Rocks VS. Locks

[1tontoy]

Timing to me is a little bit of luck and ability to gel (aka speak the language) with the locals or cop(s).

When it comes to 'getting out of situtuations', being tactful (not outright bribing) is key especially when it comes to dealing with cops.

Damn, I want to hit the road....

Not a bad idea really. Especially if rolling in a nice truck. However, many people have done the trip in nice trucks without doing this. It may save you a bunch of stops by the cops, although that is hard to say really as it all seems to be about timing to me.

 

[SNLC]

Timing to me is a little bit of luck and ability to gel (aka speak the language) with the locals or cop(s).

When it comes to 'getting out of situtuations', being tactful (not outright bribing) is key especially when it comes to dealing with cops.

Damn, I want to hit the road....

I hear ya' I am making myself want to hit the road!

I never offered any money to the cops, everytime they have asked me for it. Same for bribes at borders, usually they just ask for an inflated price on a fee and pocket the extra money. Usually the cops say such and such traffic violation but I have also had them flat out just say give me $20! Coming home last trip some cops in Honduras kept saying give me $100, and I kept saying no. Once they hit ten bucks and figured out I wasn't giving up any cash they started saying give me your hat, give me your sunglasses. In the end I settled for giving them a hot can of redbull which they were not to happy about!

I think Mexico is changing a lot with the corruption in the police. I noticed much less of it on my 2nd trip. The mayor of Veracruz just fired a ton of the police force which is one place I noticed a ton of corrupted traffic cops. I have never had a single problem with the Federal Police in Mexico or the military, in fact I trust them. They are always helpful, polite and respectful to me. It is the traffic police or municipal in Mexico that are corrupt from what I have seen.

Myself, I prefer to speak as little Spanish with the cops as possible. However every country and situation is different. El Salvador for example has the least corrupt police force of any country in Latin America. So with those guys I try and talk to them as much as my Spanish allows.

 

[BillWright]

Having traveled and lived in Central America for a few years, I think the best defense against thieves is to fly under the radar.
1.Keep the rig stock-looking but subtlety modify it for your uses. If you do visibly modify it, do it with used gear. Dont put stickers on the windows! ARB stickers are a dead give-away that the vehicle is desirable.
2. Keep it as clean as the locals do. Super muddy says, this vehicle is off-road capable.
3. Don't keep lots of stuff in it.
4.Try to get local license plates. In some places very easy to do, others not at all.
5. Have a kill switch hidden away. I think a switch on the fuel pump is best because the motor will crank but never start.
6. Have new keys and new tumblers in each of the locks. In FJ60s I've read on mud there is a key master somewhere in the passenger side door.

This is my style usually, except I usually don't lock, I just don't get far enough away from anything that's a hassle to restore for bad things to happen. Like tearing up my doors or windows for something I can replace cheap and quick

I just moved to the Balkans and my ride here will be a Lada Niva. Around here they're everywhere and a common Niva owner saying is "At least nobody will steal it."

 

[NorCalBorn]

Ths happened in my driveway at home, 15 miles from civilization, past locked gates, barking dogs, and armed households, including a mile-long walk uphill off a country road to even reach my driveway.
Security and countermeasures will never stop someone who is determined.

Neighbor's kids or friends of the kids.

Kill Switch, Alarm, etc. are what we use.

FWIW here's what we just outfitted on a 62 Series in Jalisco last year.

The pic's from insta-space's page, we just had a fab shop cut, weld, manufacture the shrouds for us. Heavy Gauge Rivets for the win.