Depending on game, and your experience level.

You might want to borrow or rent a truck or trailer.

Taking the head off of a Williams DMD pin is possible, but not for the inexperienced.

And you could spend a great deal of time at someone's house taking it apart.

LTG : )

I would think a full Williams DMD would fit in a Pilot.

The heads on these fold down, there is just a latch in the back. Some have bolts inside the backbox that need to be loosened first -- depends on the game.

Carry the game, legs on, close to the car. Use a socket set to remove back leg, prop corner into SUV, take off other back leg, but back end of cabinet in SUV and slide in. Then remove front two legs and continue to slide in. Same process coming out. You'll need one extra set of hands for the moving part.

Sorry, not "moving the part" -- "moving the machine." But, one leg at a time in and one leg at a time out has always worked smooth for me.

Recommend a big piece of cardboard for inside the vehicle. Makes sliding the pin in and out much easier. I like to put a folded up towel under the backbox so it doesn't dent the rails.
Also, make sure the plunger is not going to smash out the rear window.

Conversely, the backbox (head) comes off most electro-mechanical and early solid state pinballs farily easily. Took the head off the 1979 Time Warp I brought home this past weekend, and it was pretty easy.
Just as you expect, things get more complicated over time.

check out this site, I found it valuable when getting into the hobby. The link is to a section specifically on moving a machine but there is a lot more valuable info on what to look for when you go check one out, hope it helps.

http://www.flippers.be/basics/101_move_pinball.html

Also, put a blanket or piece of cardboard over the playfield glass to rest the backbox on when you fold it down.

I've used a Honda pilot to pick up every game I've bought. Put the seats down. With the head folded down it will slide in no problem. Even fit a nib in it.

I think if the machine would not fit in the Pilot you would be better off borrowing/renting something bigger. Taking off the head and putting it back on could be a bit of work. Especially on a newer machine.

Recommend finding a pin guy in your area that knows what their doing. Throw him $100 and go pick it up together (truck/van/suv). He might even give you a crash course on the basics when it's home. The setup, cleaning, settings, things to do, things not to do etc

I'd rent or ask a buddy with a truck. You don’t want to disassemble the head unless it's one that doesn’t fold down.

Remove the pinball’s and plum bob from the inside cabinet 1st. You'll have to unscrew 1 or possibly 2 bolts from the inside of the head. Usually, these are big wing nunts and can be done by hand. Remove the translight and lift the speaker panel gently out of the head to access these. A buckle or clip has to be undone on the back of the head and body. If you have a small piece of tape then tape this clip against the body. They tend to get demolished if not taped before moving.

When folding down the head just mind the harness in the back. Place something in-between the head and rails to keep from making any marks. You can use anything from pieces of cardboard, bubble wrap to an old bathroom towel. I used to use a strap around the head and body to keep in place but now prefer shrink wrap. Wrap the entire game to give it an extra skin to avoid any scrapes. If your traveling with an uncoverd truck this is a must. It's cheap also at Home Depot/Lowes. Place tape over Remove the back legs then stand up the game. Remove the front legs next.

Check out any number of pinball manuals online to see how easy most pins are to set up/take down. You can find your particular pin and manual at the pinball database http://www.ipdb.org/search.pl

Mike
www.HabosArcade.com

And there you have it.

To the original poster, you should be fine with any dmd games with teh backbox folded down. Removing the head from an earlier game is not as bad as it seems, and makes the game much lighter when carrying it.

Just remember if you disconnect cables when removing the head to use masking tape and write #'s to remember where they go . No fun connect a plug in the wrong place or forgetting one

We have brought home every pin we have in our Honda Pilot.