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margojean

Jun 2, 2011, 3:54 PM

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Buying a car...

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Complicated situation.

Living in Ajijic, with an FM3. Driving a US-purchased 2003 Murano with South Dakota plates. Have Ontario and Jalisco driver's licenses. Canadian passport. No longer living in US or having a green card, which was the case when we purchased the car, and when we switched from Florida to South Dakota plates.

If we drive to Texas, turn in the car sticker at the border, trade it in and buy a new car in Texas, where can we register it?

Will Texas let us register the car there if we have no Texas driver's license or residence?

Will South Dakota accept a registration from an owner who no longer lives in the USA? Who does not have a US driver's license?

Do we have to sell our car in the US and then buy a Mexican car to resolve this? or drive to Canada to trade and buy?

Any advice? Has anyone out there dealt with a similar situation?
margojean

tashby

Jun 2, 2011, 4:45 PM

Post #2 of 9 (2119 views)

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Re: [margojean] Buying a car...

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I don't know why being a Canadian citizen makes any difference.

I'd take the car back to Texas, sell it outright (not use it as a trade-in on new purchase), then return and buy a Mexican plated car. Why return with another foreign-plated car that might require the same hula-hoops?

Maybe you have a good reason. Don't know.

margojean

Jun 2, 2011, 4:50 PM

Post #3 of 9 (2115 views)

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Re: [tashby] Buying a car...

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Cost more to buy and to insure here.

And, can we get affordable insurance that goes beyond liability, to cover us if we want to drive it to the USA or Canada?
margojean

tashby

Jun 2, 2011, 5:12 PM

Post #4 of 9 (2104 views)

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Re: [margojean] Buying a car...

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I'm not convinced cars cost more in Mexico any longer, even though everyone says they once did.

And I'm no expert on insurance. We have an (old!) US-plated car that we imported, and a few-years-old Mexican-plated vehicle. They both have insurance. Don't plan on driving either one to the U.S. or Canada, so.....different circumstances.

Maybe it would be worth your time to find out what the vehicle of your choice would cost in Mexico, and what the insurance on it would be if Mexican-plated. That could help you determine how much effort is worth putting into the whole project. If the savings justify it, then.....

Good luck.

(This post was edited by tashby on Jun 2, 2011, 5:17 PM)

margojean

Jun 2, 2011, 5:25 PM

Post #5 of 9 (2097 views)

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Re: [tashby] Buying a car...

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Good advice, tasby. We have spent a few hours with dealers in Guadalajara, and will continue with a couple of other sources. So far, they are quoting more than we have been quoted in the US, and cannot take our car in trade, so the cost of an extra trip to the US to sell it has to be added in.

Buying a car in the US has some advantages for us, IF it can be done. If not, then a Mexican-plated car may be our only option.
margojean

margojean

Jun 2, 2011, 5:27 PM

Post #6 of 9 (2092 views)

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Re: [tashby] Buying a car...

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Sorry - I meant tashby. I have to learn to look at the screen when I type.
margojean

Don Gringo

Jun 2, 2011, 8:04 PM

Post #7 of 9 (2049 views)

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Re: [margojean] Buying a car...

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I am no expert on this...

I do live on the border in Nuevo Laredo though.

Do not call anyone about legalizing the car as they will attempt to rip you off. Prices to legalize will be much cheaper in person than calling from a US/Canada phone number. They have caller ID and the price doubles or triples just because of that US/Canada number.

Show up in person to an agency that deals in legalization within the border of Mexico. If you stay within the "point of no return" you can cross back into the US with the usual hassle of crossing into the US.

Cars on the border region with "Blue titles in Texas" meaning good title can be purcahsed fairly cheap. That being said trade-ins will also be cheap. Best to trade-in farther north of the Mexico/US border for better trade values. Or just sell it outright and buy cheap on the border with a clean title for the purchased car.

Also, there are plenty of Insurance agencies on the border that can offer Mexico insurance, and can sometimes offer you the US insurance for the same price. Depends on the agency.

Hope it helps in guiding you. It is not meant as legal advice.
Lived for 35 months in Mexico. I feel like I paid my dues...

RickS

Jun 3, 2011, 8:01 PM

Post #8 of 9 (1978 views)

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Re: [margojean] Buying a car...

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"Will South Dakota accept a registration from an owner who no longer lives in the USA? Who does not have a US driver's license."

South Dakota (Clay County specifically) has always 'required' that the license be issued to a resident of the US (at least I dont think they would license one if one gave their address in a foreign country). Last year they began to also require that one give them a copy of their driver's license.

So I think the answer to your questions above is...... no.

And I don't think (but don't know for sure!) that Texas will still issue tags to a non-resident, much less a foreign resident.

RickS

Jun 3, 2011, 8:17 PM

Post #9 of 9 (1971 views)

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Re: [tashby] Buying a car...

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The 'only' problems with driving to Texas and selling the car outright is...... it's just not that easy to find a willing buyer in a reasonable timeframe unless the seller is willing to 'give' it away or has arranged somehow to sell it to someone prior to the drive up. And, as someone from the border area mentioned, cars along the border bring less than if one drives still farther into Texas (how far I guess depends on the exact border crossing area).