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Being from the northwest and only having vacationed in Mexico.
I am thinking i may need to purchase some kind of transportation when i get down there to the Baja.
I was thinking a Motorcycle, can anyone give me some pointers as to the legality of a temporary resident buying and insuring such an item??

And how about availability? i dont need new or fancy,,just two wheels and an engine,,and maybe at least one brake.

The rest i can take care of myself being the mechanical genius that i am..Lol

Buy one in the states with US plates, then get a liability drivers license policy. If you buy one with Mex plates, you'll need a Mex DL and your insurance will be expensive.
There won't be near as many MC's available down here as most,I believe, consider driving one on the roads here a form of suicide, but suit yourself.

I believe i can obtain an international license here in Canada, but thanks for the info about the availability and road conditions.

Originally Posted by DENNIS

Buy one in the states with US plates, then get a liability drivers license policy. If you buy one with Mex plates, you'll need a Mex DL and your insurance will be expensive.
There won't be near as many MC's available down here as most,I believe, consider driving one on the roads here a form of suicide, but suit yourself.

Originally Posted by Nemo55

I believe i can obtain an international license here in Canada, but thanks for the info about the availability and road conditions.

Mexican police will fine you on the street for showing that. Try to keep in mind that Baja isn't really international....it's Mexico.
Road conditions are generally good.....it's the drivers that need improvement.
Have a good trip.

Thanks Dennis,
Well being a total newby,,i am all ears???
What would you suggest that would be cheap and reliable and little hassle from the law??

Originally Posted by DENNIS

Mexican police will fine you on the street for showing that. Try to keep in mind that Baja isn't really international....it's Mexico.
Road conditions are generally good.....it's the drivers that need improvement.
Have a good trip.

Hello Nemo55

I am a Canadian (from Toronto) and when I moved down to La Paz last year this group was very helpfull.
I can tell you from personal experence that I had to pay a small price for not listening to some of the advice presented here.

Anyhow, NO need to change or do anything with your drivers licence. Just make sure it is upto date and will not exipre while you are down here.
(I renewed mine for 3 years just before coming down)

Vehicles: as recomended, Motorcycles are somewhat hard to find and VERY expensive.
I don't know where your planning on moving to but I think (I am a casual rider) a bike for full time use especially in populated areas may NOT be good for your health. I have noticed that 4 wheeled drivers sort of ignore the 2 wheel drivers.

I think what Dennis was referring to was the fact that the law enforcment sort of do not recognize International Drivers Licences and may very well give you a ticket for driving without a licence.

Bring a personal vehicle ( 4 or 2 wheel) down for personal use while you are down here, with a current licence plate and sticker is the best and easiest way.

Thanks Johnny,
I will be flying in,so an airlift of a vehicle will not be happening Lol..
Would i be able to buy an old beater in Baja and insure and dive it there??

Thanks M8

Originally Posted by CDN_JOHNNY

Hello Nemo55

I am a Canadian (from Toronto) and when I moved down to La Paz last year this group was very helpfull.
I can tell you from personal experence that I had to pay a small price for not listening to some of the advice presented here.

Anyhow, NO need to change or do anything with your drivers licence. Just make sure it is upto date and will not exipre while you are down here.
(I renewed mine for 3 years just before coming down)

Vehicles: as recomended, Motorcycles are somewhat hard to find and VERY expensive.
I don't know where your planning on moving to but I think (I am a casual rider) a bike for full time use especially in populated areas may NOT be good for your health. I have noticed that 4 wheeled drivers sort of ignore the 2 wheel drivers.

I think what Dennis was referring to was the fact that the law enforcment sort of do not recognize International Drivers Licences and may very well give you a ticket for driving without a licence.

Bring a personal vehicle ( 4 or 2 wheel) down for personal use while you are down here, with a current licence plate and sticker is the best and easiest way.

Originally Posted by Nemo55

Thanks Johnny,
I will be flying in,so an airlift of a vehicle will not be happening Lol..
Would i be able to buy an old beater in Baja and insure and dive it there??

Thanks M8

Nemo

I would suggest a small SUV such as a Chevy Tracker or Suzuki Vitara, or a mini truck. Easy to work on, parts available, good for running around Ensenada.

Purchase in the US (San Diego-Orange County Craigs List) and register and title in South Dakota.

Nemo55

If your flying in on a commercial flight may I suggest flying into San Diego.

Save yourself some hassles, stay a little while in San Diego and do as Teniente say's about the type of vehicle.

Then cross over.

The people on this forum, in my opinion issue some pretty good advice.

If you buy a Baja Beater in Baja You have a whole set of differemt problems If it's registered in Baja you have to get a baja drivers liscens which you cant get unless you have a FM3 or FM2 and the insurance is more expensive.
buy a car in sandiego that is registered. come down here and file for title like some do in Dakota and get the D.L.insurance that is about 150.oo a year. you can find plenty of info about Dakota regiseration on this site.
Are you totaly confused now

Ok,,
At this point i should mention that i am a long time Landed Immigrant in Canada, 41 yrs.
Married, had three kids, parents passed on in Canada,,everyone got their Canadian citizenship except me and one of my sisters. (just never became an issue) recently however,i purchased a Sail Boat in San-Fransisco and then tried to get down to her from Vancouver.
To cut a long story short, things have changed since 9/11 and what where friendly borders are no longer.
Now they want me to have not one Visa ,,but two,,,,a B1 and a B2 and to obtain the visa's i need to show the embassy (78 day waiting list) three months of my bank records,,along with the birth certificates of my children, and records of residency (where i have lived for the past five years,,and then,,if this where not bad enough,,they may deny me entry because i have a Heart condition.

This is all to draconian for me,,which is why i am coming to Ensenada without my Boat.
I am hoping to get someone to sail her out to the international limit where i can pick her up and bring her to Ensenada.
But for now,,i continue to pay my moorage fees in San Rafael, and make the move to Punta Banda,,,

Originally Posted by J.P.

If you buy a Baja Beater in Baja You have a whole set of differemt problems If it's registered in Baja you have to get a baja drivers liscens which you cant get unless you have a FM3 or FM2 and the insurance is more expensive.
buy a car in sandiego that is registered. come down here and file for title like some do in Dakota and get the D.L.insurance that is about 150.oo a year. you can find plenty of info about Dakota regiseration on this site.
Are you totaly confused now

Can a person such as myself purchase a vehicle from SanDiago and pick it up on the Mexican side of the border?
As J.P. suggested, to then insure it for mexico?
Sorry for all the questions which have probably been asked a thousand times,but i guess you all where in the same boat yourselves once i imagine..

Originally Posted by Nemo55

...not one Visa ,,but two...three months of my bank records...birth certificates of my children...where i have lived for the past five years...draconian...

Don't be smuggling any cupcakes.



There are quite a few threads here about vehicles/driver's licenses from South Dakota and why.

8/2/2011 South Dakota Drivers License and Vehicle Registration - TalkBaja.com - Baja Mexico Travel, Living and Retirement

About US auto insurance while in Mexico - TalkBaja.com - Baja Mexico Travel, Living and Retirement

Getting a Mexican Drivers license and registering a car in Mexico - TalkBaja.com - Baja Mexico Travel, Living and Retirement

Based on personal experience, when I bought a new vehicle in CA, the dealer insisted I had to get CA plates & pay CA taxes! I tired to go the non-CA-resident tax route with my Oregon driver's license & permanent Oregon address....they refused.

If you buy a currently licensed vehicle from a private seller, you'd have to submit the pink slip for change in ownership to obtain registration in your name to legally cross the border with the vehicle. When you cross the border, the border guards have the right to deny you entrance to the country if you don't have legal registration in your name....subject to their mood at the moment you cross, whether or not the car in front of you P'd them off & how late in their shift it is.

It might be easier to buy a vehicle in Baja. You can buy a MX plated vehicle legally with an FMM (180-day tourist permit)....BUT if the vehicle has MX plates, you'll need a MX driver's license to register it in your name & drive it legally. To obtain a MX driver's license, does require that you have a residence visa (FM3 or FM2). Yea olde Catch 22!

The general rule of thumb is MX plated vehicle/ MX driver's license required, US plated vehicle/US driver's license. That said, whether it's enforced if you're stopped or not would be up to the digression/interpretation of the cop stopping you. Ignorance of the law isn't an acceptable excuse & keep in mind, in Mexico, they have the legal right to confiscate the vehicle if the paperwork is hinky; or perceived to be.

Now....about your boat, that's a whole nuther can of worms that I'll leave to the boat people to advise you on permit/importation requirements!

This moving to a foreign country stuff is best not treated as a spontaneous move; much smarter to research the hell out of all this stuff & plan well in advance to stay on the right side of Mexican laws.

Thanks Legs,

Sounds like quite a maze to navigate, but no matter, in for a penny,in for a pound (old saying from the old country) i guess i'll do what i can once i get myself settled there.
Now,,to find a Bachelor suite on the Banda. Cheap.

Thanks Marty, i got a clear clenching sensation outa that animation hahaa...no fear!!!

Originally Posted by Marty Cortez

Don't be smuggling any cupcakes.



There are quite a few threads here about vehicles/driver's licenses from South Dakota and why.

8/2/2011 South Dakota Drivers License and Vehicle Registration - TalkBaja.com - Baja Mexico Travel, Living and Retirement

About US auto insurance while in Mexico - TalkBaja.com - Baja Mexico Travel, Living and Retirement

Getting a Mexican Drivers license and registering a car in Mexico - TalkBaja.com - Baja Mexico Travel, Living and Retirement

Nemo

if you purchase a car in the US, just make sure you have a correctly signed off title and current US registration. Also get a bill sale. That should get you across the border. (I have never been asked in 50 years).

Keep your current Canadian Drivers License valid and apply for the South Dakota registration.

How big is your boat???? I know a certified and US Coast Guard licensed pilot/captain who lives in Ensenada that transports/sails boats from the US to Baja.

An option as yet unmentioned..........rely on the local public transportation.
It works for a lot of people and has a lot to offer.

I'm curious why people would recommend that Nemo as a Canadian get involved in all the red tape of buying and registering a car in the US. The whole process was very easy (and inexpensive) here in La Paz. Getting an FM3 is easy. Getting a driver's license is easy. I pay about 1,600 pesos a year for liability and third party insurance on my old car. Are things that much different in Ensenada?

Originally Posted by kate

I'm curious why people would recommend that Nemo as a Canadian get involved in all the red tape of buying and registering a car in the US. The whole process was very easy (and inexpensive) here in La Paz. Getting an FM3 is easy. Getting a driver's license is easy. I pay about 1,600 pesos a year for liability and third party insurance on my old car. Are things that much different in Ensenada?

I dont think there that much different it's that there seems to be a lot of people that are capeble of creating a maze of problems for themself's.from a otherwise simple process.
I didnt Import my cars because I didn't think the value of the vehicles supported the cost of importation. They are still registered in Ca.
Now having said that when I replace them I will most likely buy a vehicle locally that is from here. If i was him I would Strongly consider bringing one from Canada and not have to mess with the razzel dazzel.