you choose to sign.
Funded in days
From same-day working capital to a multi-piece stack, most files fund in days — not the bank’s 60–90.
Underwriting
What Underwriting Looks At
Funding here leads with what your business actually does — your revenue and cash flow. The specialist desk reads the real picture from your statements, then matches it to the lenders most likely to fund it.
How you’re evaluated
Revenue-first
sized off your top line, not just your balance sheet.
Cash-flow driven
your bank statements show how the business really runs.
Bank-statement underwriting
even a down year is read off 4 months of statements.
Story-driven
a big new contract, a seasonal swing, a turnaround in progress: context the raw numbers miss counts too.
What to have ready
↳Had a loss year? It’s read off the bank statements — 4 months, not 6.
Start fast, finish complete
The operators who fund quickest come to the specialist review with these ready — but you don’t need all of it to start. Your signed application and bank statements are what unblock the review; the rest can follow as trailing docs. Real term sheets come once the lenders can see a true business overview, so the move is simple: get the application and statements in right away, and don’t let a missing tax return hold up your term sheets.
Credit, straight
Qualification
Who Gets Funded — and Who’s Not Ready Yet
A straight read saves everyone time — here’s the line between an auto transport file that funds and one that isn’t ready yet.
↳Time in business is a factor, not a gate — newer crews with strong revenue still qualify.
Not ready yet isn’t a no — it’s a checklist. Most of it is fixable in a quarter or two, and your advisor will tell you straight which gaps to fix before a file goes in.
The Operator's Guide
Auto Transport Financing
Funding the Carrier That Wins the Volume
Dealer and auction volume goes to the carriers that can move seven and nine units a trip, but the open stinger or enclosed carrier that wins that freight is a six-figure asset a bank shies from sizing. Car haulers scale on carrier-lane revenue, not on collateral coverage of a specialized trailer. Our lenders read the dealer and auction lanes and fund the rig, the fuel and gate fees, and the capacity ramp on that, so you take the volume instead of watching a competitor with the trailer take it.
One Application, 70+ Lenders
A $130K truck-and-trailer package for a 50-unit dealer contract, $20K in seasonal fuel and tolls for snowbird rates, or an emergency lift-gate motor with $600K in luxury vehicles waiting — we connect you with 70+ lenders who fund auto-transport carriers every week. Equipment financing, working capital, A/R, and lines of credit — $75K to $5M+, on your revenue. One application, soft-pull review to start.
Common Questions
Auto Transport Financing — Questions, Answered
Yes — open stinger and enclosed carriers are funded as a rig structure sized on carrier-lane revenue, $75K–$5M+, including capacity upgrades for dealer and auction volume.
Yes. Equipment financing covers both the tractor and the car-hauler trailer under one facility, sized on lane revenue for a dealer or auction contract.
Yes. Working capital funds fuel advances, tolls, and driver expenses to capitalize on premium peak-season rates, funded in 1–3 days.
No. Soft credit pull only — zero FICO impact.
Equipment financing sizes the carrier on lane revenue rather than collateral on a specialized trailer, so you can take the volume on the contract's timeline; soft-pull review to start.
Recommended Funding
The Products That Fit Auto Transport Work
Equipment Financing →
Finance open and enclosed multi-car carriers and ramp replacements — the trailer is the collateral.
Working Capital Loans →
Fund peak-season fuel, gate fees, and driver and insurance ramp.
Invoice Factoring →
Convert dealer and auction invoices to same-day cash instead of waiting net-30/45.
Business Line of Credit →
Draw for hydraulics, decks, and tie-down reserves across a high-cycle carrier.