RNE for buying a car

@kevingerrish

I am not so stupid as to try to do something like that, so no I have no experience.

@Peter Itamaraca best advice!!! He will get robbed and it will get stolen even if he makes it to Mexico by boat. Also the US have diff standards and he will have to change whatever to use it there. Cars here are not built the same..I saw on W5 they showed a vehicle..and the welds were way less then what is done elsewhere. I shudder while driving here because  even at the best of times these idiots here don't  maintain their vehicles and think they're in the indy 500.

@kevingerrish, I am not sure about the wisdom of driving from Brazil to California but if you are looking for an adventure, you probably would have one on the way.

To your question, if you already have insurance in California, you can get partial coverage from your existing policy - you will need to check the fine prints.  If you can pay for the purchase using a credit card, you can get some travel coverage - but this coverage tend to apply to passenger cars and not SUVs.  I am sure that you can also contact Allianz which provides international insurance coverage but it will probably be expensive.

One last question - what are you planning to do with the car in California?  Before you can register in California, you will need to smog check the car and if your vehicle does not meet emissions requirements, you are essentially out of luck.

Why not rent a car from Brazil and return it in California?  I am sure that you will be able to enjoy the trip more while not worrying about what may happen as the rental car company will provide you with all the necessary insurance for a fee.  In this way, you can pay the rental car company with your credit card - and this should cover for theft and many of the usual worries associated with driving a car....

04/05/24    @Peter Itamaraca Are you speaking from experience?   

    -@kevingerrish

This is something that I would never do, and if you were my son or my brother I would do my best to talk you out of it, but if I were going to do it, here are some of the precautions I'd take, for what it's worth.

• Smart decision to go around the Darién Gap rather than through it.  You'd be lucky to emerge on the north side alive, so don't change your mind.
• Travel in daylight, especially through high crime areas. 
• If possible, don't go alone and don't go with a wife or girlfriend.  Go with another male friend who looks like he can handle himself.  You don't have to look like the baddest dudes to blow through town, just like you're more trouble to handle than it's worth.
• Buy a car with 4-wheel drive or with some kind of enhanced traction, and buy tires that can run flat.  You're going to run into some horrible roads.
• You should be relatively safe as far as the Brazilian border, and have access to fuel that won't damage your engine.
• Have the contact information for every US Consulate in every country you're going to cross on your person at all times, especially the ones closest to your route.
• Consider a satellite phone.  Gear is a balancing act:  the more and better gear you have, the more attractive target for murder and robbery you are.  On the other hand, cell reception is going to be iffy or non-existent for a lot of the trip, and you don't want to be incommunicado for any length of time.
• Plan out your route in detail, highways and cities, all the way, before you go.  Know the fueling options in each country, and where you're going to fuel.
• Have somebody Stateside monitoring your trip.  Report to them when you arrive in each place, how long you plan to stay, where you're heading when you leave, and how long you expect it to take for you to get there. Arrange with them to contact the local authorities at your last reported location if they don't hear from you in a fixed number of days; three at most, two would be better.
• There is no way to avoid Nicaragua (a repressive dictatorship) or Honduras (a country with enormous criminal gang problems), so try to get through as quickly as you can, attracting as little attention as possible.

I assume that you're familiar with Mexico, and know how to stay safe there.   Once you're past Chiapas and Oaxaca, the Bajío, the area of the Central Plateau north of Mexico City that contains Querétaro, Guanajuato, San Luís Potosí, Aguascalientes, and part of Jalisco, may be somewhat safer than the coast roads, but things change so quickly that you'll have to monitor the situation constantly.  Best of luck to you.

@abthree

You are assuming he is going to be safe once he gets to California?

04/05/24    @abthree
You are assuming he is going to be safe once he gets to California? -@Peter Itamaraca

I charge for information on how to stay safe in California, and only accept cash.  No refunds. 🤑