Anybody else frustrated with Motion's shipping service "First Mile" ?

[Evan D]

Their system always starts out with a long lead time. Once it gets into the shippers system it updates to the proper 2-3 days for me. But yea, the sky is falling....

[kallend]

I haven't been following the details of various shipping rates, but I do observe deliveries from Motion being slower now than a couple of years ago.

Living in Chicago (50 miles from MRC HQ) the "basic" shipping used to arrive the day after I ordered it, provided I ordered early in the day.

Now it seems it isn't even on the road until the next day, and typically takes 2 - 3 days to arrive.

I just ordered some stuff from MRC. Estimated delivery time 1 week to Chicago. This is more than double what I was seeing last year. And the shipping price is up too.

[kallend]

I haven't been following the details of various shipping rates, but I do observe deliveries from Motion being slower now than a couple of years ago.

Living in Chicago (50 miles from MRC HQ) the "basic" shipping used to arrive the day after I ordered it, provided I ordered early in the day.

Now it seems it isn't even on the road until the next day, and typically takes 2 - 3 days to arrive.

[serpentracer]

my stuff shipped via fedex but we all know how bad they can be.
initial delivery was tuesday 2/7 hours later they changed it to Wednesday 2/8

[BikeMike]

Thank you for all that good info jbaartz! Guess I'll pay better attention next time! By the way, I love MoonPies !

[jbaartz]

Wow, that's very informative! Thanks! I wonder if there's a way we can avoid having Motion send us orders via DHL?

When you're in check out you can select a few different shipping services. Here's an example of some FPV goggles going to Charlotte that triggered the free shipping option. This is from Monday, January 23rd.

$0.00 - Basic Economy (Estimated Delivery: Mon, Jan 30)
$9.99 - Economy Plus (Estimated Delivery: Thu, Jan 26)
$10.58 - FedEx Smart Post (Estimated Delivery: Tue, Jan 31)
$11.80 - DHL Standard (Estimated Delivery: Wed, Feb 01)
$14.42 - FedEx Ground (Estimated Delivery: Wed, Jan 25)
$27.59 - FedEx 2 Day Air (Estimated Delivery: Wed, Jan 25)
$49.09 - FedEx Next Day Air (Estimated Delivery: Tue, Jan 24)

If Basic Economy is selected then it should be going FedEx Smart Post, which means FedEx picks up and delivers it to the Charlotte USPS hub and USPS takes care of the last mile portion of the delivery. Sometimes FedEx does the entire route for this though. It should be noted that often times Basic Economy will be shipped via DHL; this is largely determined based on weight, but could also be package size. This option has the longest processing time, typically three to four days. Processing time is the time spent in the Motion RC warehouse before a carrier gets the package.

Economy Plus is the same as Basic Economy with the exception that the processing time is typically one to two days. Notice the difference in the ETA--January 26th compared to January 30th.

FedEx Smart Post is about the same as Economy Plus, but it's always handled by FedEx and the USPS.

DHL Standard is offered for lightweight and usually smaller packages. This typically has a processing time of one to two days, but it has the longest ETA--February 1st.

FedEx Ground, 2 Day Air, and Next Day Air all have the same processing time, under normal circumstances, of "same day". "Same day" has a cutoff ordering time of 2PM Central. The ETA between these is usually in order as listed, slowest to fastest, but could differ as shown above with Ground and 2 Day Air having the same ETA. This all depends on delivery location.

Here's an example of a RunCam also going to Charlotte that did not trigger free shipping.

$5.99 - DHL Standard (Estimated Delivery: Wed, Feb 01)
$12.26 - Basic Economy (Estimated Delivery: Mon, Jan 30)
$14.42 - FedEx Ground (Estimated Delivery: Wed, Jan 25)
$27.59 - FedEx 2 Day Air (Estimated Delivery: Wed, Jan 25)
$39.39 - FedEx Next Day Air (Estimated Delivery: Tue, Jan 24)

Of note is that this item is both smaller and lighter in weight than the previous example, so the DHL option is much cheaper. Most spare parts orders will look similar to this example. Ordering LiPo batteries will remove some options as not all carriers will transport them.

Some other information regarding Motion RC's shipping can be found on the shipping policy page.

[BikeMike]

Hey, at least you have water in NC, which is more than can be said for Phoenix, the fastest growing big city in the US.

LOL, true! Charlotte is not likely to ever have a water problem! IMO It's rained 3 times in the past 10 days!

[kallend]

Yep, Charlotte is too. It's one of the fastest growing cities in the USA. Everywhere I look, they are cutting down forest to put in housing tracts.

Hey, at least you have water in NC, which is more than can be said for Phoenix, the fastest growing big city in the US.

[BikeMike]

Thanks. It is but it's getting very populated now. It's the only place I've really ever known.

Yep, Charlotte is too. It's one of the fastest growing cities in the USA. Everywhere I look, they are cutting down forest to put in housing tracts.

[xviper]

Of topic, but Calgary is such a beautiful city! We have a lot of family there.

Thanks. It is but it's getting very populated now. It's the only place I've really ever known.

[BikeMike]

I thought when you check out, you have some choices. Well, at least for me (cross border), there are choices and I've never even seen DHL as a choice.

Of topic, but Calgary is such a beautiful city! We have a lot of family there.

[xviper]

Wow, that's very informative! Thanks! I wonder if there's a way we can avoid having Motion send us orders via DHL?

I thought when you check out, you have some choices. Well, at least for me (cross border), there are choices and I've never even seen DHL as a choice.

[BikeMike]

I'm not sure if First Mile is an intermediary, a subsidiary, or just the name they use for that part of their system. I believe you are correct in that the packages are sitting in a DHL sorting facility waiting to get scanned. DHL definitely takes more time to deliver than FedEx. DHL has a delivery time of 2-8 business days for US domestic and FedEx has 1-5 days (does not specify as business days). One of the key differences is that I don't think DHL delivers on weekends, while FedEx does in most areas. Has the estimated delivery dates been horribly off from what Motion has indicated it would be?

When I put in a Charlotte address for checkout with a small electronic switch this is what I get (this is on a Friday):

DHL Standard (Estimated Delivery: Tue, Jan 31)
FedEx Ground (Estimated Delivery: Sun, Jan 22)

Wow, that's very informative! Thanks! I wonder if there's a way we can avoid having Motion send us orders via DHL?

[jbaartz]

I'm not sure if First Mile is an intermediary, a subsidiary, or just the name they use for that part of their system. I believe you are correct in that the packages are sitting in a DHL sorting facility waiting to get scanned. DHL definitely takes more time to deliver than FedEx. DHL has a delivery time of 2-8 business days for US domestic and FedEx has 1-5 days (does not specify as business days). One of the key differences is that I don't think DHL delivers on weekends, while FedEx does in most areas. Has the estimated delivery dates been horribly off from what Motion has indicated it would be?

When I put in a Charlotte address for checkout with a small electronic switch this is what I get (this is on a Friday):

DHL Standard (Estimated Delivery: Tue, Jan 31)
FedEx Ground (Estimated Delivery: Sun, Jan 22)

[BikeMike]

All DHL packages enter their first mile system, and I believe this has been the case since before Motion has started using DHL. With Motion being in Chicagoland the packages would be going to a sorting hub in Ohio and then be dispersed out to local USPS facilities. According to DHL this is more efficient [source], but they don't say if they use an intermediary or if that's just how their packages scan before they get to a sorting hub.

So is First Mile a part of DHL then? If it's a sorting function of DHL, packages sit in the sorting area for a number of days. When Motion ships me things using FedEX, they go right out and get here to Charlotte in half the time it takes using DHL. Does DHL stand for "Don't Hurry Love"?

[xviper]

Thanks, J. That explains why I've never seen this. All of my purchases from Motion have never gone via DHL. Probably because I need cross border shipping.

[jbaartz]

Yes, the first mile scan that is being seen is only when shipping via DHL; all other orders should be showing a direct pick up from whatever carrier is being used.

[xviper]

So it's only when DHL is in the equation?

[Lon]

I haven't noticed any delay with order shipments. I'm just one state away from Motion's location. Have always received orders in 2-3 days.

[jbaartz]

All DHL packages enter their first mile system, and I believe this has been the case since before Motion has started using DHL. With Motion being in Chicagoland the packages would be going to a sorting hub in Ohio and then be dispersed out to local USPS facilities. According to DHL this is more efficient [source], but they don't say if they use an intermediary or if that's just how their packages scan before they get to a sorting hub.