This is a one-of-a-kind program and you need to understand the details of it before you jump into it:

In order to purchase, prepare, paper, and insure a NEW motorcycle for you here in Peru, we must have the FULL payment up front and at least (4) weeks before your arrival in Peru.  We are not a motorcycle dealership, so in order to begin paperwork on the bike and get the motorcycle in the shop to do the preparation for you, we must pay the dealership and then pay for the extra parts and the labor to have it ready by the time you arrive.

The USED/MADE NEW ones already have the owners card and license plate, so they can be ready in a bit less time, but we still ask the (4) weeks (in case a part to rebuild it for you is difficult to find) and we also require the FULL payment up front.  These motorcycles have been received back after someone’s Epic Ride and changed it back into our name (so that we can sell it to you) for them.  When YOU purchase it as a USED/MADE NEW motorcycle, we immediately pay the owner the promised BUY BACK amount, then put the rest of the amount into the new parts and the labor to make it ‘New Again’ for you.

There is no ‘mark up’ or profit on either New or Used/Made new motorcycles.  It is a service we do that brings work into the shop.

Yes, sending off $$ to someone you don’t know to purchase a motorcycle sight unseen requires trust.  That is why we encourage you to read the details on the website, ask all your questions, read the blogs and Ride Reports of others who have gone before you doing a similar ride, and even talk to former customers (we can give you their information upon request).  AROUND THE BLOCK MOTO ADVENTURES, LLC is a USA (Maine) based business with a formal website, taxes paid, and USA business bank and Paypal accounts.

We can also talk face-to-face on SKYPE if you would like.  We will send you regular pictures of the preparation of your motorcycle through the whole procedure as we fit it to your specific needs.  Our past customers are happy to talk to you also about us, the motorcycle they rode, and the Epic Ride they had.  We don’t hide anything.  Even the blogs of riders who had problems with their motorcycles are included on the website!

More time is always better.  This is because sometimes the model (or color) motorcycle you want may not be readily available immediately.  Also, depending on the ‘extras’ you may want, we may have to wait for a shipment of accessories from outside of Peru.  We also may be booked preparing motorcycles for others and not be able to fit your request in if left to only one month before.

UPDATE: You will need a PERMISO ESPECIAL DE FIRMAR CONTRATOS COMO TURISTA in order for you to sign the Buyer-Seller agreement in front of the notary to move the moto over to your name.  This can now be done electronically.  We will process this for you as soon as you enter Peru.  Just send us a scan (or very good quality pix) of the photo page of your passport and the PERMISO will be ready for you when you arrive in Huánuco.  This document is good only for 30 days.  If you are bringing the moto back to us for the BUY BACK, then when you re-enter Peru again let us know and we will get another one for you.  If you want to sell your motorcycle yourself somewhere else in Peru you can process it by then going on to the https://cel.migraciones.gob.pe:8081/pesd2/PEFC_Inicio

website to process your PERMISO.

Why do we do this in Pucallpa, Peru, and not in the capitol city of Lima?  There are many reasons:

1. The taxes on motorcycles and parts (18%), does not apply in Huánuco as it is a duty-free zone.  That savings can be passed on to you.
2. Pucallpa is right on the central in the center of Peru, and that is where you want to ride.  Lima is a city of 13+ million with dangerous traffic.  There is a reason that motorcycle insurance there cost 4X as much!  From Pucallpa you can easily head south to Cuzco and beyond, or north to Cajamarca, Chachapoyas, and Ecuador.  Even if you drop down to the coast, AVOID Lima, especially the northern and eastern entries/exits.  In and out via the southern route is not too bad if you are just going to Miraflores or vicinity.  Even so, I don’t recommend riding around IN Lima.
3. Paperwork in Pucallpa is local, professional, easy and efficient, VERY UNLIKE Lima!  The change of name (to you) for a Huánuco originated motorcycles require less than (8) working days.  For Lima it costs more and usually requires 14 working days.  That could create problems for you trying to cross borders before the process completes.  We cover all costs of the paperwork to put the motorcycle in your name and then transfer it back if you bring it back to us.
4. Pucallpa is a short flight from Lima with multiple flights per day.  There are buses to Pucallpa also, but it is a 20 hr ride!

It is well worth it to be centered out of Pucallpa for the reasons stated above (flight and bus details at the end of the agreement.

The paperwork we do for you is to get the motorcycle into your name as that is a requirement if you want to cross borders.  We will advise you in all things police and border crossings with what we know and have heard from recent riders.  We DO NOT control the police, governments, or border crossings agents and what they may want to require of you (additional paperwork or even a bribe!).

So far ALL the motorcycles that we have prepared and have gone out from us have been able to cross any border in South America they chose.  In the last months on the southern borders (exiting Peru) with Bolivia and Chile, the border agents have asked riders to meet the ‘letter of the law’ that says that the person taking the motorcycle OUT of Peru must be a resident of Peru, but the Brazil, Columbia and Ecuador borders have not been an issue.  So you might have to go to Bolivia, Argentina and Chile via Brazil.  Many have just come back at a different time and there was no issue.  Some have gone to a different Peru exit and not had anything else required.  Others have gone to the nearest Notary and gotten a Power of Attorney giving a Peruvian friend permission to exit the motorcycle for them.  Then when out of Peru you ride the motorcycle into the neighboring country.

 There have been no issues or extra paperwork required (presently that we know of) at any other borders in South America.  As the owner’s card has the owner’s name in a bar code, as soon as we sign the motorcycle over to your name you may ride away with the present card and insurance.  We will follow the paperwork until the name change actually is registered in the government Vehicle Registry, then get an official copy of this and scan it to you.  You won’t need this within or even exiting Peru as they can access the information in their system.  But other countries may doubt that the moto is in your name as it does not show on the card so this document (called a BOLETA INFORMATIVA) might be called upon.

When you (or the Peruvian helping you) exit the motorcycle out of Peru, they will automatically give you a document that says that if you don’t return the motorcycle to Peru in less than 90 days, they can require the import taxes (18% plus 6% of the value) to bring it back into Peru.  Hold on to this document as they most likely will ask you for it upon your return.  If you will need more than the 90 days that they automatically give you, ask for (1) year and they will give it to you.

Plan on a full day or two for testing of your motorcycle on rides around Huánuco BEFORE you head off on your Epic Ride.  Yes, we seat the new (or newly rebuilt) engine in for you so you don’t have to worry about that detail, but we want you to test it for a day or two and bring it back to us with adjustments needed and perhaps a concern or two that we can attend to BEFORE you are off and a long way from us!

Getting the luggage right by testing and customizing the racks and straps can even take a day!  But it is better than finding the luggage issues out down the road when you don’t have a mechanic and welding shop at your disposal!

What if I have to cancel BEFORE coming to Peru?  This could happen.  We will work with you to get you your money back as soon as possible by selling it to another rider for the price you paid.  This will be a top priority for us.

What if I am forced to change my plans and shorten my trip once I head off?  We still offer the same UNLIMITED TIME & KMS BUY BACK plan no matter the time or the kms traveled.  As we promise to completely rebuild the bike again for the next rider no matter how little use, and we expend the same amount of $$ doing this, the original Buy Back price stands.  When you return the bike back sooner than expected it is harder to find a buyer on short notice, but we will work with you.

The Buy Back price we offer is OPTIONAL.  Once you purchase the motorcycle, change it into your name and head off on your ride the motorcycle is yours and your complete responsibility.  At any time you may choose to:

1. Bring it back to us to take advantage of this Buy Back Agreement.  This means that we will:

1. Receive the motorcycle back and check it over, wash it and photograph it.  We do not care about small scratches or wear items used up (brakes, tires, chain/sprockets, handlebar grips, light bulbs).  The only things that will be noted are the bent or broken items.
2. It is possible that we have been able to sell your motorcycle for you even before return.  If that is the case we will be able to give you the promised Buy Back amount immediately. 
3. More than likely it will be a few weeks or months before it is sold.  In that case we will do a full maintenance on the motorcycle plus new tires and chain/sprockets.  Then we will put the motorcycle up for rental.  If it rents, we will split the profit on the rental with you.  This will be added income for you on your investment UNTIL your motorcycle sells.  This will NOT affect the promised Buy Back amount.  You will still get the full amount promised ASIDE from the rental income.
4. We respect the order that each motorcycle of each model return and line them up in that respective order.  Then we sell them in that very order to the next rider that asks for that model.
5. The very day that we receive payment for your motorcycle from the next rider, we will send you your promised Buy Back via PAYPAL.  If you use a different email for your PAYPAL account, let us know.  If you would prefer us to send it via a Bank Transfer, let us know and we can do that the very next bank working day

2. Sell it or give it away to anyone within Peru.  This is legal. To do this you will likely (if it has been more than 30 days) have to get a new PERMISO.   Make sure you do the paperwork to get it out of your name.  This is because in South America any accident involving your motorcycle or any crime committed with your motorcycle falls as the responsibility of the OWNER (as shown on the owner’s card).
3. Sell it or give it away to anyone OUTSIDE of Peru (even abandoning it).  This is illegal as it is a Peruvian Registered motorcycle that entered that other country on a TVIP (Temporary Vehicle Import Permit) agreement, free of taxes because it is considered a ‘tourist vehicle’ for a limited amount of time.  Leaving it behind in another country is Tax Fraud.  No, you won’t be able to offer to just pay the taxes.  You would have to exit that country with the moto, then re-enter processing the moto as an Importation, requiring hiring customs agents, special paperwork, taxes and fees, all at the border which will take various days.  Unless you do this the new buyer will never be able to legally register the motorcycle in that country.  Thus you may not get such a good price for it!

Again, if you don’t legally get the motorcycle out of your name, then you will be liable for any accident or crime that happens with that vehicle.

- Can I get out of the other country without my motorcycle even though it is under a TVIP?

Sure!  In South America (at the present time) you can leave a country without your motorcycle even if you entered WITH it, but once the TVIP expires two things will happen: (1) The ADUANA (customs) will order a ‘police capture’ for the motorcycle and it will become the property of the state and the person riding it may go to jail.  (2) The charge of Tax Fraud will be attached to your passport and you won’t be able to return to that country in the future without risking possible arrest.  So choose a country you don’t want to return to and exit before your TVIP expires!

If you have a serious accident on your motorcycle and it is basically not repairable, and you have the accident documented by the police of the area in which it happened, then this is the only possibility where you can legally abandon your motorcycle and NOT have it considered Tax Fraud.  As paperwork in Police stations is sometimes lost in the works, it would be best if you carried a copy of said document for exiting or re-entering that country should there be an issue.

MOTORCYCLE CARE

     It goes without saying that you will want to keep your motorcycle in good working condition, not just for your ride, but for the BUY BACK. When the motorcycle comes back we check it over and pull the head and the cylinder to see if there is any damage due to overheating or low quality lubrication. Scarred valve rocker arms or camshaft and deep cylinder grooves always tell the story. If there is damage, we will assess the cost of the damage and discount that from the agreed BUY BACK amount. As said earlier; we are not concerned with wear items that will be replaced anyway or rubbed off paint.

ALWAYS and ONLY use the MOTUL 7100 Full Synthetic 20W50 oil.  You can get this all over South America. These motos are maxed out when we load them with everything, our own weight and our luggage and ask them to cross the Andes passes, the Amazon jungle mud or the desert coast. These are all harsh environments.  Take it easy on the moto!  The 200cc bikes only cruise at 60 kph.  TORQUE, NEXUS, and X-TERRA models are designed for dirt tracks, so don’t ask more than 70 kph, and give them the daily care they require and they will take you anywhere!  The other models (some of which have 6 speeds) can do more, but only on flat pavement.   200+ motos prepared by us have already gone almost everywhere in South America.

If you go to any of the Salares (highland Salt Flats), BEWARE!  The salt gets into EVERYWHERE and begins to corrode!  If the salt flat is dry then feel free to go out and test, photo op, etc., but keep the speeds down so that the tires don’t throw the salt up into every component of the motorcycle (especially the wiring!!).  Then go to the nearest town and get a good long pressure washing !! 

If the salt flat is wet, and you go ride on it, you will quickly destroy your trip.  Maybe not right then, but 500 kms down the road EVERYTHING will begin to go wrong!  If you bring the motorcycle back for the BUY BACK after riding on a wet salt flat, even if you washed it well, we will be able to tell and consider it MAJOR DAMAGE.  The world famous DAKAR RACE riders discovered this in 2014 in Bolivia and REFUSED to participate in the event the following year if the route took them onto the Salt Flats in January!!