- One of the most tragic episodes in the history of Mexico was the coordinated assassinations of President Francisco I. Madero and Vice President Jose Maria Pino Suarez. The assassinations were both tied to automobiles, given that both Madero and Pino Suarez were transferred, under false pretenses, to the places of their execution in two automobiles that would today be the envy of any car collector. These vehicles include a prototype Laundet, in which Madero traveled, and a Packard convertible, which carried Pino Suarez. The first auto was provided by businessman Cecilio Ocon, a sworn enemy of Madero, and the Packard by Ignacio de la Torre y Mier, son-in-law of Dictator Porfirio Diaz, who Madero had defeated in the election.
- The Porsche model known as the “Carrera” bears this name given the role it has played in the famed Panamerican Race (Carrera Panamericana), which goes from El Ocotan on the Guatemalan border to Ciudad Juarez on the U.S. border, traversing the entire Mexican territory.
- Later Porsche named its “Panamera” as its first four door vehicle, also in memory of the Carrera Panamericana.
- Ferrari prepared a car to race in the 1952 Carrera Panamericana. It was called the Ferrari Mexico. Ferrari produced various automobiles under the name Ferrari Mexico. Some of these raced in the Carrera, with one in particular coming in third place, driven by Luigi Chimatti, following two Mercedes Benz 300 SL cars. The same auto also ran the “Mille Miglia” in the 12 hours of Reims, and finally appeared at an automobile auction in Isla Amelia. In 2011, the Ferrari Mexico referred to in this trivia item was sold for $4.29 million dollars.
- Mexican President Adolfo Lopez Mateos (1958-1964) was a huge car aficionado. At night he was known to leave his residence alone or occasionally accompanied by a friend (or girlfriend) to run his cars on the Mexico-Cuernavaca superhighway. On one occasion, while driving a Maserati, President Lopez Mateos was pulled over by a motorcycle policeman for exceeding the posted speed limit. Legend has it that the President paid the fine and promoted the policeman, as a reward for properly carrying out his policing duties.
