Buying a Bike in South America

[Becky]

My boyfriend and I are planning a loop around the whole continent of South America for 8 to 12 months. We would like to buy our bike down there though and not have to ship one from North America. We are flying into Columbia and travelling West. If anyone has done this before or has any information it would be greatly appreciated,
Cheers, Becky

[Lone Rider]

GLOBAL SUZUKI>>>GLOBAL LINKS

There's a list of contacts for dealers in Colombia.

[mtbh2o]

When are you planning on leaving for SA. My wife and I are going to try to fly our bike (R1150GSA) to Santiago in late Oct. or early Nov. Probably stay 2 months and try to ship the bike back from Tierra del Fuego or somewhere near by. We may have to ride all the way to Buenos Aires but oh well. Let us know when you will be down in that area.

Mike B.

[Mr. Ron]

Hi Becky. I currently have an '89 GS parked in Medellin, Co. and was planning on returning and dealing with it in early Nov., possibly selling it. It's an excellent travell bike, perfect for two-up. Includes strong aluminum bags and some spares. If your interested, please PM me and we'll talk. You can also check my profile and send me an e-mail. You can see the bike here: http://web.mac.com/adventman/iWeb/Site/Welcome.html

[Stretcher Monkey]

http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/hub...-brother-23098

[xfiltrate]

Becky, I posted this under Buy/Sell and reproduce it here for you all. I hope it helps.

Buying a NEW bike in Buenos Aires, touring Argentina, and then selling the bike in Buenos Aires is time consuming, but easy, if you do the following.
1. Rent a place to live for a couple of weeks or more and as soon as possible after you move in, go to the district police station for your street address and politely request a "Domicilio." You will be directed by the guard at the entrance to the right person. Be sure to bring your passport and the exact address of the place you just rented, and ten pesos (about $3.33 US). Some police stations ask for more, but the receipt stamp that will be glued to the "Domicilio" is for ten pesos. You probably know already to carry a little extra cash just in case.
2. You will be told a police officer will visit you at home in the next day or two excluding holidays, protests, revolutions or crime waves. This could take upwards of a week. You must be at home when the officer visits to verify that you really live where you say you do. Sometimes a very attractive policette is sent on these types of missions. I am still dreaming about her to this day. Anyway it is a little incentive for having to hang at home, at least 8 to 6PM or so. If you are at home, you will be pleasantly surprized to be handed your "Domicilio".
3. Take your passport and your Domicilio to the AFIP pronounced "afeep" office near downtown more or less - the Dealer where you are buying your New bike will be happy to direct you to the AFIP office, once you have your domicilio.
3. Be prepared for a wait of half a day, at least, unless you are lucky. At the entrance explain you need a CLAVE DE IDENTIFICACION, which is a tax ID number, and will enable you to buy a new -0 kilometers- motorcycle. I forget what the fee is for this, but as I recall it is not very expensive.
4. You will need these documents so your dealer can sell you a motorcycle new. He/she will take care of registering your motorcycle, getting plates and directing you to a reputable insurance agent for purchase of basic liability coverage as required by law. Forget about any coverage protecting your new bike from theft, as it costs almost as much as the bike. Good news, unlike the United States as long as you own your bike you do not have to renew the plates every year. Plates are renewed by the new owner if you sell your bike.
5. I live in Buenos Aires and purchased my NX400 Honda Falcon here, and would be pleased to direct you to reputable motorcycle dealers and to assist you through the process of buying a new bike. I also suggest selling the bike back to the dealer you bought it from, especially if it is still under warrenty
Buying a used bike in Buenos Aires is possible, but very, very risky in many, many ways. Please contact me if I can help. xfiltrate

[xfiltrate]

Pactric, thanks for supporting my post regarding buying a new bike in Buenos Aires. I will do my very best to provide you and other HUBB readers any information I have regarding the buying/selling of used bikes in Buenos Aires. First, a historic fact that should be heeded by all overlanders passing through Buenos Aires.

The issue of buying, selling a used bike in Buenos Aires has become "complicado" very complicated, with the advent of a small group of "motochorros." The police pages every other day, and several times a month the front page of El Clarin and La Nacion, (BA's best selling dailly newspapers), are headlined with the daring, dangerous, deadly doings of the "motochorros," who operate throughout the city and surrounding provinces.

The crimes of the "motocharros" range from petty purse/computer snatching from pedestians to car jacking and numerous murders, inluding the murder of many police officers. The population here is outraged at the "motocharros" who have been terrorizing the city from their motorcycles. As a result, public and political pressure have caused the police to set up unannounced road blocks on city streets. In a futile effort to stop the "motochorros" police at these heavily armed road blocks, stop only motorcyles and check the documents of the riders and then very carefully check the documents and VIN numbers of the motorcycles. New bike owners are seldom detained at all...And, it has been reported in the press that all "motochorros" who have been arrested during commission of crimes, have had legally purchased bikes with proper documentation, this has not stopped the police from arresting hundreds of innocent riders and collecting thousands, yes thousands, of non-motochorro bikes stopped at these road blocks due to absence of or "illegal" documents.

Given the activities of the "motochorros" there is very little public and legal support for those who have been illegally detained and have lost their bikes to the police.

Police warehouses here are overflowing with motorcycles. Even if the police had made a mistake and your documents are legal, you might be out of jail in a month or two, but getting your motorcycle back, if at all, will take many more months. I sometime wonder what the police will do/are doing with all these bikes?

if anyone is still interested in buying or selling a second hand bike and second hand documents in Buenos Aires, I will advise how to do it, but with appropriate disclaimers.

Hope this helped, let me know if you want more. I have been working on a plan myself to help police stop the "motochorros" and would appreciate any suggestions from the HUBB. xfiltrate.

[javkap]

Hi all
Like 3 years a go I was posting some info about buy & sale in Argentina, Ed or Xfiltrate now made a very detail explanation about all the complicate paperwork to register and has legal the a bike in Argentina but I need to warm all of you. The situation to take it out from Arg. remains the same…
If a traveller buy a bike in Argentina aren’t allow to cross any border (the bike) until one year in his name.
We found now than its for people who has a 3 mouths tourist visa, if you has a permanent or a temporary one (work) its different but you need to prove and explain to all borders officers every time because even they doesn’t know.
The old post: http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/hub...ight=argentina

[javkap]

Motochorros?...
Come on Ed!!! Stop to see the world by the CNN, Nuevediario & Cronica TV…
This type of crimes exist from I remember. Transalps and XRs was the favorites bikes for those crimes but now after the 2001 crisis they use what they find. The Media create that names like “Secuestro Express” or “Robo Express” or “Boqueteros” or dozens more.
Then the Police need to give an answer to what the Media are asking, its no more hassle than show your papers when the police stop you as in anywhere on the world.
If they kidnap thousands bikes are because it isn’t riding with all papers in order or riding with out helmet.
Around 200 Moto-Travellers visit BA last season and no one comment big hassles about police controls in BA or surroundings.
Even in Entre Rios looks than they are calming down (see the old post about Police in ER and Ruta 14)

[xfiltrate]

Javier (javkap), thank you for your comments. If you will re read previous posts this thread you will discover I responding to the very specific issue of a foreigner buying a bike in Buenos Aires. No one has yet asked me to describe the proper procedure for a foreigner to legally purchase a bike in Buenos Aires. Nor has anyone asked about crossing the border into a "limitrophos" country as a foreigner riding a used bike purchased in Argentina. I have survied the aduana, Boquebus and other officials and I have the law regarding "temporary EXPORT permits" for bikes registered in Argentina by foreigners.

Patrick is correct, bikes, loaded with gear and foreign plates are treated with respect by the police and generally given the benefit of doubt. But contrast that against a foreigner, who has purchased a bike of unknown origin and history from someone in Buenos Aires, This bike will attract attention of the police for most likely it will still be registered in the previous owners name, and this becomes a big problem at the still existing road blocks.

Like you, Javier, I live in Buenos Aires, y yo hablo espanol tambien. No me gusta quando vos, contesteme en una manera tan feo. Favor, vamos a discutir estas cosas en una manera civil.

Yes Javier, you are also correct that the bikes police take are taken because of not having proper registration etc. That was exactly my point, when responding to Patric. That, buying a used bike in Buenos Aires, with questionable documents could be trouble. As for the motochorros, I did not learn of them via CNN, I learned of them on the streets. And, I have been stopped at several road blocks.

Now that it is clear regarding the question to which I was responding I would appreciate any other comments related to my response to that question.

One more point, there are thousands of bikes stored in police warehouses here. That is fact. There are very few if any, that have foreign plates with proper documentation and very few if any that have the appropriate Argentine documentation.

Once again, I was responding only to the question of a foreigner buying a used bike in Argentina and what some of the risks could be. And, I am correct in what I wrote in this regard.

Patrick, we have ACA here, I am working with them. That is the Argentine Automobile Club and they are connected to FITAC (International Federation of Automobile Clubs) which gets its funding from the well known..FIA in Europe. There is no big motorcycle association here, that I know of, although Javier might have more data on this and I will ask him when we get together for mate. (typical Argentine drink among friends). Will keep you posted on any progress.

[xfiltrate]

Javier, now on a more or less positive note here is a gift especially for you.

One of the very few tangos, accepted by tangueros world wide with lyrics in English. I wrote it and I hope you and others on the HUBB enjoy. "Tango Wind" was presented in concert in Buenos Aires and several cities in Italy.... web link below for music video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=166a3E3QpWA

[BCK_973]

Woww since when you liked tango? My favorites are Angel Vargas,El Polaco Goyeneche,Alberto Castillo among many more.
Yeah,Motochorros, bad thing.Most of those caracters are riding on little 125-150cc bikes. In Vicente lopez they have even a big trailer to put all the impounded bikes on top.Most problems here are insurance related.Then ownership issues.
But travellers are not afected by this.
Burocracy means here many days and hours of waiting and reinventing pacience.
But you manage to do it!
Hey lets get together for a .I was to busy lately.
CU
KH

[javkap]

Hi Ed:
Only I want to prevent new visitors tempted to come and buy a bike from getting their plans ruined because an stupid law says than they can’t cross the border.

Buying a Used Bike here would take only two more steps: asking to the registry for a “Informe de Dominio” form to see if everything its in order and go to the police to made a number verification. The trouble its to find a good bike with the paper in order.

About Motochorros I’m worry than people begins to be scared to come to visit my lovely city, I’m Porteño and I’m proud to be Porteño. And with this kind of media coverage I’m starting to feel like a Colombian about international news.

Sorry!!!! You misunderstood me. I must need to recognize than my acid sense of humor don’t fit with all foreigners. Sorry again, was a joke…
For sure you are welcome to come and sheer mates and coffee, asado, or what ever.
Saludos y nos vemos pronto

[Mr. Ron]

Becky, if you read this, don't buy some bike in Argentina...by mine !

[xfiltrate]

Thank you and I appreciate your posts regarding buying a used bike in Buenos Aires and about "Tango Wind." I'm not in the class of artists you mentioned, maybe someday...but happy to hear you like "Tango Wind"

First, KH, (BCK 973) guess I was into tango, before this life, when my grandpa with his girlfriend Velma Truett invented the Trujo Banjo and Trujo Guitar (Truett and George) later sold by Gibson and still treasured today, in San Franciso, Calif. circa 1926.

The first wave of Argentine Tango hit California in the 1920s and at that time Argentine Tango was so strong that "Tenor banjos" were mistakenly called "Tango Banjos." Grandpa, I am sure played, tangos maybe not on his Trujo Banjo but definately on his Trujo Guitars. He wrote and cut 4 records, among them the banjo classic "Ghost Dance" which is still available on CD today.

Elisa spent her sabatical here with me, researching tango, 2 years ago. She has her PHd in Spanish literature, is Spanish and an expert in the works of Antonio Machado and contemporary tango.

I never knew my Grandpa, and it was only recently that what he did with his life came into our knowledge, but I feel, somehow, I do know him.

Now, Javier (javkap) I really tried to hook Doug up with you, when he needed some work done on his bike. Elisa and I rode out to your fine shop and I called for you several times. I know you have a lot of experience with foreign overlanders and have helped many with information and great service and that you store bikes.

Yes, of course, very soon let's get together and share "war" stories. One topic of interest might be to discuss the "loop hole" I found in Argentine law that permits foreigners, riding motorcyles registered in Argentina, to leave "export" Argentina with their moto for up to 6 months. Elisa and I did it, no problems...

Or, foreigners with their Argentine regestered moto can just jump on the ferry to Uruguay and leave on their tour of South America from Uruguay. Boquebus (ferry to Uruguay) does not require Argentine exit permits for vehicle/ motos... Getting back into Argentina only gets you smiles from customs, because the moto is registered in Argentina...

Let's continue this over mate. thanks Javier I'll call you at:

http://dakarmotos.com/about_us.htm check him out folks... xfiltrate