Shipping a Sidecar Rig to Europe

Doh!  Maddie is making a sad face for you and Karen is likewise desolee.  

Assuming that you will be able to get the rig sorted (yourself or by Herr Knopf) will Buffy be able and willing to drive back to Scotland for the return?

Thane , plan has always been to fly into and out of Frankfurt airport,  Germany.  Not going back to Scotland anytime soon. 

And, driving our car is not a problem.  Sun or Snow,  our Subaru will Go.

However,  on this topic of vehicles.....I am greatly surprised, and not in a good way,  at the price of fuel in Europe. 

On a general average,  the price of fuel here is a minimum of TWICE of what we pay for fuel in Washington State (which BTW is one of highest price per gallon States in the US), and in most countries here in Europe,  I have been paying 3 times the amount per gallon than what it would cost me in Washington State. 

Filled my Goldwing up the other day, and it cost me $ 42.00 USD for 5.2 gallons of gas.

Yuck!  My wallet winces with you.  Relief to know you won’t have to make a long drive with a dodgy joint just to get the various pieces back to their storage spaces.

Miles, I hope this an injury that can heal with some rest.  Timing for best rest is, unfortunately, not in your favor.

Posted by: @swampfox

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Miles, I hope this an injury that can heal with some rest.  Timing for best rest is, unfortunately, not in your favor.

Nor mine, I fear.

Awe man.  That really does suck.  Shoulder injuries are a great reminder of just how much we do with our upper body.   

Any chance you can tape it up for support rather than put your arm in a sling?

Posted by: @scott-h

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Awe man.  That really does suck.  Shoulder injuries are a great reminder of just how much we do with our upper body.   

Any chance you can tape it up for support rather than put your arm in a sling?

Scott, that is THEE current plan. Middle of the night I was up, and on Amazon.de, ordering injury tape, an analgesic ointment, and a strap on (no jokes please). shoulder brace. Rather than try to find these items in a German store, and embarrass myself trying to speak English in a country that speaks German,  I ordered it all at 2 am, will be here on Friday.

To put a tentative cap on the issue of shipping a sidecar rig ANYWHERE,  and additionally shipping a sidecar rig from the US to  Europe,  in this case Heidelberg,  Germany....I  can make this sweet and short by saying.....I would do it all again with no hesitation or doubts.

Shipping a large sized sidecar rig from Washington State to Ocala,  Florida using Haulbikes was far better....easier....more secure....and less cost than I ever thought it would be,  or could be.  My experience with Haulbikes was very good.  They gave me an exact quote, never wavered on that quote, and never tried to charge me more. Basically it was less than $ 1,300.00 shipping a Honda Goldwing w/Hannigan GTL sidecar from  Olympia,  Washington to Ocala,  Florida.  They were perfectly on time, on both ends, communication was excellent,  and......not a single  scratch of any kind on my fancy-arse sidecar rig. 

Bottom line,  I am  100 % happy with my experience using  Haulbikes,  and would use them again  !

After picking up my Euro-Wing sidecar rig in Ocala,  Florida,  then driving it down to Orlando,  Florida to drop it off with the overseas shipping company that  transports everything for Knopf Tours,  my experience with this shipper was also excellent.  I like it when people do exactly what they say they will do,  and what you expect them to do. 

Once in Heidelberg,  Germany....the communication from Knopf Tours was very good.  They kept me  apprised of any changes in expected delivery date, and we're always accessible if I had a question. 

On day of delivery/pick up of my  Euro-Wing sidecar rig,  everything was as expected,  sidecar rig was front and center, only a very few minor issues with small scratches on the bike and sidecar,  but reality takes over, and you realize that shipping a sidecar rig this large....this phat...inside a steel container box, on a ship, across an ocean....you are just happy to have your hands on it, and that it's still 99.9314159 % as perfect as it was when you last saw it.

Ergo, get over the little things, and be happy. 

Sidecar owners motto:  Musn't Grumble.

Knopf Tours transports a LOT  of motorcycles around the world every year,  and frankly,  they do a darn good job of it.

Before I close this.......on a serious note.......if any of you ever want to consider owning a sidecar rig that is already in Germany,  let me know.  At some point I will be selling my Euro-Wing sidecar rig,  and having it already on the European continent is a big part of the battle,  so think about that. 

Miles, 

Thanks for sharing the details, and overall experience.  After reading through all this, I'd feel comfortable in "duplicating" the adventure. 

Seems like you two had a pretty excellent adventure.  Glad all went so well.  😎 

Just got my Samsung tablet back from the repair shop.

So been offline with this forum as far as commenting goes.

So questions Miles.

How's the shoulder? 

And being Wednesday here what country does that put you in?

Oh and we are about to have lamb stew.  

Posted by: @brstr

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Just got my Samsung tablet back from the repair shop.

So been offline with this forum as far as commenting goes.

So questions Miles.

How's the shoulder? 

And being Wednesday here what country does that put you in?

Oh and we are about to have lamb stew.  

Bruce, my shoulder is healing quite well. Visited my doctor yesterday, I told him HE looks phat. He knows that I know how to heal myself, so that is what I did. By the time I get to Topsham, Maine for the National Sidecar Rally, my shoulder will be at 99.314 %.

Being Wednesday here too....I am at home in Western Washington.

I honor of your having Lamb Stew, I share prepare Irish Stew for my wife and I later today.

Lamb stew was superb. 

Always knew she wasn't just a pretty face.

Good to hear you are well on the mend.

Would have been disconcerting to be injured while travelling. 

Not that being injured anywhere is

Gooooood Morning....time to wake up this thread...because,

I'm leaving on a jet plane, after shipping this sidecar rig back to the USA again.

This "Euro-Wing" rig is now sitting in a warehouse in Orlando, after surviving a Wintertime cruise across the Atlantic Ocean, having been trucked out of Heidelberg, whilst hiding inside a container, then loaded onto a cargo ship in Antwerp (Belgium that is), then merrily cruising the English Channel, and into the great Atlantic Ocean, to finally arrive at a port in Florida, then trucked again inside same container to the warehouse in Orlando.

I am flying out today, landing in Orlando at midnight tonight, retrieving this sidecar rig from said warehouse, then will be piloting this rig through the Southeastern states up to the middle of the country, to finally stop at its' new home in Buffalo......Buffalo, KANSAS that is.

BTW, the new owner of this rig still has his 1995 Honda Goldwing SE w/Champion Escort ll for sale, for $ 8,750.00, and those of us that know his sidecar rig can tell you it is a heck of a bargain....nay....a STEAL at that price. A Lot has been done, upgraded, improved, to make his '95 Wing w/Champion Escort ll a very reliable rig for the road.

His current rig for sale:

And his new-to-him rig that is being delivered by me, personally, to arrive in Buffalo this Thursday:

I shall add pictures of when I retrieve this rig from the warehouse tomorrow, and...along the 1350 miles journey from Orlando to Buffalo.

I should add that the last time I saw my Euro -Wing sidecar rig in Heidelberg, Germany, it looked like this:

Picture # 3 below shows when I had to remove the new Klock Werks windshield, for shipping purposes. It was safely stored inside the nose of the sidecar.

Picture # 5 below shows our Subaru parked in front of this sidecar rig, a car that we used to drive around all of Western Europe for 83 days, and is now being sold in Germany.

Very cool!  

Safe Travels! 🍻