Can you ship a car with a PPM move? No. A Personally Procured Move pays you for moving your household goods yourself, and the payment is built on one thing: the weight of those goods against the Government Constructed Cost. A car is not household goods. Choosing a PPM does not add a car shipment to your entitlements, and it does not take one away. The two lanes never touch.
You are asking because you have two cars and one set of orders, or because the drive is 1,800 miles and the math on shipping one of them looks tempting. Fair. The answer lives in a different entitlement with its own name, its own office, and its own rules. Here is how that lane works.
What actually ships your car: the POV entitlement
The government ships one privately owned vehicle per member household on qualifying moves, coordinated through your branch's transportation office using contracted carriers. You do not pick the company. The Defense Transportation Regulation sets the terms: the vehicle must be registered in your name or your spouse's, and the government's obligation tops out at 20 measurement tons, so an oversized vehicle can bring excess charges.
Whether you get the shipment at all depends on where you are going. On OCONUS orders, including Alaska and Hawaii, the government ships the one POV through its vehicle program. You turn the car in at the assigned processing center and it moves on the government's timeline, not yours. On CONUS orders, there is generally no government-funded POV shipment. You drive it, or you pay a commercial carrier yourself.
The two-car problem
Most families asking this question have two cars and one entitlement. OCONUS, the government ships one; the second is your bill, booked commercially and paid out of pocket. CONUS, both are your responsibility: drive one and ship the other, or make it a two-driver road trip.
There is one narrow exception worth knowing by name. A rule called MALT Plus can reimburse part of moving a second POV on a CONUS move when a dependent is authorized to travel at government expense. It is limited, it has conditions, and the details live in the Joint Travel Regulations, so this is a question for your transportation office, not a line item to assume into your budget.
And do not try to smuggle the car into the PPM. Vehicles are not weighed as household goods on the certified empty and full tickets, the PPM incentive cannot be spent on car shipping, and the 60% advance covers move costs like the rental truck and packing supplies, not auto transport. Keep the lanes separate on paper the way they are separate in the regulations. Our guide to PPM taxes covers what the incentive itself costs you; the car is a different checkbook.
What to do instead
If the orders are OCONUS, start with the transportation office, not a carrier. The POV shipment is scheduled through the vehicle processing center, and summer PCS season books up. If the move is CONUS and you want to ship rather than drive, get commercial quotes early for the same reason: everyone moves in June and July, and auto transport prices follow the calendar.
The cheapest version is the unglamorous one: two licensed drivers, two cars, one road trip, with fuel and lodging running through your PCS travel entitlements rather than the move claim.
Call the TMO before you book anything. The POV shipment, where it exists, is the government's move to coordinate, and the PPM is yours.
Frequently asked questions
Does PPM reimbursement cover shipping a car?
No. A PPM pays for household goods by weight, and a privately owned vehicle is not household goods. Car shipment runs through the separate POV entitlement.
Can I include my car's weight in the PPM weight tickets?
No. Only household goods count toward the PPM weight. Vehicles are not weighed as household goods on the empty and full tickets.
Will the military ship my car overseas on PCS orders?
Yes, for OCONUS moves including Alaska and Hawaii, the government ships one POV per member household through its contracted vehicle program, up to 20 measurement tons. The vehicle must be registered in the member's or spouse's name.
Will the military ship a second car CONUS?
Generally no. CONUS moves do not include government-funded POV shipment, and a second vehicle is the member's expense. A limited rule called MALT Plus can help with a second POV when a dependent is authorized to travel; confirm the details with your transportation office.
Can the 60% PPM advance pay for car shipping?
No. The advance is drawn against the household goods payment and covers move costs like the rental truck, fuel, and packing supplies. Car shipping is a separate expense outside the PPM claim.