driving tips For Driving Cars & RV's To mexico
Tips For Driving In Mexico -- General
If you want to drive you car, RV or motorcycle in Mexico, good for you! Driving in Mexico is safe and a good way to see Mexico. Your safety should not be a concern. While the news media reports on violence on the Mexican border, that really doesn't affect you, since you will be driving to the interior of Mexico, not the Mexican border. I live on the Mexican border and go over to eat cabrito, get medications, go to the doctor and dentist etc. and never feel unsafe.
I've been driving Mexico since 1968 and just got back from 2 weeks on the back roads (dirt trails, really) of Durango and Coahuila. For those afraid to drive, I ask this: would you go up to a lonely farm house or ranch in the USA and ask directions? Would you feel comfortable stopping on a narrow dirt road to ask directions from a truck coming the other way? Would you even expect it to stop? Would a stranger in a small town invite you into his house to show it off to you in the States, if you were taking pictures of it? Would you see young children playing without fear in public parks at 10 PM? All these things are true in Mexico. But those people have their minds made up and won't listen to reason.
You will find several different products relating to driving in Mexico (maps, road logs or roadlogs) on my shopping cart, as well as a description of my trip-planning services to help you get the most out of a driving trip to Mexico.
Driving is different in Mexico, so you will want to read the tips here and on other pages in this site before taking your car, RV, motorcycle or trailer to Mexico. Also, you must have Mexican auto insurance, and I recommend clicking on the banner above for the best from Nelson Mexican Insurance Agency, with personal service.
You are driving to the interior of Mexico, so border worries will not affect you. Get dependable Mexican tourist auto insurance by clicking my review and comparison of 3 Mexican insurance companies and use common sense -- and follow "Mexico" Mike's tips below. Mexican highways are better than you think. Mexican toll roads are comparable to toll roads anywhere. I have driven about a million miles in Mexico for the last 30 years. Driving Mexico is the best way to see the country.
Despite what you may have heard from people who have never driven an auto in Mexico, or been past a border town (or even some Mexicans who delight in accentuating negative stereotypes), driving in Mexico is just as safe as driving in the United States or Canada. Seriously, the facts are that you have less chance of having an accident in Mexico than in the States. I used to work for an insurance company, which is why they stay in business. The chances of your being assaulted, or kidnapped are slim to none. You are more likely to have such things happen to you in any city in the USA. But the press only reports drug killings etc. Mexicans read the news and think the United States is unsafe. While we were in Mexico, we heard about school shootings, road rage, assaults and home invasions -- in the good old USA.
Driving an RV to Mexico is a great experience. Don't get hornswoggled into believing you need to go in a caravan. Caravans are fine for those who want a group experience and a guide, but they are not necessary for safety. There are plenty of RV parks and most towns have bypasses so you don't need to worry about getting stuck on tiny streets. For RV driving-specific info, go to my .
For those driving an auto to Mexico, your regular car is just fine to take. You don't have to have an SUV to drive Mexico any more than you do in your home country. Mexicans have mainly Nissans, VW's and other sedans. However, the topes (road bumps to slow down traffic) can take a bite out of your undercarriage. I recently drove an old Mercury Sable and had to stop at each tope. It probably wouldn't have been so bad if I had had good shocks.
Even the esteemed auto experts and my heroes Click and Clack on NPR’s Car Talk, have an incorrect view about driving in Mexico. They are educated and genteel (or gentile) people and I am sure that if they ever read this page, they will see the error of their ways. If not them, then their director of marketing for Eastern Europe, Zbignew Chrysler will surely peruse this site.
Kamikaze — an ancient Aztec ritual in which young men in belching Volkswagen Bugs try to see how many trucks they can pass going up a blind hill.
Ok, some of the things you’ve heard about driving in Mexico are true. Passing on blind curves is a sport, similar to bullfighting. All you need to know about it is that you don’t want to participate. Defensive driving and aggressive driving come in handy. How many of us can compete with NY or Boston cabbies -- or would want to? I have driven in most of the major U.S. cities and find the drivers in Mexico to be generally more polite, particularly the truck drivers and long distance bus drivers.
The good news is that, if you drive defensively, you have less chance of getting into an accident than you do here — according to American companies that sell Mexican auto insurance. Their rates have gone down over the years. Have yours? Claims adjusters gave me some statistics, which I promptly filed in the statistic heaven part of my brain, that proves that a greater percentage of drivers in Texas have accidents than in Mexico.
Impossible, you scoff. It’s true. You must learn to drive defensively, and learn some rules about driving, but once you do that, you will find that driving in Mexico is like performing in a ballet, without having to wear a tutu. For most of us, that is a blessing.
I’ve been driving around Mexico for about thirty years (and I am only 27 <grin>) and have had only one accident. That was due to a leaky muffler and carbon monoxide poisoning. That’s not to say I haven’t had some close calls. A U.S. tour bus driver who was driving in Mexico for the first time, put it best. "People here are actually more polite. They look out for you. For example, the trucks and busses will help you pass by using their turn signals. Other drivers flash their lights to warn you of dangers. In the States, it’s every man for himself."