# Transportation



## LoveAll-IslandMan (Jul 30, 2016)

Hola! 

Thank you everyone for such great advice for past posts.

I am moving to San Jose Del Cabo...first with a tourist visa for 6-12 months with flights back to states every 2-3 months.

1) As I understand it autos, motorcycles, atvs, dune buggys, 3 wheelers and what other motorized modes of transportation need mexican insurance by law? 

2) Which motorized modes of transportation do not need mexican insurance by law? (electric bikes? Mopeds? Any others please????)

Thanks! 
Have a super day!


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## RVGRINGO (May 16, 2007)

No matter what motorized vehicle, you definitely want it to be insurable. If you injure someone, or damage infrastructure, you will want the “get out of jail“ feature that such insurance can provide. It would be very foolish to be uninsured. Ask anyone who has spent time in a Mexican jail or prison.


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## Gatos (Aug 16, 2016)

At the same time - it should be mentioned that auto insurance (actually insurance in general) is way cheaper than in the US - even top of the line policies. When we first got here we only had 'liability' insurance. Since then we have added collision (at the suggestion of our Mexican mechanic). The cost is peanuts. We purchased our insurance at our Mexican bank.


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## chicois8 (Aug 8, 2009)

Also if you enter Mexico with an FMM you can not just fly out of the country and leave your vehicle, it would be considered abandoned and could be confiscated...


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## LoveAll-IslandMan (Jul 30, 2016)

Gatos said:


> At the same time - it should be mentioned that auto insurance (actually insurance in general) is way cheaper than in the US - even top of the line policies. When we first got here we only had 'liability' insurance. Since then we have added collision (at the suggestion of our Mexican mechanic). The cost is peanuts. We purchased our insurance at our Mexican bank.



The mexican insurance to rent a car when I visited mexico, was very expensive at $35 a day for a rent a car for 1 week. The car itself was only $6 a day. And, my early look at mexican needed insurance if I was to bring my car also seemed pretty high. It sounds like what you are saying is that when I get more than a tourist visa the costs are much less? : )


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## chicois8 (Aug 8, 2009)

Depending on coverage and value of vehicle, my vehicle is valued at 25K and for a year with full coverage it cost about $450.00USD.......I insure with Baja Bound......


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## Gatos (Aug 16, 2016)

LoveAll-IslandMan said:


> The mexican insurance to rent a car when I visited mexico, was very expensive at $35 a day for a rent a car for 1 week. The car itself was only $6 a day. And, my early look at mexican needed insurance if I was to bring my car also seemed pretty high. It sounds like what you are saying is that when I get more than a tourist visa the costs are much less? : )


I have not rented a car in Mexico in perhaps 4-5 years. But when I did - as when I rent a car in the US - I always charge the rental to a credit card which provides 'free' liability insurance. True - I need to purchase collision.

When we moved here I purchased a short-term policy through AAA US for our Mexican coverage. It was 'pricey' and became invalid when we were no longer tourists. 

I am sure that our Mexican bank - where we have an excellent relationship - would look upon us totally differently were we not permanent residents (with a decent balance).

We actually have two cars here in Mexico at the moment. The (15 year old) car we brought down (and imported) and the new car purchased in the spring (now with 500 kms or so). The (top of the line) insurance coverage (AXA) for both cars is incredibly similar in cost.


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## maesonna (Jun 10, 2008)

When our (Mexican-purchased) car was new, annual insurance was the current equivalent of over $USD 500. Now that it’s a few years old, it’s down to more like a little over $300 (USD) annually.

You don’t want to be without Mexican insurance. If you’re in an accident, the insurer sends an agent who stays with you until the lawyer gets there, then the lawyer stays with you until no longer needed and you’re free to go. Insurance through your U.S. credit card wouldn’t provide that.


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## LMtortugas (Aug 23, 2013)

LoveAll-IslandMan said:


> The mexican insurance to rent a car when I visited mexico, was very expensive at $35 a day for a rent a car for 1 week. The car itself was only $6 a day. And, my early look at mexican needed insurance if I was to bring my car also seemed pretty high. It sounds like what you are saying is that when I get more than a tourist visa the costs are much less? : )


Vehicle insurance purchased on a daily basis (i.e. rental or TIP) is the most costly. As the policy term increases the premium decreases accordingly.


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## drewjones (Aug 15, 2016)

Get Mexican insurance on your drivers license, not on the individual vehicles. It will save you a few bucks.

I use these guys
https://www.bajabound.com/


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## LoveAll-IslandMan (Jul 30, 2016)

OK. Thanks everyone for all the great information. Can I buy a car in Mexico (and get all insurance I need including mexican) on a Tourist Visa and not need to change the visa? Or must I rent to keep the tourist visa status?


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## sparks (Jun 17, 2007)

chicois8 said:


> Also if you enter Mexico with an FMM you can not just fly out of the country and leave your vehicle, it would be considered abandoned and could be confiscated...


If you don't need a TIP in Baja ...... how are they tracking you ?


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## chicois8 (Aug 8, 2009)

On the FMM there is a box that says " sello de entrada" which translate to "Entry Stamp" where the date of entry is stamped along with a silhouette of a car showing the way you entered Mexico, a silhouette of an airplane shows you entered by air...


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## LoveAll-IslandMan (Jul 30, 2016)

I hope to keep my tourist visa as long as possible...traveling back to states every 2-3 months to see daughter and client for only about 1 week. It would be will optimal for me to return to mexico to my apartment and car (that I'd like to buy - as driving my car would take over 40 hrs and that is not good for my back). 

Thoughts? Issues on this plan? Thanks again for your wisdom kind people!


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## lagoloo (Apr 12, 2011)

LoveAll-IslandMan said:


> I hope to keep my tourist visa as long as possible...traveling back to states every 2-3 months to see daughter and client for only about 1 week. It would be will optimal for me to return to mexico to my apartment and car (that I'd like to buy - as driving my car would take over 40 hrs and that is not good for my back).
> 
> Thoughts? Issues on this plan? Thanks again for your wisdom kind people!


I'm not entirely clear on what you want to do, but here are some things to consider:

A tourist visa is only good for 180 days. After that, you need to return to the states and get another one. This might not always work in the future, as rules tend to tighten. It sounds like you would be better off getting a temporary resident or permanent resident visa. The temp visa allows you to be out of the country for ? days per year, but more than you've described needing. Permanent residents have no restrictions.

40 hours driving? What part of Mexico is that far from the border? Personally, I'd try to relocate to a place with a convenient airport and take advantage of some of the "deals" airlines offer. 20 hours driving is a real "ouch" on anyone's back.
:juggle:


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## LoveAll-IslandMan (Jul 30, 2016)

lagoloo said:


> I'm not entirely clear on what you want to do, but here are some things to consider:
> 
> A tourist visa is only good for 180 days. After that, you need to return to the states and get another one. This might not always work in the future, as rules tend to tighten. It sounds like you would be better off getting a temporary resident or permanent resident visa. The temp visa allows you to be out of the country for ? days per year, but more than you've described needing. Permanent residents have no restrictions.
> 
> ...


I currently live in Illinois. Plan to move to San Jose Del Cabo (about $400 round trip most of the time). I've sent the question to Mexican Embassy in Kansas City. If they respond I will post it here. : )


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## chicois8 (Aug 8, 2009)

LoveAll-IslandMan said:


> I hope to keep my tourist visa as long as possible...traveling back to states every 2-3 months to see daughter and client for only about 1 week.


Maybe I'm wrong in the way I am reading your post... First of all there is no tourist visa for Americans, there is an FMM or tourist permit and it is for one (1) entry and exit in Mexico,the airline ticket person will take it from you when you fly out every 2 to 3 months, you will get a new one when you fly back and it will be paid for in the new air ticket price...
If you get caught by customs or the airline trying to leave without your car you may be denied boarding...


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## RVGRINGO (May 16, 2007)

In other words, a tourist may not leave Mexico without his temporarily imported car. Once you turn in your FMM to fly out, your car is no longer legal in Mexico and your insurance may be invalid. Bad stuff can happen.


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## Gatos (Aug 16, 2016)

Perhaps I missed something in my reading but I think the original question is an interesting one. Can a tourist purchase, insure, and plate a Mexican car ? I did a quick google search and it looks like a tourist to the US can.

The issue of a TIP expiring or removing the car from Mexico when the tourist visa expires would seem to not apply - it would be a Mexican car.


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## chicois8 (Aug 8, 2009)

Baja, parts of Sonora and Quintana Roo are areas in Mexico that do not require a TIP to enter with an automobile...
It is my understanding a Mexican Drivers License is need to purchase and automobile in Mexico and you can not obtain a Mexican drivers license as an FMM tourist permit holder........
Even if you could get the license you would have to be proficient in Spanish since the written test is in Spanish.........


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## TundraGreen (Jul 15, 2010)

chicois8 said:


> Baja, parts of Sonora and Quintana Roo are areas in Mexico that do not require a TIP to enter with an automobile...
> It is my understanding a Mexican Drivers License is need to purchase and automobile in Mexico and you can not obtain a Mexican drivers license as an FMM tourist permit holder........
> Even if you could get the license you would have to be proficient in Spanish since the written test is in Spanish.........


At least in Jalisco, the written driver's license test is computer-based with 10 multiple choice questions. You do have to be able to read Spanish a little but very little. There is a picture to go with the statement of the situation then 4 options for the answer. I have both a car and motorcycle Jalisco license. When I took the motorcycle license, I missed 4 of the 10 questions and still passed.

Are you sure about the need for a license to purchase. No one asked about my license when I bought a motorcycle earlier this year.


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## Gatos (Aug 16, 2016)

We went for our Mexican driver's licences shortly after getting here. My Spanish was pretty much non-existent. We probably all laughed about it. They handed my wife and I two thin booklets with perhaps 20 multiple choice questions. They put us in a classroom like setting and told us to work on the tests together  I don't remember how many questions I got wrong but I believe I did better than my wife 

We have now imported one car and purchased another here in Mexico. I think the only time I've been asked for my Mexican license is to verify my ID at a retail checkout when I use my credit card (I'm sure I could have just as easily handed them my residency card).

Of all the steps in getting our cars 'street-legal' I think the people who were the real 'sticklers' were the people who issued the plates (Transporte). If there is someone who would have insisted on residency, it would have been them. I don't remember.


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## dwwhiteside (Apr 17, 2013)

The drivers license thing definitely varies from State to State as it is, of course, the State that is issuing the drivers license. Here in Colima, I had to show my valid Texas DL and something with proof of address. Then I had to answer a few questions from a Dr. whose office was immediately across the hall from the office issuing the licenses. I walked in with the necessary paperwork, paid the fee and walked out about an hour later with a Colima, Mexico drivers license. Oh, and the fee I paid was the lower renewal fee, not the initial license fee. They basically treated me as if my Texas license was being renewed as a Colima license.


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## TundraGreen (Jul 15, 2010)

dwwhiteside said:


> The drivers license thing definitely varies from State to State as it is, of course, the State that is issuing the drivers license. Here in Colima, I had to show my valid Texas DL and something with proof of address. Then I had to answer a few questions from a Dr. whose office was immediately across the hall from the office issuing the licenses. I walked in with the necessary paperwork, paid the fee and walked out about an hour later with a Colima, Mexico drivers license. Oh, and the fee I paid was the lower renewal fee, not the initial license fee. They basically treated me as if my Texas license was being renewed as a Colima license.


Getting drivers licenses was definitely the easiest, fastest bureaucratic activity I have experienced in Mexico. There were four steps: fingerprint/photo, computer written test, driving test, payment. Then they handed you a license. Each step took about 5 minutes. The driving test consisted of one loop around a small parking lot with four stops. For the car you had to parallel park. They supplied both cars and motorcycles for the test. The fee was half price for seniors and seniors went to the head of the lines which weren't very long or were nonexistent anyway. When I took the car driving test there were about 6 or 8 people waiting to drive around the loop. They asked if anyone could drive a stick shift. I was the only one, so I jumped ahead of that line too.


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## Gatos (Aug 16, 2016)

No driving tests for us, but we may have shown our stateside licenses. I believe we got an INAPAM discount as well. We did have eye exams. License is good for 5 years. It is interesting that the nacionalidad is Mexicana (some day maybe).

I know Mexico is getting more and more modern all the time, especially near larger cities - but I really wish they would mail something to the house when it was time to renew something (like a drivers license, car registration, property taxes, IMSS etc). Must have something to do with preserving the bureaucracy (and the jobs). Transporte has to be the most archaic setup in the country. They do have the online payment thing (SPEI) down to a science. Oh well...


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## eastwind (Jun 18, 2016)

@dwwhiteside, when you used your Texas license to get a Mexican one, did you have to surrender the Texas license or did you just show it and keep it as well as the new Colima one?


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## TundraGreen (Jul 15, 2010)

Gatos said:


> No driving tests for us, but we may have shown our stateside licenses. I believe we got an INAPAM discount as well. We did have eye exams. License is good for 5 years. It is interesting that the nacionalidad is Mexicana (some day maybe). …


Mine are good for 4 years, must be state specific. The nacionalidad on my licenses is "EstadoUnidense". However, I have since become a Mexican citizen. I read somewhere that I should get new licenses with the correct nationality. Does anyone know if that is really necessary?


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## dwwhiteside (Apr 17, 2013)

eastwind said:


> @dwwhiteside, when you used your Texas license to get a Mexican one, did you have to surrender the Texas license or did you just show it and keep it as well as the new Colima one?


I just showed it to them and they handed it back to me. I still have it and the new Colima license. The Texas license does not expire until 2018 so I guess, if I go back there between now and then, I will take it along.


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## maesonna (Jun 10, 2008)

Just for FYI, compare that to the requirements for a driver’s license in CDMX (Mexico City, the former DF): (1) ID (Mexican official ID for Mexicans, or passport and residency permit/[aka visa] for foreigners; (2) payment of fee; (3) the usual proof of address; and (4) proof that the applicant is literate (knows how to read and write). 
Do you see what’s missing? Not only is there no test (written or practical) but there is not even a requirement of being able to drive. If you are 18 years or older, you can literally get your license first, and then start learning to drive.


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## dwwhiteside (Apr 17, 2013)

maesonna said:


> Just for FYI, compare that to the requirements for a driver’s license in CDMX (Mexico City, the former DF): (1) ID (Mexican official ID for Mexicans, or passport and residency permit/[aka visa] for foreigners; (2) payment of fee; (3) the usual proof of address; and (4) proof that the applicant is literate (knows how to read and write).
> Do you see what’s missing? Not only is there no test (written or practical) but there is not even a requirement of being able to drive. If you are 18 years or older, you can literally get your license first, and then start learning to drive.


Well, that explains a lot. I truly love living in Mexico and after nearly four years here I have no plans to leave. But some of the things I have seen drivers here do are truly mind boggling. So this does explain things a bit.


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## AlanMexicali (Jun 1, 2011)

maesonna said:


> Just for FYI, compare that to the requirements for a driver’s license in CDMX (Mexico City, the former DF): (1) ID (Mexican official ID for Mexicans, or passport and residency permit/[aka visa] for foreigners; (2) payment of fee; (3) the usual proof of address; and (4) proof that the applicant is literate (knows how to read and write).
> Do you see what’s missing? Not only is there no test (written or practical) but there is not even a requirement of being able to drive. If you are 18 years or older, you can literally get your license first, and then start learning to drive.


http://www.publimetro.com.mx/notici...n-para-licencia-de-manejo/mpcE!QBAAJZXmt8E16/


Google Translation:

"Then tests will be effective until 2017, he was questioned, what he said, "that's the bet, we do not want to scare the public, it is a process, we will undertake together and that is one of the measures we need to strengthen vision Zero ".

The examination to obtain a driver's license shall apply only to those who are first-timers, that is, for one who does the processing for the first time, but who already have the document need not be subjected to the evaluations.

Article 65 of the Law of Mobility, which came into force in July 2014, states that "for obtaining licenses or permits to conduct any kind, be necessary to prove assessments and appropriate courses for the purpose by the Secretary".

In 2003 the Government of Mexico City decided to end the tests to obtain a driver's license because this encouraged bribery and corruption, which facilitated that anyone could get the endorsement even without knowing driving.

Currently it is possible to obtain a driver's license type A, which is needed to drive a particular car only presenting an official ID, proof of address and make the payment of fees amounting to 725.50 pesos.

The driving permit for minors which are not subject to examination handling- will cost 372.50 pesos, according to the 2016 Tax Code of the City of Mexico."


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## perropedorro (Mar 19, 2016)

dwwhiteside said:


> The drivers license thing definitely varies from State to State as it is, of course, the State that is issuing the drivers license. Here in Colima, I had to show my valid Texas DL and something with proof of address. Then I had to answer a few questions from a Dr. whose office was immediately across the hall from the office issuing the licenses. I walked in with the necessary paperwork, paid the fee and walked out about an hour later with a Colima, Mexico drivers license. Oh, and the fee I paid was the lower renewal fee, not the initial license fee. They basically treated me as if my Texas license was being renewed as a Colima license.


My experience too. Presenting a valid NOB license, which is copied and returned, in Colima seems to get you waived from any sort of exam, either written, driving or vision. The doctor wasn't in that day so I had to go to Cruz Roja for the blood type verification. Just the other usual stuff, passport, RT, proof of residency, fingerprints. I also got a motorcycle endorsement just for the asking although I haven't rode one in over 25 years. Thought I'd indulge a second adolescence one of these days. Colima is quick and easy, but exorbitant by local economic standards. The car-moto license combo put me back 950 pesos. Little wonder why almost none of the locals where I live has a DL.


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## TundraGreen (Jul 15, 2010)

perropedorro said:


> My experience too. Presenting a valid NOB license, which is copied and returned, in Colima seems to get you waived from any sort of exam, either written, driving or vision. The doctor wasn't in that day so I had to go to Cruz Roja for the blood type verification. Just the other usual stuff, passport, RT, proof of residency, fingerprints. I also got a motorcycle endorsement just for the asking although I haven't rode one in over 25 years. Thought I'd indulge a second adolescence one of these days. Colima is quick and easy, but exorbitant by local economic standards. The car-moto license combo put me back 950 pesos. Little wonder why almost none of the locals where I live has a DL.


I think each license is around 700 pesos in Jalisco. They give a 50% discount to over-60, so I paid half of that. The motorcycle and car licenses are separate so you pay for each of them separately. I got a car license a few years ago after my US license was stolen. I don't have a car but occasionally rent or drive a friend's car. Then I got a motorcycle license this year.


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