Having Your Car Painted In Tijuana, Mexico
I just noticed what looks like crazing on the roof of my car. This is less than 3 years since it was painted. I am shocked. I will investigate. John 9 August 2021
My beloved 1995 Camry just passed 250,000 miles. I had promised it a new paint job and a fixing of its dents after that milestone was reached.
I did not want to pay $4,000 for a good paint job in the US. Maaco could paint the car for $1,000, but I was told it would last for 2 years and their reviews on Yelp were horrible.
I found that I could get a good paint job in Tijuana for less than $1,000. Since I live in Los Angeles, that was workable.
Now that it is done, beautifully, I wanted to document what people need to know to do this.
The Concerns
There were some concerns people had when I mentioned what I was going to do.
Is it physically safe to go to Tijuana?
Most people were horrified by my doing this. Even in Los Angeles with a huge Hispanic population and only 140 miles from the border, most people thought I would be taking my life in my hands. I was surprised they were so uninformed.
Some of Mexico is unsafe. But it is a big place. I've never had a problem or felt unsafe in Tijuana. The U.S. government just says to be careful, probably like you would in any large American city.
Is it safe to leave your car in Tijuana?
The owners of the painting companies have worked hard to build up a reputation. This is what allows them to continue to get more customers. Just like company owners in the US who care about their business, the ones in Mexico want to keep that reputation intact.
I saw concern on the Internet that drug smugglers might conceal drugs in my car and take them once I'd crossed the border. Would you go along with this if you were the painting company owner? Allow a major crime to be committed for which you would almost certainly be implicated? Not happening.
Will the quality be good enough?
The quality can be great. Their wage rates are such that they can really spend the time to properly do any body work, prep the car and then paint it.
My uncles owned a body shop in New Jersey from 1935 to 1985. They liked to hire workers from Eastern Europe as they had been trained how to repair damaged parts that Americans would throw away and replace. In their home countries, they could not afford to buy a new part (if it was even available).
Is it safe to drive in Mexico?
Absolutely. However, if you are a nervous driver, then driving in Mexico might not be for you. Perhaps you can bring someone with you who would enjoy the trip and can do the driving.
I personally am from the Vince Lombardi school of defensive driving. Vince Lombardi was a famous American football coach who said "the best defense is a good offense". I do fine.
If you are driving in Mexico, loosen up a bit mentally. People might cut you off, the lanes around the roundabout are not enforced, people might stop in front of you for no apparent reason, no matter. You can get there.
Finding A Place To Paint Your Car
There are probably many places in Tijuana that can paint your car. Those with a social media presence are easier to check out. Some of them speak English and some don't.
These are ones I know about. I texted Colima, Maya and Cats pictures of my car and got quotes texted back. In addition to price, you should find out how long they will need to keep your car. Mine took two weeks.
Colima - Av. Miguel Negrete 158, Zona Centro, 22000 Tijuana, B.C. 313-103-2643 Quote: $750
These guys have a Facebook listing with good reviews.
Maya Body Shop - Calle 3ra 8550, Zona Centro, Tijuana, Baja California 664-688-3672 Quote: $950
These guys have a Facebook listing with good reviews.
Taller Los Ponchos - Av Negrete 958, Zona Centro, Tijuana, Baja California 664-685-4641
Garage Los Panchos - Av. Ocampo Y 3ra, Zona Centro, 22000 Tijuana, Baja California 664-685-8859
There is a blog by someone who used them to repair and paint their van.
Cats - Martin Careaga No. 1010-B, Fracc. Los Altos, Tijuana BC 664-301-9059 Quote: $650
They had painted my neighbor's car and done a great job.
Colima and Maya spoke English. Cats did not. When calling Cats, you should have with you a Spanish speaker who understands basic car and painting terms.
The first four are in downtown Tijuana near the border. The last one is in a suburb called "Los Altos" 5 miles from the border.
Who I Used
I used Cats. The low price made me suspicious at first - I didn't want them to cut corners. I eventually decided to use Cats since, as they had a good relationship with my neighbors, it was probably safe to trust them. I was right.
Getting Your Car There
This involves three steps:
Gathering things you will need for the trip.
Getting your car to the painter.
Getting yourself back home.
Gathering things you will need for the trip
There are several things to gather before you leave:
Mexican Liability Insurance. You can purchase this on-line. Your American insurance probably does not cover Mexico and the Mexican authorities require that you have liability. I purchased liability for the two weeks my car would be there for $120.
Passport or Birth Certificate. A driver's license is no longer enough.
Cash. For the painter and as spending money for the trip. Dollars are fine - I did not find anyone who was not happy taking US currency. Have about $50 in small bills, 5's and 1's, for meals, taxis and whatever else you might want.
Driver's License and Registration.
If you are taking someone else's car to be painted, a Letter Of Authorization saying they authorize you to drive their car. It is illegal to drive someone else's car without permission in Mexico. Look on-line for what this letter should say.
Getting your car to the painter
Get your car to San Diego and then go south on Interstate 5. This crosses the border into Mexico. These lanes continue on until you reach an area where you can choose whether you have anything to declare. The left hand lanes are nothing to declare, the right hand lanes are if you have something to declare.
I drove through the left hand lanes and was pulled over for a spot check. They looked in my trunk and then checked my registration and passport. They checked my car's VIN against the registration.
My time to cross the border was about 15 minutes. This can vary.
To drive to the painter, I just used Apple Maps.
Thank God for map apps. I used to do a lot of driving in foreign countries using microscopically sized maps. Add in concerns about getting lost in bad neighborhoods or, worse, lost without anyone around, such as in a forest or an industrial zone at night, and life is so much easier. Fortunately, Apple Maps works in Tijuana and was still in English.
Drop off your car and pay the down payment. Ensure you get a receipt for your car and the money paid.
Getting yourself back home.
If you are close enough to the border, you can walk there. I took a cab for the 5 miles. It cost $10 but I paid him $20 in appreciation for the driver being a big fan of American baseball.
Now you walk across the border. There is a huge building to hold everyone crossing plus a long fenced walkway to it. I had seen on-line that this could take two hours. At 8 pm on Friday night, there was almost no one crossing. I had to wait 2 minutes to see an immigration officer. A couple of questions and I was done.
The Border Patrol has a web site that gives estimated wait times, both for cars and pedestrians. Look for the San Ysidro crossing on that site. When I used it, the times were 2 hours old, but still correct..
The San Diego Blue Line light rail starts right at the border and can take you to downtown San Diego. I then took the train back to Los Angeles. Much more comfortable than a Greyhound bus. If you do go back via Union Station in Los Angeles and haven't seen it before, make sure you check out the phenomenal lobby which has been restored to its 1930's glory.
Picking Your Car Up
This involves two steps:
Getting your car from the painter.
Getting your car back home.
Getting your car from the painter.
Again, you can take the San Diego Blue Line light rail from downtown San Diego to the border.
As of September, 2018, the route to walk across the border into Mexico is about a quarter mile long and is hilly. This might be temporary as the Mexicans are apparently putting up a new building for border crossings. The passport check and customs are in the middle of that walk and took about 15 minutes.
If you have issues with walking, there is a shuttle on the American side of the border that will take you to downtown Tijuana.
I showed the taxi driver the address on my receipt and he took me to the painter. I had read on the Internet that not all taxis are regulated and the non-regulated ones might take advantage of you. Taxi Libre is a major company and I had no problems with them.
Being over controlling, I watched our progress on a map app and so did not freak out when the route went through a street market I hadn't seen when I dropped the car off. I could tell we were going in the correct direction.
Once there, admire, hopefully, the great work and pay the man. I tipped his guys $50. I like to leave people who do good work happy to have done business with me. Plus if there are any issues later, it should make it easier to handle.
Note that painting a car can involve taking off doors, removing headlights, removing the radio antenna and so on. Before you drive away, check all of these things. The lights all work, all power windows go up and down, the door locks work, etc. If there are any issues, depending on what it is, you might decide to bring the car home anyway and have it fixed there. Expert painters are not necessarily expert electricians.
Getting your car back home.
Even with Apple Maps, I had a lot of trouble finding the border on my way home. It is so large, how do you miss it?
The "Discover Baja" website has the following "We know that trying to find your way to the San Ysidro border in Tijuana to return to the U.S. is challenging for even the most experienced Baja veterans." I feel better now. To help with finding the border, they have a page which explains the route to take with clear photographs of each turn. I recommend you use that. In fact, I recommend you go old school and print out the pictures on that site and take those with you. That might be easier than seeing them on a phone.
One thing to know is that there are three types of expedited crossings. FastPass is a one-time pass handed out by businesses, such as dentists who do dental work on Americans who cross the border to save money. Ready Lane and Sentri Lane require permits applied for and obtained in the US before you go to Mexico.
Assuming you do not have these, you are a Regular crossing. When you do see the border, look for the Regular crossing lanes on the left.
This crossing can apparently take up to 4 hours. My advice is to bring an empty Gatorade bottle. Once you are in line, you cannot just lock up your car and find a bathroom.
As mentioned for crossing as a pedestrian above, the Border Patrol has a web site that gives estimated wait times, both for cars and pedestrians. (Again, look for the San Ysidro crossing on that site.)
What Was Done
This is my car before the work was done. Note the dent over the wheel, the peeling clear coat, the lighter colored gas cap and the doors of different colors. The doors had had to be replaced after a hit and run damaged the original doors.
This is the car after the work was done. They also did the "wrap arounds" so when you open the two doors that had been a different color, the sides of the doors are the new grey paint. Note also the hubcaps - though plastic and not really part of a paint job, they were meticulously cleaned.
A very fine product for only $650. Ready for its next 250,000 miles.
Enjoy Yourself
I enjoy an occasional trip outside the US.
Look for restaurants with locals eating there. The food can be really good and is very inexpensive.
I also like the challenge of talking to people when you do not share a language. When I got stuck, I would type what I wanted to say into Google Translate and then have them read the resulting Spanish. If I got really stuck, I'd look around for an American who looked at home - they might speak Spanish.
I wish I could recommend places to visit. Avenue Revolution is the main tourist drag. If you have never seen it, it might be interesting. There are things to buy there - 20 years ago we bought a great soft handmade leather traveling bag for only $20. Would have been at least $100 in the US I think.
If you have extra time, San Diego has many things to see. And they speak English there!
Phones And Mexico
Using your cell phone in Mexico. I signed up for AT&T's International Day Pass. This allows me to use my phone in Mexico for the same rates as in the U.S. It costs $10 for each day you use it. If you do not use it, there is no charge. This was really good, but sometimes when I tried to do something there was a delay as it verified my status. Then I could see bars and use the phone.
Calling Mexico. I also signed up for AT&T's World Connect Value. For $5/month, I could call Mexico from my cell phone for free. Otherwise, it was $1 a minute. Unfortunately, after I was done, it took months of fighting with AT&T to get this cancelled. So I would pass on this in the future.
Bring a portable cell phone charger. You don't realize how dependent you are on a cell phone until your battery runs out.
Calling Mexican Phone Numbers.
To call someone in Mexico from the US, you must dial 011-52 before the area code and phone number. 011 means the call is to out of the US and 52 means Mexico.
If the number you are calling is a cell phone, you must add a 1 after the 52. Since you won't always know if you are calling a cell phone, if you call someone in Mexico and get a recording in Spanish, you could try adding the 1 after the 52 and see if it works.
This extra 1 for cell phones is only needed when calling from the US. It is not needed if you are in Mexico.
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