Shopping For Batteries and Tires In Mexico
by David Eidell (06/08)
If I had to summarize a recommendation about buying RV tires in Mexico, I would have to say that it may be best overall to make your purchase in the USA because of slightly lower prices and the issue of obtaining warranty service (in the USA) after you return home.
But sometimes circumstances will force a visitor to find a replacement tire for their rig. Large truck radials for bus conversions are very common, Michelin, Goodyear, and Bridgestone brands are available up to 11:00 X 24.5". Also extremely common are tires for old school buses. 8:25 X 20" and 10:00 X 20" tires are found just about at every roadside tire shop. Nineteen point five inch RV tires are harder to come by outside of larger cities---but they are available. Sixteen point five inch tires are scarce as a rule. But larger cities should provide a source. Sixteen inch tires (like the extremely common 235R 85 X 16" load range E tires are commonly available at Michelin dealers, but COSTCO outlets usually need four or five days advance notification to get this size tire. For some reason 70 series tires such as 245R 70 X 16 load range E tires are more common than the 85 series. COSTCO WARRANTY NOTE: When I approached the MORELIA Costco tire center manager last year about warrantying a road-hazard BF Goodrich tire he appeared to be unaware of the road-hazard warranty procedure as used in USA Costco warehouses. To make this even more confusing, after I returned the tire to my local Costco warehouse they were surprised to learn that the road-hazard warranty wasn't honored in Mexico.
To give an idea of tire cost I obtained a figure of approx. Two hundred and sixteen dollars to purchase a new 235R 85 X 16" Michelin tire (at a Michelin dealer, and One hundred fifty dollars to purchase a replacement BF Goodrich tire of like size at a Costco warehouse. Please note that tire prices in Mexico and the USA have climbed steeply since I got these estimates.
BATTERIES
Deep cycle RV batteries are still very scarce. I have never seen golf-car batteries in Mexico. Probably the most familiar battery brand that you will encounter is sold by Wal-Mart. They do not have the yellow grade battery. Optima batteries are appearing in very low numbers but they all seem to be red-top grade. One of my favorite brands of Mexican battery is the LTH. Dual terminal batteries such as the group 34-78 are scarce and rather expensive (expect to pay a hundred dollars). If you have a newer car in tow and it has a battery size all it's own you may not find it in Mexico. Bus and truck type batteries are common (like group 30 and 31 and 4, 6 and 8-d) and expensive (more than two hundred dollars for an 8-D). Group 65 batteries for Ford are very common although Mexican batteries may have a limit on Cold Cranking Amps of around 750.
The warranty system on Mexican automotive and commercial batteries is completely different than found in the USA or Canada. Instead of offering an extended pro-rated warranty, they will have six-months to a year outright replacement. I believe it would be a miracle to have a US dealer honor a Mexican battery warranty.
HINT: Diesel pickup owners: Mexico is not the place to start scurrying around trying to replace a worn or corroded battery cable harness. Only new big-rig dealers have a very limited supply of bulk wire and chintzy terminals that can be used to cobble-together a workable replacement (and it won't be inexpensive). Mexican wire and cable is generally of horrible quality, and terminals are scarce, terrible and very expensive.