We Finally Scored a Car....

We experienced some serious sticker shock as we shopped rental car companies for a compact car to get us into town and out to a couple of the point breaks that we moved here to surf.  Dollar, Enterprise and Thrifty all had great weekly rates all hovering around $250 a month.  Insurance for them was another $1,000 per month.  All I can say after speaking with several of these companies is that rental car insurance is the biggest scam on the face of the planet.

So we did the only logical thing one might do in this case to save a few bucks.  We took a referral from our property manager Russell to a local guy named Gustavo who stores cars for people that reside down here part time and also rents them to visitors like us.  I emailed him and talked to him briefly on the phone about pricing before arranging to meet him.  Unfortunately, when we chatted he only had a Suburban for rent which is way more of a vehicle than what we actually needed, but it was still far less expensive than what the traditional rental car companies wanted. for even a compact car.  I was about to find out why.

We met Gustavo in the parking lot of Commercial (a local mega grocery store in Ixtapa) and he was friendly, but a fast talking all business type of guy.  We walked over to a well road tested Suburban that probably is a mid 90's model.  He produced a half typed half had written document that looked less than legally binding and started walking me through the particulars before signing it.  He didn't ask me for a passport or ID, he didn't do a walk around to show me any irregularities or dents in the vehicle, there was no credit card required for the rental which all seemed unusual, but hey it's Mexico.  I shook his hand, signed his agreement and gave him $5,000 pesos ($415 US) upfront then it was a done deal.

After Gustavo left we did a huge shopping trip at Commercial and then started loading the kids and our haul into our new rig.  When I described this vehicle as "road tested" earlier I was being generous about its overall vibe.  Here is a quick assessment of the car after driving it for one day:

·         221,000+ miles on this bad boy.

·         Multiple seat belts missing or disabled.

·         Both sides of the rear quarter panels have been side swiped at one point or another.

·         Driver side electric mirror inoperable, but if I lean down low enough in the driver's seat it's still functional.

·         Rack on top rusted out and completely useless for strapping up surfboards.

·         Radio works but only plays Mexican music which is difficult to drive to.

All told it runs fairly solid despite the cosmetic issues and best of all the air conditioning works.  We're mobile and couldn't be more stoked.  Ranch here we come!

It looks safer than it actually is: