Saving money by picking up at parcel service in the USA?

[cutchemist42]

I'm looking to ship an item to a parcel holding place in North Dakota. I live in Winnipeg which is maybe a 45 minute drive.

The savings in shipping would be about $100 because the shipping is free in the USA. I'm just wondering in terms of gas would it be worth it since I drive a 4 cylinder. Also, what would I be looking at in terms of duty since I'd be in the states for only 30 minutes.

The item itself is also about $150 dollar cheaper then any local Canadian prices.

Thanks!

[coriolis]

Well, lets do the math. I don't know the location of the parcel holding place, but a quick Google resulted in Mike's Parcel Pickup in West Stutsman Street. From the middle of Winnipeg to that location is about 120 km, but since you said the drive is around 45 mins, lets bump that down to 90~ km one way. So 180~ km both ways.

The average price of gas is $1.20, and your average 4-cylinder sedan averages about 8 L/100km.

Actually, I just went here: http://www.winnipeggasprices.com/TripCalculator.aspx

So it'll cost you about $25-$30, assuming you idle at the order for a bit. For duty, what is the item?

I'm looking to ship an item to a parcel holding place in North Dakota. I live in Winnipeg which is maybe a 45 minute drive.

The savings in shipping would be about $100 because the shipping is free in the USA. I'm just wondering in terms of gas would it be worth it since I drive a 4 cylinder. Also, what would I be looking at in terms of duty since I'd be in the states for only 30 minutes.

The item itself is also about $150 dollar cheaper then any local Canadian prices.

Thanks!

[mslolo]

Also, don't head down with a full tank and fill up with gas while you are in the states. I time picking up my packages for when my tank is close to empty as the gas right across the border (at least here in Vancouver) is generally $0.20 less per litre. I usually take about 60 litres which saves my $12.

[cutchemist42]

Well, lets do the math. I don't know the location of the parcel holding place, but a quick Google resulted in Mike's Parcel Pickup in West Stutsman Street. From the middle of Winnipeg to that location is about 120 km, but since you said the drive is around 45 mins, lets bump that down to 90~ km one way. So 180~ km both ways.

The average price of gas is $1.20, and your average 4-cylinder sedan averages about 8 L/100km.

Actually, I just went here: http://www.winnipeggasprices.com/TripCalculator.aspx

So it'll cost you about $25-$30, assuming you idle at the order for a bit. For duty, what is the item?

Item is going to end up being a 140ish car part bought off ebay with free shipping inside of the USA.

[coriolis]

Item is going to end up being a 140ish car part bought off ebay with free shipping inside of the USA.

+1 on the gas part, when I cross the border here, I always make sure I have a bit under half a tank left cause I can fill a full tank for almost half the price in the States

When declaring at the border, you may or may not need to pay customs/duties/taxes. It's fairly random, and make sure you declare, especially if you have the receipt and they decide to search your car - it's not fun, I've had it done before.

[death_hawk]

Weight plays a big role too.
I've shipped servers to the US for damn near nothing where shipping them to me would have cost hundreds of dollars.

If this particular part is stupidly heavy, it's a no brainer.

[cutchemist42]

Weight plays a big role too.
I've shipped servers to the US for damn near nothing where shipping them to me would have cost hundreds of dollars.

If this particular part is stupidly heavy, it's a no brainer.

Never measured a steering rack, but from reading google it says about 20 lbs dry weight.

And I was really off with the driving, it would be more like 1.5 hours to drive to the location.

[death_hawk]

With shipping Dimensional weight counts too.

Let's say you're shipping a couple bricks vs a ski pole.
Let's say you can get them to weigh the same.

Shipping on the Ski Poles will be higher since they're dimensionally larger than the weight per sq in that couriers magically calculate.

I have no idea what a steering rack is, so I can't comment on the dimensionality of it.

Did I just invent two words with the word "dimension" in it?

[cutchemist42]

With shipping Dimensional weight counts too.

Let's say you're shipping a couple bricks vs a ski pole.
Let's say you can get them to weigh the same.

Shipping on the Ski Poles will be higher since they're dimensionally larger than the weight per sq in that couriers magically calculate.

I have no idea what a steering rack is, so I can't comment on the dimensionality of it.

Did I just invent two words with the word "dimension" in it?

It's about the width of the car.

[cutchemist42]

So if the car part is made in North America, are there duties to be paid on it as well?

[chadurban]

Would be no duty just PST & GST because of the free trade agreement

[Cheap Cat]

Why not make a day of it and do some more shopping while you are down there? Enjoy being in a foreign country. Go out to a restaurant or stock up on things things that aren't available here. That is what I do. If you are worried about paying at the border, typically all you pay is the tax which is still cheaper than a hotel room, buy groceries which are tax free. Note if you had to pay duty, you would still have to pay it if you had the item shipped to you here.