Buenos dias, buenos dias, buenos dias

Two things I thought I would write about since I heard comments yesterday about what to do if you get stopped by the Federal police while driving in Mexico and what do you do if you get the "red" light at the 16 mile point driving into Mexico and they want to inspect your car.............
When I started coming to Mexico about 35 years ago a friend said, "Don't speak Spanish! If you start in Spanish, you have to finish in Spanish and UNDERSTAND everything the police have said" Only say" buenos dias" in answer to their question. (They ask where have you come from, where are you going and other simple things like that) So, I have always said "Buenos dias", IT WORKS! It has ALWAYS worked in the hundreds of driving trips I have made. By the third "buenos dias" they just say "Andele" and you're off............After all, they're just bored standing out on that highway in the middle of nowhere and they just want a smile and a friendly face........trust me.
And, if you're driving in and you push the button at the check point and you have a ton of stuff and you get the red light - don't panic. Usually they just want to check your tourist visa or your FM3..........IF they do want to check your car, here's what you do! You get out and you take one little thing out and walk to the table and set it down. Then you walk slowly back to the car and get a second little thing out............I did this with pinecones, one at a time once. The inspector has to stay there and they don't want to see you spend hours onloading your car. So in a few minutes they tell you ok and you're on your way..............trust me. I also did this with books once. It works!
So, those are my timely tips. Hope it helps a fellow traveler at some point!