Driving a $500,000 Motor Home In Baja - Mexico

[dexters]

Originally Posted by Just For Fun

A while back I asked a similar question, something like "Your comfort level driving a very expensive rig." The answers ranged dramatically - some evening getting irritated I'd asked. So, I'm address this SPECIFICALLY to those who travel to economically strapped areas like Baja Mexico ONLY!!!!!! "Are you comfortable driving your expensive motor home (or 5th wheel or travel trailer or...) into, through and around economically impoverished countries like Baja Mexico?"

One big concern would be if there was accident.

https://www.mexicoonmymind.com/what-...ent-in-mexico/

In Mexico, you are not innocent until proven guilty, you are guilty until proven innocent. The bail bond, in most cases, will get you released pending investigation.

[dagreen]

My advice is no.
Visited across the border from El Paso into Warez.
You become a target for money hand outs and/or corruption.
Insurance? ???

[peterson]

I, too, appreciate the post by BeachDude.

I've been to Baja - really been to Baja, as in, almost every back dirt road there - several times. I'm going again in about two weeks. We usually go for five or six weeks at a time. We too worry about all our stuff in the back of the truck - exactly as we worry about our stuff in hotel parking lots in Caucasian or Hispanic parts of USA.

The biggest worry about Baja is road conditions and traffic.

[jpstakun]

Even if you are driving a 1982 Toyota Corolla, you will be seen as a Gringo with money. Anytime you travel in that part of the world you are at risk. It's now getting that way in the U.S. in border states. Travel wisely.

[jpstakun]

Originally Posted by montyhp

Beach dude, your post is more than a little offensive. The concerns are not so much for the color of the people's skin our their heritage, but their propensity to rob and kidnap. Don't call me any names, just read the news. By the way, what I don't like about you is the fact you call people names, had nothing to do with the color of your skin.

Right, color of skin doesn't matter. It's the corruption of the Mexican government which has caused the massive poverty in that country that forces those folks into crime. I will not travel to that country to perpetuate this.

[peterson]

Leaving saturday 14 november 2015 for our third RV trip to Baja. Will be gone about three or four weeks. We'll let you all know how it went when we get back.

[cdinatl]

Reading some of these posts make me question whether common sense exists anymore. I suppose you travelers south of the border would also walk down the streets of the Chicago ghetto wearing a $50000 Rolex too. 😳


"life happens, enjoy it".. 🇺🇸
2008 HR Ambassador DP 360 38'

[jpstakun]

Originally Posted by CampDaven

I encourage travel to Mexico and South America.
More room in AZ, TX, and CA.
Thanks!

Been to Colombia, Brazil, Argentina, Peru, and Mexico and looked down the barrel of too many sub-machine guns carried by some 18 year old soldier/kid with an itchy trigger finger. Had a bomb go off in my hotel in Buenos Aires. Drive my RV down there? Hell no! Been there, done that! I'll never go South of the Rio Grande again.

[steve11669]

I believe everyone should decide their own actions but this is my view. 6 months ago I moved into my 2004 DP to "full time" and have been based out of San Diego since then. The previous 4 years, I lived in an apartment in Tijuana and got a first hand understanding of the area, culture and people. I am very hesitant to take my mtr home into MX for 2 main reasons (and many smaller reasons). 1st is that the traffic moves without rule enforcement, and the typical MX driver has no driver education, or regard for safety or responsibility. It is really like a free for all with children behind the wheels. The road system is basic but not great. Ok for a car, but not for a large RV. The second reason I hesitate to take my RV to MX is that the country is built on theivery, corruption and lying! I dont hate, it's that I've lived it for 4 years. So when arriving at a destinatiin in MX, now there's security issues. I have been traveling the western states for the last 6 months and have loved living, driving, visiting, seeing, meeting, trusting the people whos values are closer to mine (with 1 theft of a bicycle in San Diego). I am leaning towards keeping my RV on the US side and continue to make day trips to Tijuana when I desire.

[pjb]

I just returned from a drive down-fly back trip with a friend of mine. We towed his 25 ft. Davis sport fisher down to Loreto and to Mag Bay with his E-350 Ford van. Highway 1 is traveled by everyone, including big rigs and busses. The highway is narrow and there are many, many areas of no shoulder. Pretty scary. I would not drive my 39 ft. Fleetwood motorhome down that highway for those reasons. There is no escaping an oncoming errant driver. And, as someone mentioned, the beating it could take.

[Notlad]

Originally Posted by BeachDude

My comment is really no more offensive than the posts for which it refers to. You don't think that your comment, "their propensity to rob and kidnap", isn't ridiculously offensive??

Regarding calling people names, if it walks like a Duck, "talks" like a Duck, and "writes" like a Duck, it's most likely a Duck.

You may choose to ignore the Ducks, I confront Ducks.

By the way montyhp, what I don't like about you has nothing to do with the color of your skin either.

You may enjoy RVing in Mexico but to act like the crime rate and danger there is not extremely high is whistling in the graveyard at night. i work for a large corporation and had to transfer some business to our Juarez and El Paso locations a few years ago. The young Mexican woman who worked for our compnay who would gather me from our El Paso location and chauffer me to Juarez told me, when I asked about life there, that her and her husband went straight home from work and read, played games or watched television as they were to afraid to go out.

The GM of the Juarez location took me to lunch and apologized that there were not as many choices for nice restaurants anymore because so many had been burned to the ground because of Arson when the owners refused to pay protection money. Most of the owners declined to rebuild in Juarez.

It is not bigoted or racist to point out the facts about Mexico. Any quick Google search for statistical and anecdotal news stories about mexico will show how dangerous it is.

If someone wants to risk their life and travel there with their family that is their choice and clearly many do and do so without harm...so far. However it doesn't make someone evil to point out the dangers.

[noserider]

For those of you that have never lived in a third world country ( I have) you do not grasp the dangers that are present. Stay thirsty my friends. Enjoy the USA !

[TonyMac]

If you'r gonna take and expensive rig into Mexico, might I advise an M1-A1 Abrams. So very many of these people are corrupt to the core, and they get it from their leaders.

[radar]

Originally Posted by TonyMac

If you'r gonna take and expensive rig into Mexico, might I advise an M1-A1 Abrams. So very many of these people are corrupt to the core, and they get it from their leaders.

Wow, sounds like you had a bad experience there. I would love to hear more details of what happened to you. We have RVed extensively in Mexico and would go back in a heart beat. What the heck happened? And where???