BajaNomad

Adding a new car to Sentri

skipowell - 6-23-2013 at 10:48 AM

Hello
Curious if anyone has recently added a new car to Sentri
According to the website I am suppose to apply online at GOES, well I did that 6 weeks ago and still do not have a conditional approval.
DO you think I can just show up at the Otay office with my car and get the decal?? I already paid for it when I applied on line 6 weeks ago.
Thanks for any help

bajalearner - 6-23-2013 at 11:00 AM

I can't give you any answer to your question but I applied to add a motorcycle to my SENTRI about 2 weeks ago. I didn't know they are taking a long time to schedule the inspection. I haven't added anything for a couple years.

You mentioned the Otay office. I assume it's still there and I have read that they added a San Ysidro office on San Ysidro Blvd. near the Border. I had to pay $42 for the cycle. I might go by the San Ysidro office this week just to see what's up. If I do I will tell you.

Otay SENTRI

bajaguy - 6-23-2013 at 11:16 AM

In the past, you could just go by the SENTRI Otay office and add a vehicle or get a replacement sticker, however now you have to apply on line.

Just got a replacement sticker for a new windshield. Walked up and told them what I wanted. They said I had to apply on line, but since I was from Nevada and at the office they would take me.

The clerk mentioned that they were doing away with all walk up vehicle issues, had to process on line.

San Ysidro walk up office does not do anything with vehicles.

YMMV...........

skipowell - 6-23-2013 at 12:05 PM

Thanks for the input,
boy they are really trying to make this difficult.
Taking my mom on Tuesday to get her Sentri card, the only appointment I could get her while she is here visiting from Hawaii was at the San Ysidro office. If that somehow goes smooth I might go on up to Otay office afterwards and attempt to just walk in and get the car dealt with.
I will post the results once we are done

mtgoat666 - 6-23-2013 at 12:49 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by skipowell
Thanks for the input,
boy they are really trying to make this difficult.
Taking my mom on Tuesday to get her Sentri card, the only appointment I could get her while she is here visiting from Hawaii was at the San Ysidro office. If that somehow goes smooth I might go on up to Otay office afterwards and attempt to just walk in and get the car dealt with.
I will post the results once we are done


if you are in a hurry and dont mind driving, you can get appointments much more quickly by scheduling appts for cbp/sentri office over in imperial valley

tjsue - 6-23-2013 at 01:21 PM

Just keep checking the appointment section of their website.

I have an appointment at Otay on Tuesday for my interview and vehicle inspection. When they notified me that I was ok, the first appointment was July 1, but if you keep checking the website, more appointments will open up, because I changed mine, and I could have gone in the next day (May 23), but chose to wait.

skipowell - 6-23-2013 at 01:43 PM

i may not have been real clear, in my original post.

It is not the appointment time that is the the concern, it is the waiting for the conditional approval. It has already been 6 weeks and still the new car has not been approved. So I am not even allowed to make an appointment yet.
Wanting to know if I can just walk in like the last time we got a new car.

If everyone has to go through the same procedure for a broken windshield or a new car this is going to be ridiculous.

schwlind - 6-23-2013 at 03:37 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by skipowell
i may not have been real clear, in my original post.

It is not the appointment time that is the the concern, it is the waiting for the conditional approval. It has already been 6 weeks and still the new car has not been approved. So I am not even allowed to make an appointment yet.
Wanting to know if I can just walk in like the last time we got a new car.

If everyone has to go through the same procedure for a broken windshield or a new car this is going to be ridiculous.


The answer is no. I had to apply online and afterward called the Otay Mesa Sentri office to ask if I could just come in and was told unequivocally NO!

I again called the Otay Mesa Sentri office and was told the minimum wait time to hear back about okay to set appointment was 3 to 6 weeks. I actually received my conditional approval within a few days after applying online (not the 3 to 6 weeks I was told).

I would definitely call them, explain how long you have been waiting for "conditional approval" notification and ask if they can offer any assistance. I wouldn't count on it though... as this is another govmnt bureaucracy.

The phone number for the Otay Mesa Sentri office is:
(619) 690-7600. You'll probably not be able to speak to a real person initially, but their prompt system allows you to leave a message.

[Edited on 6-23-2013 by schwlind]

skipowell - 6-24-2013 at 03:03 PM

schwlind i should have paid more attention to your response as my trip to Otay was a waste of time. Had a very nice person at the counter but she said they could not help out as once it is in the system it is out of the hands. She also said new car regestration is taking as long as 2 months now for apporval.

Wow, I will be really thinking twice about getting rid of a car that is already Sentri approved. So really a new car could really take 1/2 a year to get signed up at this time. 1st you have to wait to your your liscense plates from the DMV, that took about 3 1/2 weeks, then you apply on line at Sentri, at this time time it is taking about 8 weeks, then you have to schedule an appointment and the rumors are those are even months out. WOW! Keep you old paid off cars!!

schwlind - 6-24-2013 at 11:12 PM

A new vehicle you couldn't do this with... but if you are replacing a windshield of a previously Sentri inspected and approved vehicle, if whomever is VERY careful, they can remove the sticker from the old windshield and affix it to the new one. Had a serious chip in the windshield of my 99 Toy 4runner and they were able to put it on the new windshield without a problem.

JAG - 6-25-2013 at 06:32 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by schwlind
A new vehicle you couldn't do this with... but if you are replacing a windshield of a previously Sentri inspected and approved vehicle, if whomever is VERY careful, they can remove the sticker from the old windshield and affix it to the new one. Had a serious chip in the windshield of my 99 Toy 4runner and they were able to put it on the new windshield without a problem.

JAG - 6-25-2013 at 06:35 AM

My neighbor just received his sticker at the Otay office after exactly 10 weeks

aguachico - 6-25-2013 at 08:07 PM

have added a few cars. 4-6 weeks after you pay and apply. appointments are plentiful. No walkins. have all your paper work.

1. be sure all doors work. trunk and hood have to be self holding.
2. sometimes the agent could careless, sometimes they can be strict.

suerte

Bichito - 7-4-2014 at 04:52 PM

Any adding a new car to Sentri updates here as of this spring or summer? I added a new truck in the GOES system a few weeks ago. I have a trip coming up in August...seems like too short of a timeline these days.

dasubergeek - 7-4-2014 at 07:14 PM

When I SENTRI-fied my truck it took three months. I applied three weeks ago to SENTRI-fy a car and haven't heard anything. It's actually taking longer than the initial SENTRI application.

baja99 - 7-4-2014 at 11:50 PM

I also just applied for a Sentri for our new car. It's been 5 weeks so I called. The woman told me they are experiencing the longest wait times ever. She said I could expect to wait FIVE months before the vehicle was approved and I could make an appointment. I'm hoping she is wrong...five months.

Bichito - 7-5-2014 at 10:26 AM

Thanks for the updates... 5 months is quite a backlog for a VIN check followed by a 2 minute inspection. Almost makes me regret getting a new truck - almost.

SENTRI-fy...I like that.

bajabound2005 - 7-5-2014 at 10:42 AM

added one about 2 months ago, and it took 6 weeks for the approval. this is the inefficiency of the US government and its height. there is no reason it should take more than a couple of DAYS to add a vehicle.

boe4fun - 7-5-2014 at 01:35 PM

My wife and I are waiting for our appointments - it's been about 7 weeks and we haven't heard back from them yet. I am going to take down my GMC pickup for approval. My question is should I have my cabover camper on the truck when I do this?

tjsue - 7-6-2014 at 11:59 AM

I'll be doing the same thing. My Astrovan was hit and totaled by a stolen car a month after I moved back to San Diego. So I'm looking for another Astrovan, and the one (when I find one), will be added to my Sentri.

bajabound2005 - 7-6-2014 at 01:37 PM

i don't think you can take a camper through SENTRI at all....

joel - 7-6-2014 at 09:33 PM

I'm sure this has been written about before, but when I went for my Sentri inspection loaded up for my trip south, two inspectors told me that Sentri is meant to be for commuters crossing the border with only a few personal belongings - not folks crossing with a bunch of luggage and cargo. I was warned that if I crossed with too much stuff I could get sent to secondary just for that reason alone. They added that if you get sent to secondary a few times, you get a flag in your file and they can revoke your Sentri Pass and that in the future agents will see that you've been flagged so you'll get secondary inspection pretty regularly. All that said, I crossed with a dog, a surfboard, a duffel bag and a few empty bins and was waved right through. YMMV.

tjsue - 7-6-2014 at 10:36 PM

I crossed five times in the Sentri lanes with an Astrovan loaded up to the top with boxes, and was only sent to secondary once. The other times I was just waived through.

On my last trip, my cat was laying on my lap, and he got a pet on the head from the inspector when I went through.

Bichito - 7-7-2014 at 08:50 AM

I'm pretty sure a cab-over does not qualify for Sentri. A camper shell is fine though.

I've come over the boarder loaded up from surf trips and ended up in secondary a few times. It's really hit or miss... I've had the worst luck late at night when it's not crowded. I ended up in secondary for close to two hours the last time. The agent disappeared for awhile...then came back. Had me dig out a cooler...disappeared while I unloaded...came back etc etc.
When I'm loaded up from a long trip down South I'm going to use the regular lanes when it's not crowded. Heading to secondary is just not worth the hassle.