BajaNomad

Crossing the border with full fuel cans, insurance and mutt

mooneydrvr - 10-14-2019 at 09:15 AM

Hi all. Some of you may know me from flying back and forth to Mulege, Loreto and all points south. Needless to say, I have figured out the process flying; however, the DW and I are planning on taking the MH south this winter to include a open trailer with a Polaris RZR. My questions for you experienced road travelers are 1)...are there any issues crossing the border, north or south, with full fuel cans. Because we will be boondocking much of the winter, there is a real possibility that we may show up to cross with up to 15 gals of extra gas for the RZR and 5 gallons of ULSD diesel for the MH. Is there going to be an issue either north or south? I do not want to be in a position of having to discard prior to crossing north or south. We will be going to Rocky Point as well as San Felipe. I have friends in the Phoenix area so I could stow if necessary, as inconvenient as it would be. 2) I know about the insurance thing for the RV but what about trailer and UTV? 3) We've run the gambit with our dog re health cert, dog food etc while flying privately but what about driving? Anything special I need to know?
Thanks in advance
Ron
Mooneydrvr
CdA Idaho

[Edited on 10-14-2019 by mooneydrvr]

David K - 10-14-2019 at 09:26 AM

Extra fuel cans MUST BE EMPTY otherwise you risk being turned back north, then you have to deal with all that fuel. This happened to a group of Baja Nomads many years ago (see posts by 4baja). I had an empty 5 gal can in the back of my truck and got the red light and the inspector checked that can, to see if it was empty and then went to my blue water can, unscrewed the lid and sniffed it to be sure it wasn't gasoline! That was at Tecate.

Gas is cheaper and better in Baja. Top all the cans south of the border.

[Edited on 10-14-2019 by David K]

Yes, No, Yes, I don't know, No

John M - 10-14-2019 at 09:33 AM

More specifically - Spare fuel cans need to be empty entering Baja, I don't know about the road to Rocky Point. Fuel can returning to the US full are ok.

Gasoline prices in most of Baja Norte are similar to current California prices. Last week 19.65 pesos per liter when you get a little south. In town of Mexicali it was 17.85 pesos per liter, a little less expensive.

You must declare the trailer on your Mexican insurance policy. Don't know about the RZR but you need to have papers on both the trailer & RZR showing ownership.

We've had our dog on many trips. Never, north or south, have we been asked for papers. We do carry her vaccination record showing her to be current.

John M

thebajarunner - 10-14-2019 at 09:42 AM

There is no good reason to carry gas across
The way that the system swaps back and forth, you may be taking Mex gas south, and bringing Gringo gas back north
Just top them off when you get on the other side
Makes life a lot easier

Hook - 10-14-2019 at 10:47 AM

Well, there is a good reason if you aren't buying fuel at California prices. AZ fuel is probably more than a dollar less per gallon than Mexico.

Still, don't cross with full cans.

JZ - 10-14-2019 at 11:01 AM

Don't go to Rocky Point, it's awful. Go to San Carlos, it's awesome.

One thing they will almost always check is your gas cans. If they aren't empty it will be a mess.

You can get ULSD in Mexico now.

Mr. Bills - 10-14-2019 at 11:27 AM

I typically carry two 2-gal. red Rotopax gas containers and two 2-gal. white Rotopax water cans flat on the roof. Like this:



My intent when I cross at Tecate in December is to pull the empty red gas containers inside and put them on the back seat so they are easily inspected, but leave the full white water cans on the roof.

For those who cross there, is that okay or would I be better off pulling all cans inside on the back seat for the border crossing?

[Edited on 10-14-2019 by Mr. Bills]

[Edited on 10-14-2019 by Mr. Bills]

ULSD

bajaguy - 10-14-2019 at 11:56 AM

If your MH requires ULSD, you may want to verify that it is available wherever you are going. You should be OK in border regions as ULSD comes from the US

Baja Sur still has not converted and there has been no notification from PEMEX that ULSD is available in Sur or many areas of the mainland. Mexico has delayed implementation of low sulphur fuel for a variety of reasons, including refinery upgrades and/or new refinery construction.

The last place to obtain ULSD headed south on Hwy 1 is Villa Jesus Maria, about 20 miles north of Guerrero Negro

JZ - 10-14-2019 at 01:18 PM

Quote: Originally posted by bajaguy  
If your MH requires ULSD, you may want to verify that it is available wherever you are going. You should be OK in border regions as ULSD comes from the US

Baja Sur still has not converted and there has been no notification from PEMEX that ULSD is available in Sur or many areas of the mainland. Mexico has delayed implementation of low sulphur fuel for a variety of reasons, including refinery upgrades and/or new refinery construction.

The last place to obtain ULSD headed south on Hwy 1 is Villa Jesus Maria, about 20 miles north of Guerrero Negro


This is old information.



[Edited on 10-15-2019 by JZ]

bajaguy - 10-14-2019 at 02:06 PM

I'm not going to bet my truck on it

Have you seen anything "official" from PEMEX???
Quote: Originally posted by JZ  
Quote: Originally posted by bajaguy  
If your MH requires ULSD, you may want to verify that it is available wherever you are going. You should be OK in border regions as ULSD comes from the US

Baja Sur still has not converted and there has been no notification from PEMEX that ULSD is available in Sur or many areas of the mainland. Mexico has delayed implementation of low sulphur fuel for a variety of reasons, including refinery upgrades and/or new refinery construction.

The last place to obtain ULSD headed south on Hwy 1 is Villa Jesus Maria, about 20 miles north of Guerrero Negro


Pretty sure this is old information.



[Edited on 10-14-2019 by JZ]

JZ - 10-14-2019 at 05:46 PM

Quote: Originally posted by bajaguy  
I'm not going to bet my truck on it

Have you seen anything "official" from PEMEX???




Take my newer diesel down all the time to Loreto and La Paz. Doesn't throw a code like it use to. Someone posted a link from Pemex late last year. What you posted use to be the rule.

Arco's in Sonora have it for sure also, that's been reported many times.


[Edited on 10-15-2019 by JZ]

chippy - 10-14-2019 at 06:15 PM

Like JZ said the gringo gas stations are ulsd. I have gotten ulsd down in Guanajuato from Mobil. It comes from their refinery in Texas.

advrider - 10-14-2019 at 07:21 PM

What everyone said about the gas cans. I asked a friend that just got back from a trip in his ALS diesel truck and he said it was no problem. We always take our US shot records for the dogs and never have a problem. Enjoy.

Marc - 10-15-2019 at 07:10 AM

In my ignorance of the regulations I used to cross going south with 6 full gas cans. Hard to believe I crossed this way for over 20 years with the green light. The one time I was inspected at Sonoyta I had only one can full. I explained to the cutie pie inspector that I always carried one emergency can and the others I plan to fill in town. She let me go with it. Ever since then I cross with empty cans, and only two now that gas is available everywhere.

brucedog - 10-15-2019 at 08:16 AM

Don't want to beat this one to death but below is the recent post in the Baja Pony Express regarding ULSD in Baja. I can't remember the name of the guy who does the research and it isn't credited. I have taken my 2015 Mercedes Sprinter the entire length of the peninsula 6 times with no trouble at all.

Answer: Here’s the annual, start of season, update for diesel fuel in Mexico. As the go-to person on this topic for more than a decade, I can confirm that all retail gas stations everywhere in Mexico have been pumping ULSD for more than a year, since April of 2018. Bottom line, the days of sulfur-in-fuel issues for modern diesel owners in Mexico are over. I haven’t received a single report of sulfur-in-fuel problems in Mexico since late Spring of 2018. It is now common to see Chevron, Esso, Repsol, and other gas stations, as well as Pemex. The market is open to competition, and some of the stations are actively advertising that they have ULSD. One thing late model diesel owners do need to bring to Mexico is plenty of Diesel Exhaust Fluid, as DEF is hard to come by and fairly expensive in Mexico.

IMG_1352.jpg - 108kB

JZ - 10-15-2019 at 09:36 AM

Thanks for confirming Bruce.

Regarding DEF, it's available at AutoZone's for sure.

mooneydrvr - 10-15-2019 at 11:29 AM

Thx to all replies. The replies re: the fuel cans pretty much confirms my initial thoughts but you never know. Thanks again

Fossil - 1-24-2020 at 08:20 PM

I have been searching for ULSD for 3 days and found what I needed here. Thanks gang.:bounce::bounce: