So, you’d like to have some parts sent down to Mexico?
Maybe your vehicle is broken down while traveling here. Or maybe you are one of our restorations customers. Either way, its important to understand what is involved in having parts sent here (spoiler: its not like home)
Let’s first start by establishing something. There is no place in the world that has parts and products as readily available and as cheap as the United States. The U.S. is the capital of cheap goods.
Mexico on the other hand is an export market. This means that most things produced in Mexico are shipped out of the country for export. So while yes, that cheap part you buy in the states may have been made in Mexico, it likely isn’t sold in Mexico. It need to be reimported from the U.S. to be sold here. Crazy right?
This means that most all of the parts/products available here have to be imported.
Let’s first start by establishing something. There is no place in the world that has parts and products as readily available and as cheap as the United States. The U.S. is the capital of cheap goods.
Mexico on the other hand is an export market. This means that most things produced in Mexico are shipped out of the country for export. So while yes, that cheap part you buy in the states may have been made in Mexico, it likely isn’t sold in Mexico. It need to be reimported from the U.S. to be sold here. Crazy right?
This means that most all of the parts/products available here have to be imported.
So whats involved in importation? There are several ways to get something to La Paz…
There may be other scenarios I’m missing, but the bottom line is, that getting your part to Mexico is neither cheap nor fast. It’s slow and expensive. When folks come to me asking for my help, the only way that I can help them so that I’m not on the hook is to use my importer in San Diego. It’s the most reliable way to do it. Also note, the prices for that service, do not include any markup for us. This being a business after all, we have to charge a markup as well.
So whats one to do? Well, first of all you should go through your vehicle before leaving and make sure it’s up to snuff, and then try to bring as many spare parts for critical things as you can. Think fan belts, ignition coils, that sort of thing. Bring down with you all of the things that you think you might need for your restoration, if thats the case.
Then, you will need to resign yourself to the fact that if more parts are required for your vehicle while you are here, it’s going to be slow and expensive. If theres any good news to be had, its that so far, there hasnt been anything that I have not been able to get down here, provided someone is willing to pay the price and be patient. Viva Mexico!
- You ship it directly here to a Mexican address (you know someone here, you have a home here, or a shop) using one of the major carriers. UPS works ok, I’ve found DHL works best. You pay the shipping fee, it stops in customs on its way into the country, and typically a 16% tax is applied, plus a fee charged by those companies for their services. Somewhere around 10% of the time, maybe more, the shipment will get held up in customs, and an exorbitant amount demanded for the taxes, or it just gets stuck randomly. Sometimes you will need to hire a customs agent to get it unstuck, sometimes it just disappears. Welcome to Mexico! One time, I purchased a $200 cylinder head for my boat from British Columbia, had the guy crate it up, ship it UPS to me in Puerto Vallarta. It got impounded in Tijuana, they claimed that the crate needed to be fumigated before being sent, and it ended up costing me $2500 to hire a customs broker and all of the fees and taxes to get it. I was screwed because it was the only Perkins 154 cylinder head I could find in the world. And so, I paid. Is this an acceptable risk to you and your shipment? If yes, this could be a good route.
- I have a shipping broker in San Diego. We ship the product to them, they receive it, put it on their weekly (sometimes biweekly) truck down, and I receive it here in 2-4 weeks. Long time right? Here are the costs involved with this option. Shipping to San Diego and California sales taxes, importation 16% to Mexico, and then shipping from San Diego to La Paz. It aint cheap, and it aint fast, but it’s the most reliable option. It gets here, eventually.
- You have a friend driving or flying from the states. You ask your friend nicely (or bribe them with Cervezas) and they risk flying down with whatever widget you need. This is potentially very fast, and very cheap (they’re coming here anyway). What they, and you might not realize is that at arrival in Mexico you will go through customs and randomly they will search you for things that you will need to pay taxes on. No big deal right? If you have a receipt, and you dont mind paying the 16% then no. If you want to roll the dice and try to sneak across the expensive part, and then they catch you, a fun new game begins. The game is, that the agents will bring up a magical version of eBay or Amazon on their phone, where all of the prices are greatly inflated. That $300 part you’re bringing, its $800 on their phone. No no you say, it was only $300. If you dont have a receipt, they will tell you its the inflated price, and you can pay the taxes or they can keep you widget. Thats the game and they have all of the leverage. Assuming you dont have a receipt.
- You drive it over. Same risks as above, but you can bring in larger items. Need a transmission from the states? It’s tempting to do it this way. Most of the time, it works out, but randomly you will get searched at the border and the same game will be played as was played in the airport.
There may be other scenarios I’m missing, but the bottom line is, that getting your part to Mexico is neither cheap nor fast. It’s slow and expensive. When folks come to me asking for my help, the only way that I can help them so that I’m not on the hook is to use my importer in San Diego. It’s the most reliable way to do it. Also note, the prices for that service, do not include any markup for us. This being a business after all, we have to charge a markup as well.
So whats one to do? Well, first of all you should go through your vehicle before leaving and make sure it’s up to snuff, and then try to bring as many spare parts for critical things as you can. Think fan belts, ignition coils, that sort of thing. Bring down with you all of the things that you think you might need for your restoration, if thats the case.
Then, you will need to resign yourself to the fact that if more parts are required for your vehicle while you are here, it’s going to be slow and expensive. If theres any good news to be had, its that so far, there hasnt been anything that I have not been able to get down here, provided someone is willing to pay the price and be patient. Viva Mexico!