INDUSTRY FUEL IMPACT REPORT
Fuel and Transport Cost Tracker
Diesel moves, margins follow. This tracker surfaces fuel cost shifts before they hit your bottom line, whether you’re a carrier watching cost-per-mile, a broker managing rate expectations, or a shipper protecting acquisition margins.
How Rising Fuel Costs Are Changing the Price of Moving Cars
August 30, 2026 Update
Diesel prices have surged back toward their spring highs, with the national retail average reaching $5.60 per gallon for the week of August 31, nearly $1.00 above the July low of $4.57 and more than $1.86 higher than a year ago. Brent crude climbed toward $95 per barrel, up about 8%, as Hormuz transits declined sharply, falling from a 10-day average of nearly 13 vessels to just 6 on Wednesday, August 26th.
On the ground, auto transport prices have moved back up with the fuel market: the daily average price per mile stands at $1.11, with the seven-day weighted volume average at $1.09. Whether you’re a carrier setting rates or a shipper planning your next move, the data is clear: price to today’s reality. Use this tracker to stay current.
Key Data Points:
Auto transport prices are back on the rise, with the daily average reaching $1.11 per mile and the seven-day weighted volume average at $1.09, roughly 32% above the $0.84 pre-conflict baseline and approaching the $1.20 peak recorded on June 7. The rebound mirrors diesel’s return toward spring highs as Hormuz disruptions intensify again.
The national average for on-highway diesel reached $5.60 per gallon for the week of August 31, up nearly $1.00 from the July low and more than $1.86 above year-ago levels, erasing most of the relief seen over the summer months.
The EIA’s August 2026 Short-Term Energy Outlook projects Brent to average $87 per barrel for 2026 and does not expect Middle East oil production or Hormuz traffic to return to near pre-conflict levels until early 2027. Elevated fuel costs appear likely to persist well into next year.
Auto Transport Costs Are Up 32% From Pre-Conflict Levels
After briefly retreating toward $1.07 per mile in early July, auto transport prices have climbed again. The daily average now stands at $1.11, with the seven-day weighted volume average at $1.09, well above the $0.84 pre-conflict baseline and approaching the June 7 spike of $1.20. The roughly 32% increase from pre-conflict levels reflects both the direct pressure of diesel back near $5.60 per gallon and carriers repricing loads as Hormuz uncertainty deepens. The summer dip proved temporary; with conflict escalating again and no Hormuz resolution in sight, shippers and carriers should plan for sustained pricing pressure through year-end.
Last Updated: August 30, 2026
How Fuel Prices Flow Through to Auto Transport Costs
What the data also shows is a meaningful gap between how much diesel has risen and how much transport pricing has moved. Diesel is up approximately 37–46% from pre-conflict levels. Auto transport pricing has not moved proportionally, but that’s expected. We can do some simple math to see what price movement we expect from carriers.
| Costs | Percent |
|---|---|
| Fuel | 25% |
| Other Costs** | 61% |
| Profit Margin | 14% |
**Other Costs include: Driver wages, truck payments, insurance, maintenance, permits, tolls
If a carrier wanted to maintain $14 of profit for every $100 of load moved, here’s how they would have to raise their prices as the price of fuel increased:
| Fuel Price Increase | 0% | 20% | 40% | 50% |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Load Price | $100 | $105 | $110 | $113 |
| Fuel | $25 | $30 | $35 | $38 |
| Other Costs | $61 | $61 | $61 | $61 |
| Profit | $14 | $14 | $14 | $14 |
| % Increase in Load Price | 0% | 5% | 10% | 13% |
Since the start of the conflict, our data shows auto transport load prices rose approximately 11% from around $0.84 to roughly $0.95 per mile before stabilizing in that range. When diesel climbs 50%, carriers would need to raise prices 13% to maintain their profits. So the data says carriers not passing on all their increased fuel costs to shippers.
This differs from what we saw before. When diesel prices rose 45%, we saw carriers raise their load pricing to cover all their fuel cost increases. The fact that load prices have plateaued suggests the market has found a temporary ceiling and carriers are sharing in the pain. Howver, that could shift quickly if fuel costs continue to climb. We update this tracker regularly, so check back often.
This Disruption Has a Longer Tail Than Past Spikes
The Strait of Hormuz carries approximately 20 million barrels per day, roughly 20% of global maritime oil trade, and its closure has been described as the largest energy supply disruption since the 1970s. Analysts estimate three to four months for Gulf production to fully restore, with the oil price floor unlikely to return to pre-conflict levels. The IEA’s emergency release of 400 million barrels, the largest in history, provided temporary relief but did not reverse the underlying supply picture.
The current pricing environment is not a spike with a clear near-term resolution.
What This Means for Your Operation
Dealers and auctions: Build a transport cost buffer into your acquisition math now. Units sourced today will be delivered into a higher-cost environment than what you underwrote at purchase.
Fleets and leasing: Loads quoted before February 28 are being re-priced across the industry. This is diesel economics, not carrier opportunism. Build flexibility into Q2 transport agreements.
Brokers: When diesel moves this fast, all-in rate models create real margin compression. Pricing Insights pulls from real accepted-offer data so you’re quoting from what lanes are clearing today, not January.
Tools to Help You Navigate This
Our Pricing Insights tool pulls current market rate data by lane from real accepted offers on the Super Dispatch platform. When prices are moving fast, quoting from live data is the difference between competitive and underwater.
Super Dispatch will soon be offering carriers access to fuel savings that directly offset pump costs through our upcoming SuperCard! When your carriers’ margins are healthier, your loads move faster and more reliably. Click below to let us know you’re interested to get early access!
About This Data
Transport pricing data shown represents a normalized subset of orders processed through the Super Dispatch platform. Filters applied: single-VIN orders; 500–1,000 mile moves; operable SUVs; and order status is picked up or delivered. Dates reflect date that the carrier and shipper agreed to pricing. This subset is statistically meaningful in size and is designed to isolate comparable moves for consistent trend analysis. It does not represent the Super Dispatch marketplace in aggregate.