Hi Fellow Adventurers

I live in Alaska but rode my DR to South Carolina and plan to ride the TAT in May and store the bike in OR till fall. My plan then is to ride to Cambria for the HUBB meeting then on south to Mexico and or Central America.

The problem is I can't do it none stop for months on end, I'm married. I would like to ride for a few weeks, go home for a month or so then pick the bike up and continue on.

Does anyone know if there is secure storage down through Mexico, Central America and South America? Also, what provisions are there as far as time limits / constraints on a "temporary import permit" for the bike and can it be renewed for a period of time?

Thank you

Greg Niesen

Greg,
A good riding buddy did this, storing his old R100GS BMW in Guadalajara, MX,
Merida, MX, and Antigua, Guatemala, during a year and a half of back and forth travel.

In each case he left his bike with riders met en route or found on-line on various forums, some just random encounters. All were ... FREE ... but my friend compensated them, brought gifts or took the whole family out to dinner or just left a wad of cash. Least one can do. He generally was gone for around 3 months each time.

In one case (on an earlier trip) he did have a bad experience with a guy who runs a bike rental outfit in Guatemala. In this case his bike was knocked over .. and left on it's side. (oil flooded air box and right side cylinder)

Also, his battery tender was unplugged ... so he had a to buy a new battery ($100 USD). This was the only time he was asked to pay for storage. It was also apparent that his bike had been RIDDEN while he was gone. No doubt rented out! The owner of the rental place is a British guy "well known" in Antigua. Unlikely a Guatemalan would never do this sort of thing.

So, as always, you take your chances. But bad experiences are RARE. Use your best judgement, try to place the bike somewhere where it will not be in the way or moved and where it's secure. Cover it, disconnect battery.

Mexico has a 6 month limit on the TVIP. Not sure on Guatemala or rest of Cent. America at this point. I think Guat. is 3 months? My bud above over stayed his permit ... had to pay around $100 USD upon exiting Guatemala. But that was 5 years back.
I'm not familiar with current policies regards over staying TVIP. I would ask around on Mex/Cent.Am forums here and elsewhere to learn details on specific countries.

AFAIK, no C.A. country link your passport to your bike and your TVIP. I believe you can come/go independently of your bike. Some countries may link it, I think some S. American countries DO link to your passport currently. Good luck!

PS: Far as I understand, Cambria is no more. The California event has been moved to Mariposa, CA in the Sierra foothills. Man, it can get blisteringly HOT in Sept.

Yes, the HU California Meeting has moved to Mariposa - END of September, in the hills where it should be cool!

All the details on the webpage for the California Meeting

See you there! And be sure to tell us you're leaving and we'll give you a send-off!

Re Storage - contact the HU Communities and you should have no trouble.

__________________
Grant Johnson
Seek, and ye shall find.
------------------------
Inspiring, Informing and Connecting travellers since 1997!
www.HorizonsUnlimited.com

Northern Adventurer,

Temporary Vehicle Import Permit in Argentina is up to 8 months. I offer safe and secure motorcycle parking in Buenos Aires:

www.Xfiltrate.com - Professional Motorcycle Parking

Have a great trip!

Greg,

I had the same issues earlier this year. The problem is not storing a bike. There's plenty of these and most are cheap. Ask around.

The real problem is the time your bike is allowed to stay in a country. As Molly wrote, in most cases passports are not tied to the bike, hence you can fly home and return later to continue your trip.

I suggest you research the time limit for temporary importation for each country you intend to visit.

I decided not to store my bike in Mexico or CA. IMHO if my bike overstayed its time, I'd be at the mercy of an official. Some are great, others not so great. In Mexico maybe you'll only forfeit US$400, but in Guate and further south .... well, it may take alot of time and worst case you'd be threatened with a charge equivalent to importing the bike.

Have you considered commercial bike storage facilities in the US on the Mexico/USA border (only a few days from Antigua if you thwang it), or bonded stores in Panama?

Hola Greg, if you are interested in storing your bike in Guatemala, you are welcome to leave it in my house here in Antigua .
I can assure you your bike would not be ridden
Would be great to get the chance to pay back something of all the help and hospitality that my wife and I received on our ride to Alaska last year.
You can leave your bike in Guatemala for 90 days, then you can get an extension for another 90 days but you have to apply for it personally.

Hypothetical scenario .... I ride a USA bike to Guatemala. All legal paperwork. I return to my country and leave the bike with a friend in Guatemala. I sign a legally endorsed document from a Guatemalan lawyer to say my friend can ride my bike to/from say, Mexico or El Salvador. My friend does a border run every 90 days. Would this be a way to effectively store a bike in Guatemala?

Thanks

Nope; once your 90 days are over you have to get your bike out of Guatemala for 90 days before you can bring it back into the country.

Thanks ... very useful info.