Thing parts availibility in mexico??

[socaldubs]

Anybody from southern california know if there are any junk yards, or cheap parts places just south of the border (Tijuana), i know there is an abundance of vw's down there anybody buy parts for cheap down there??

[Vw4x4]

No luck... :shock:

You being from San Diego may know some of these areas.
I have looked and looked and looked in Tj, Ensenada, Rosarito, San Felipe and Mexicali. Looking for "thing" or "Safari" is very hard down there, half of the people I asked they don't know what it is others call them "hormiga". I only found a place in San Felipe called "El Funeral", he works in VW and had a "Thing" for sale for $900 buck it had missing doors and seat, etc. He also builds Dune Buggies or Sand rails for $ 8000. The only thing is to import them into the US. In Ensenada there is a guy call Josue. He was going to set me up with a Thing from Puebla for $1500.00 But never got there.

Email if you need specific info....

[kubelmann]

I have a house at mile marker 38km (Campo Garcia) South of San Felipe and drive there from our home in Colorado and over the years have never seen a Thing other than mine or other friends. Although Bruce2 has a secret source of very rare Thing part that he knows of in Mexico I have never found a single parts there. When we ran the Baja 2000, we ran out of $ down in Bahia San Fanciscito and ended up selling parts staight off of our prerunner all the way back to San Diego to pay for gas and beer. I flew into the Colorado Springs airport with enough cash to get my truck out of the parking garage and came home smelling like 3 weeks of camp fires and has 16 cents in my pocket. Our class 12 car did take 14th. In that race it was all about finishing the race. K-mann

[Big Luni]

The Thing $hop bought up VW de Mexico's inventory in the late 90's. Since then, most of the good NOS stuff has been in AZ. The parts are easier to locate now, but you'd better be ready to take out a second mortgage- or have a kidney to spare.

[ramirez]

Hi,that´s true,believe me im in mexico and is very hard to find parts,im still looking for wiper motor,mine is broken.
but,when you are lucky and find what looking for, is a gift in my city,Guadalajara(mariachi and tequilas land)you can find fender set(fiberglass) $250 bucks,set of curtains the same $250,soft top for $260,frame $340.
oh, and the hormiga is not a thing,is a very ugly truck made and only for sale in mexico,type 1 engine whit front traction.the thing is called SAFARI,
(sorry for my bad english) .best regards.

[ramirez]

Hi,that´s true,believe me im in mexico and is very hard to find parts,im still looking for wiper motor,mine is broken.
but,when you are lucky and find what looking for, is a gift in my city,Guadalajara(mariachi and tequilas land)you can find fender set(fiberglass) $250 bucks,set of curtains the same $250,soft top for $260,frame $340.
oh, and the hormiga is not a thing,is a very ugly truck made and only for sale in mexico,type 1 engine whit front traction.the thing is called SAFARI,
(sorry for my bad english) .best regards.

[ramirez]

Hi,that´s true,believe me im in mexico and is very hard to find parts,im still looking for wiper motor,mine is broken.
but,when you are lucky and find what looking for, is a gift in my city,Guadalajara(mariachi and tequilas land)you can find fender set(fiberglass) $250 bucks,set of curtains the same $250,soft top for $260,frame $340.
oh, and the hormiga is not a thing,is a very ugly truck made and only for sale in mexico,type 1 engine whit front traction.the thing is called SAFARI,
(sorry for my bad english) .best regards.

[ramirez]

Hi,that´s true,believe me im in mexico and is very hard to find parts,im still looking for wiper motor,mine is broken.
but,when you are lucky and find what looking for, is a gift in my city,Guadalajara(mariachi and tequilas land)you can find fender set(fiberglass) $250 bucks,set of curtains the same $250,soft top for $260,frame $340.
oh, and the hormiga is not a thing,is a very ugly truck made and only for sale in mexico,type 1 engine whit front traction.the thing is called SAFARI,
(sorry for my bad english) .best regards.

[ramirez]

Hi,that´s true,believe me im in mexico and is very hard to find parts,im still looking for wiper motor,mine is broken.
but,when you are lucky and find what looking for, is a gift in my city,Guadalajara(mariachi and tequilas land)you can find fender set(fiberglass) $250 bucks,set of curtains the same $250,soft top for $260,frame $340.
oh, and the hormiga is not a thing,is a very ugly truck made and only for sale in mexico,type 1 engine whit front traction.the thing is called SAFARI,
(sorry for my bad english) .best regards.

[ramirez]

Hi,that´s true,believe me im in mexico and is very hard to find parts,im still looking for wiper motor,mine is broken.
but,when you are lucky and find what looking for, is a gift in my city,Guadalajara(mariachi and tequilas land)you can find fender set(fiberglass) $250 bucks,set of curtains the same $250,soft top for $260,frame $340.
oh, and the hormiga is not a thing,is a very ugly truck made and only for sale in mexico,type 1 engine whit front traction.the thing is called SAFARI,
(sorry for my bad english) .best regards.

[ramirez]

Hi,that´s true,believe me im in mexico and is very hard to find parts,im still looking for wiper motor,mine is broken.
but,when you are lucky and find what looking for, is a gift in my city,Guadalajara(mariachi and tequilas land)you can find fender set(fiberglass) $250 bucks,set of curtains the same $250,soft top for $260,frame $340.
oh, and the hormiga is not a thing,is a very ugly truck made and only for sale in mexico,type 1 engine whit front traction.the thing is called SAFARI,
(sorry for my bad english) .best regards.

[ramirez]

Hi,that´s true,believe me im in mexico and is very hard to find parts,im still looking for wiper motor,mine is broken.
but,when you are lucky and find what looking for, is a gift in my city,Guadalajara(mariachi and tequilas land)you can find fender set(fiberglass) $250 bucks,set of curtains the same $250,soft top for $260,frame $340.
oh, and the hormiga is not a thing,is a very ugly truck made and only for sale in mexico,type 1 engine whit front traction.the thing is called SAFARI,
(sorry for my bad english) .best regards.

[ramirez]

Hi,that´s true,believe me im in mexico and is very hard to find parts,im still looking for wiper motor,mine is broken.
but,when you are lucky and find what looking for, is a gift in my city,Guadalajara(mariachi and tequilas land)you can find fender set(fiberglass) $250 bucks,set of curtains the same $250,soft top for $260,frame $340.
oh, and the hormiga is not a thing,is a very ugly truck made and only for sale in mexico,type 1 engine whit front traction.the thing is called SAFARI,
(sorry for my bad english) .best regards.

[ramirez]

uups,im sorry, some trouble whit my laptop.

[TimGud]

Oh my god that was funny Ramirez.

[Vw4x4]

How many Ramirez brothers are you??? mucho postings....

[Vw4x4]

This is the famous Vw "Hormiga" that the Ramirez Bros. where talking about

https://www.thesamba.com/vw/gallery/pix/190625.jpg

[Big Luni]

Wow- what an eyesore. And that's coming from a Thing owner! I recognize the universal VW 68-up headlights, Late Bus mirrors, and possibly Thing door hinges. The rest looks like I might have made it in 7th Grade metal shop class. Oh well, I'd probably drive it anyway.

[Bruce]

Hola ramirez, I'm gonna be in your city in a couple of weeks.

Its been my observations that there are very few aircooled VWs per capita in the border cities than compared to the south of Mexico. I don't even bother to look for VW parts when I'm in Sonora. You need to go deep into Mexico to find anything. I also don't find NOS parts, only used parts. The bigger the city, the better the chance you will find good parts. The best place I found is Mexico City. Since Guadalajara is also a big city, you'd think there would be lots of parts there to find, but I've found very little there (except for that glove box door, Kmann). Monterrey might be a good place due to its size. I've cleaned out Mazatlan since I've spent a lot of time there. A friend of mine works PV when he goes, so I don't bother with that city. This year I'm going to try for Acapulco, who knows, since they named a version of Safari after there, there should be parts there.

The VW Hormiga was an idea from VW of Germany. The intent was an inexpensive to build, light urban delivery vehicle that could be assembled with a minimum of tools and equipment. They thought they could be built in countries that didn't have an auto industry. The cab's design was such that you could build it using a brake, shear, and a welder. The truck was a flop because VW of Germany underestimated the sophistication of the Mexican people. I have only seen 4 Hormigas in Mexico in the last 3 trips there. Three were junked in Guadalajara, and one was surprisingly being used on the streets of Mazatlan.

[ramirez]

Hi,bruce
I learn something today,about hormigas and vw germany,interesting.
so,youre coming to guadalajara,for how long?ill be glad to say hello
and maybe be your guide in town,since i know almost all vw supliers
even know a thing shop,and a shop for convertibles(mundo safari)specialist in things soft top,curtains,frames and sun visors.
my english is not good,but i will try.