I was at the shop getting my car a NY State inspection and I finally realized why, dammit, I just need to learn Spanish already.
I've wanted to learn Spanish ever since I started taking German in middle school. My dad speaks it fluently, and learned it years ago by reading a book in Spanish on the plane to Peru. So that's been nagging me, but when I couldn't talk to the guys in the shop about my '73 VW Bug, that's when I realized I just have no excuse. I had the chance to talk with some totally enthused mechanics and swap stories, but the language barrier pretty much shut everything down.
Spanish is pretty important in the car business these days, too. Plants keep springing up in Mexico, and if you want to be on top of everything, you're going to have to learn some español. Ash78 decided to help out the entire Volkswagen Automobile Group with a handy translation guide for their new, 100th factory down south of the border.
Berlitz "Mexican Spanish for English-Speaking German Multinational Carmakers"
Repítame: "Quieres jugar al Golf?"
"Do you want to f*ck around with the tolerance levels on our best-selling vehicle?""Tienes que pagar la mordida."
"It is customary to tip the inspecting officials.""Por favor, no saques la basura."
"Please do not remove our best designs from the office.""No te preocupes de los problemas eléctricos."
"Our vehicles are of the highest quality."
If you need any more lessons, VAG, just let us know.
Photo Credit: Raphael Orlove