Mama Says: Mexico City is Buggin’ Out!
It used to be that traveling to Mexico City meant experiencing a sea of the ubiquitous green VW “Sedan” taxis. Sadly, those days ended in 2003 when the city’s governing body decided that all taxis should have 4 doors. Certainly they have a point. But like high heels and push up bras, sometimes comfort isn’t everything... but I digress.
These days, finding a VW Sedan “Vocho” taxi in Mexico City is tough. Their numbers have dropped from over 50,000 to less than just over a thousand. Not to mention, the classic bright green color scheme is now replaced by maroon and gold.
But just when you think that the VW Beetle is no longer Mexico City’s most beloved vehicle, you see this kind of parking lot.
Turns out, El Vocho is still the man. And I’m not talking about any flower vase-holding, peace sign-sporting, Bluetooth enabled, Volkswagen. I’m talking about the air cooled, 5-second belt change, Herbie!
One possible reason for this is that VW’s second largest plant is a few hours outside of Mexico City - and in its time, it produced 1.7 million Bugs. So although Nissan is now the #1 selling car brand south of the border - if you’re looking for a car that’s easy to fix with cheap parts, the Beetle is still your best choice. Considering most people in Mexico City spend plenty of time in this kind of parking lot, that’s pretty important.
Before you start licking your chops over a sea of cheap, vintage VWs, you may want to check yourself. Sadly, you can’t import a Mexican Beetle to the U.S., because it’s a stinkbug - it just doesn’t comply with modern American emission standards. So, if you must have a Vochito, you can always try keeping the Mexican plates on it - but you’d better learn to speak Spanish first, because there are plenty of Abuelos around that had one too and they want to tell you ALL about it.
