Car mechanics?

[GoldenBear]

After getting my parent's car fixed today, I figured this kind of career path would be downright COOL~! You get yourself dirty everyday, not TOO stressful I would think (compared to doctor/programmer), you get to work on all those purty cars out there, the pay is quite nice and on top of that, what chick doesn't dig a mechanic

So basically, what does it take? What are the good schools out there for it in CA, and overall how is it?

 

[RU482]

Most of the guys I know who are mechanics have always been mechanics...it's like, genetic or something

 

[LAUST]

Yes they start showing sighnes as I did of the love for power and the ability to understand on all levels as Tim Allen does.

ARG ARG ARG!!

I'm not a Mechanic but work on cars as hobby.... it is a good career though my brother R&R's Tranny's for a dealership makes out good and a few friends just from racing and the hobby I know make well also.

 

[Farbio]

it all depends on the shop that you end up working in...some have nice places, but lots of other shops are just gross and i wouldn't want to have to work there, but i agree, working on cars would be a nice job for the most part, since i do it to my car and my family's w/out getting paid

 

[squirrel dog]

A good friend of mine was a mechanic for a gm dealer.He drank himself to death.But he was making $40000 a year in 1975,so there is plenty of money for a good one.Most big dealers have apprentice programs,and will send to right person to all the schools,which are beau coup.

 

[Soybomb]

Here is my take, I'm a hobbiest and it was fun to just tinker with 1-2 cars. Quickly though I got myself in over my head with my family. I've got 2 more engines to rebuilt/ put back in and I'm done. It isn't at all fun anymore, just a chore. In the summer time you get all hot and sweaty, your hands are always looking nasty with grime and cuts/scrapes. So I think that while its fun to tinker with I could never do it for a living. Unlinke computers though, I can do those for a living

 

[perry]

My cousin is a mechanic. He works his ass off about 50 hours a week, don't make much money. He's an ASE certified master mechanic workin at a Midas shop in small town, Indiana. Doesn't wanna work for a dealership because of the flat rate pay. Job is supposed to take 3 hours, they pay you 3 hours even if it takes 6. He wants to get on a race team but hasn't found the right connections to get in.

 

[-SpYrL-]

My dad is in "collision repair" and owns his own body shop. As far as money we are in the good. My first car is a Corvette if you think that shows anything and I am about to continue in the career after him. He has a mechanic friend who doesn't seem to make near as much mulah $.

-SpYrL-

 

[Ornery]

GB, you are out of your mind! perry is telling it like it is. And I can't figure it out. These guys are very skilled in many ways. They have to know mechanical as well as electrical and troubleshooting skills. And that's for many different cars from different years. There is a shortage of these mechanics and yet the pay level is way short of what it should be. I really don't understand why and I think it would be insane to waste that skill level for the little compensation they receive.

It's even a bitch if you work for yourself. The equipment needed to diagnose so many different cars is obscenely priced and becomes obsolete quickly. Not to mention liability for safety related items and smog crap. Don't bitch about the guy that works on your car. If you're getting gouged, it's the dealership or franchise that's taking the lion's share.

 

[thedarkwolf]

Flat rate pay can be a very good thing eventually. The first time you do a job that is suppost to take 3 hours it might take you 4-5 but by the time you have done it 5 or 6 times you have figured out how to get it done a lot quiker and might be able to pull it off in 1-2 hours and still get 3 hours pay. My mechanics teacher loved working flat rate pay but he was quik.

 

[Eli]

If you're mechanical oriented, being a mechanic is fun indeed. Obviously, if you're worried about the grease on your hands, and knuckle busters, then perhaps you're not the right man for the job.

I got into mechanics when I was 13. No, not cars.. but lawnmowers. Car engines don't interest me that much. Well, new ones at least. The funnest car engine I ever worked on was a '56 VW bug engine.

Small Engines(lawnmower) are a good place to start if you're looking to get into mechanics, all the basic principals are the same. I still adore them, and I collect antique small engines. My oldest is a 1920s Briggs and Stratton model WM(stands for Washing Machine), 3/4 horsepower.
Was made before electricity was widespread.. You had to wash your clothes somehow. It doesen't even have an air cleaner. As in, It wasn't built with one. It's a kick start, and it starts on the first kick- after you've turned it over a few times to get the gas up the line. All cast iron construction, besides piston and rod. The damn thing weighs like 50lbs.

My favorite is a 1954 Briggs model 5S. Rope pull, 1 1/2 horsepower. Cast iron crankcase, aluminum head and rod/piston. Awesome oil-bath aircleaner. I just recently rebuilt it(Do you have any idea how hard it is to find .010 OD 2" rings for antique engines?!?), and it starts on the first pull every time, nomatter how cold it is outside. It even started right up after sitting for 2 years.

I also have some old unknown horsepower, unknown brand Generator engine from presumably the 30s or early 40s. It resembles a Wisconsin engine. It's big, at least 8horse. It was a 600Watt generator, but the brushes housings were made out of aluminum, and when we started it, they crumbled away. I need to find some machine shop that can make some new ones. The engine is good though, appears to be used very little. All cast-iron construction, it weighs nearly 100lbs.

Damn, I love old engines.

It is true, you know.. they sure don't build things like they used to. You will never see an 80 year old current Briggs engine. They're built to last 3-5 years. I think it's sad.

Those old cast iron engines are nearly impossible to kill. You can run them without oil for hours, and hours, and hours. Ever seen a glowing red engine running? I have. It ran for several hours with no cooling and no oil before it finally threw a rod. You couldn't run a newer engine without oil for 10 minutes without causing severe damage, and possibly lockup. Heh.

Did I mention I love old engines?

 

[dogbite]

First of all I would like to say the auto bussiness is not as easy as you think,I worked for a gas station for five years,made decent money and learned alot,but the owners of gas stations will work you to death six days a week,next I went to a nissan dealer and worked there for ten years,but I can say flat rate is a good pay plan,I made a lot of money with that plan,So If you want to go into auto bussiness go to a dealership,they will send you to school,not work you to death,give you medical benefits and many have a retirement plans, also be perpaired to spend alot of money on snap-on or mac tools , over the years I spent $30,000.00 on tools and they are now sitting there with 2 inches of dust cause I left the auto bussiness to go into the family bussiness.....

GOOD LUCK

 

[Ornery]

Eli, help! My Wheel Horse 111-5 speed has a mofo Briggs on it that's driving me crazy. I wanted a Kohler on it when I bought the thing back in 1986, but they only offered Briggs. So I bought the top of the line, 11HP commercial duty Model #253707.

It started and ran OK for a few years, but I noticed gasoline dripping from the carb at one point. I removed the air cleaner while it was running and saw the gas wafting back and forth in the carb. Seemed strange. Ultimately I saw that the exhaust and intake valves were open at the same time during part of the cycle. Genius that I am, I filed about .005" from the top of each tappet. Man, that thing had monster power, but I could hear the valves slap against the seats! Sh!t!

So I put some .005" shims in there and it's been that way since. But lately it's been getting harder and harder to start. I rebuilt the carb, but I have to remove the air cleaner before it will start for me. I can crank and crank the stupid thing with gasoline pooling in the carb, but the plug stays dry! SOB! I told this to a guy at work and he said that it sounds like there is crud on the valve seat and it needs to be lapped.

It's got about 800 hours on it now. What should I do with this thing? I could buy a new head gasket, valves, tappets and I'm not sure what else I'll need. Should I get those seats right out of there? It says a special tool is needed to do that. Is that a piece of crap engine to start with? I noticed air leaks in the mofo carb around the throttle shaft ends. I sealed them with "O" rings. It's a work around, but a new carb is $100.00. I knew I should have gotten a Kohler...

 

[hippy]

Hey Ornery, you wouldn't happen to have that post I made some time ago about my creeper laying around in your archives would ya?
Somehow it seems kinda fitting for this thread.

 

[jonnyGURU]

Hey yakko! I think you worked in a garage longer than me.

Why don't you come in here and help me tell these folks how "fun fun fun" working in a garage is.

 

[GoldenBear]

Thanks for all the help here...But yeah, your job is whatever you make of it.

Ornery

<< GB, you are out of your mind! perry is telling it like it is. >>

He is? Are you telling me these guys work hard everyday? They work hard 5-6 days a week? They need special skills? Well I never would've figured that out...

<< There is a shortage of these mechanics and yet the pay level is way short of what it should be. >>

That's quite of an over generalization isn't it? It definitely depends on how big the shop is, how many people go in, the population of the area, etc. Many programmers are paid a starting job of $30k, some are $80k, so be it.

<< It's even a bitch if you work for yourself. >>

Please, not to sound like a big head, but don't insult my intelligence with little statements like these.

Is there ANY possible job out there were workers don't complain about it?

 

[Ornery]

&quot;Well, I'm off to fight with my creeper again, this time accompanied with a brand new sunburn....ouch&quot;

Here's the thread, but of course, it's long gone. Zuni, what did you guys do with all these old gems?

http://www.anandtech.net/bbs/Forum12/HTML/002309.html

Welcome back MadCats! - Hippy, Date Posted: Jan/20/2000 10:19 PM

GoldenBear, the trades in general just suck pay-wise. I can not figure out why. The guys bustin their ass doing it have massive skills and no kids coming up that even want to do the work. In other words, no replacements. And yet, the pay still sucks!

Like -SpYrL- pointed out, it depends what end of it you pursue. There isn't as much equipment involved in the body work side of it. And the equipment doesn't have to be updated as often. But watch out for environmental concerns. That has put a few small body shops out of business around here.

Edit: << It's even a bitch if you work for yourself. >>
What that means is that normally, when you are self employed, you get a pretty good return for your effort. Not so in that line of work. A carpenter makes a pretty good wage as far as the trades go, but the owner of the business makes a hell of a lot more. The mechanic doesn't make that much and the owner of the auto repair business doesn't make nearly as much as the owner of a carpentry business.

Mechanic = moderate bucks
Carpenter = moderate to better bucks
Self employed mechanic = better bucks
Self employed carpenter = mucho bucks!

 

[thedarkwolf]

BTW I was told that if you do want to go into automechanics specialize in transmissions thats where the money is suppost to be. My teacher said his son did nothing all day but rebuild trans for a Chrysler dealership, he had a lot to do , and he said he either made $60k or $80k a year. He had some guy working under him doing nothing but taking the trans in, out, and washing parts. A guy in my class got hired by a Buick dealer and they sent him to a school just to do that so I figure he is making the big bucks by now. Atleast around here if you want to get paid halfway decent you almost have to work for a dealership or run your own garage.

 

[jonnyGURU]

&quot;Is there ANY possible job out there were workers don't complain about it?&quot;

As with any job where you deal with the customer; the customer ruins everything.

Mechanic: So that's 90 for the starter and 50 for the labor.
Customer: You said it'd be 20 for the solenoid and 50 for the labor.
Mechanic: Yeah, but when I pulled off the starter I found that it's going to need more than a solenoid. There was no way to know until it was pulled.
Customer: Then why did you tell me it only needed a solenoid.
Mechanic: My best guess. Sorry. I was wrong.
Customer: Well I don't want to do it.
Mechanic: OK, then just give me my $50 for pulling the starter.
Customer: But, you never replaced it!
Mechanic: You want me to put it back, don't you?

 

[Wangel]

Not my brother, not my dad, and not my cousin were mechanics. But I am. Been one since about age 10. I've worked for GM, Chrysler, Nissan, AMC, and a few other mega dealers. There is a shortage of mechanics right now and the pay for good technicians keep going up. Mechanics used to be for the student who couldn't do well in math, or some other required school subject. Now, auto mechanics are only for the technically and advanced student. We deal with mathematics, physics, acoustics, hydraulics, electronics, and many other upper end sciences. The shop manual for a 1960 automobile was about 125 pages. For a model year 2000 vehicle the shop manual is over 6,000 pages and sits 9 inches high. With 300 of the pages schematic diagrams. The top pay in our dealership for a mechanic was over $80,000 per year. This is in a non-union shop working a 40 hour week. If you are good, you can make the money. The question isn't, do you want to be a mechanic? The better question is: Do you have what it takes to be a mechanic? For the majority of the people, the answer is, No.

 

[Stallion]

I thought I wanted to be a mechanic as I loved to work on my own cars o off to tech school I went. Got a job at a Chevrolet dealership and wasn't to long that I found out I was dead wrong. The pay was ok but the flat rate sucked. In the winter there was no work as people were spending there money on gifts and other thing so I would work for about 4 hours a day and then go home. My Service Manager was a jerk, the mechanics that mad money at my shop were the ones who cheated. when they would do a tune up only the front 4 sparks plugs would get changed on a v-8. The turn over rate for workers was out ragious.

I went to a tech school in Phoenix and there was 7 of us from my HS that went down there to go to school and with in 2 years after we got back only 1 of us was still turning wrenches. 5 of us now work at Boeing.

I soon found out that working on other peolpes piece of crap cars was not quite the same as working on my car.

Just my .02cents.

 

[jonnyGURU]

<< I've worked for AMC... >>



Showing your age there buddy.

 

[Demon-Xanth]

Mechanics, truckers, technicians. They are all hereditary

 

[ultravox]

Having been a long time fan of Volkswagen and of late, Audi, I can see that the little independant but specialized garages seem to be thriving. The shop where I get my Audi serviced does only Volks, Porsche and Audi. The shop opened 3 yrs ago and bussiness is going up steadily especially since the cap backwards crowd have elected Golfs and Civics as the automobile of choice for their generation. I would probably cut my teeth at a dealers and then open a garage specializing in that brand. Hourly rates are cheaper than at the dealer and unlike the dealer, many specialized independants often have a few scrapped cars around back where the financially challenged can pick up a used part for cheap.....more bucks for the garagist and a happy customer also. Being self employed is definitly the way to go for a tradesman once you get the experience and capital to start up shop. The tax situation is more generous also for those operating a business.

 

[Redneck]

If you really think turnin' a wrench is right for you, you might also want to consider being a specialized diesel mechanic.AFAIK they make very good money and, depending on who you work for, you could have the oppurtunitity to travel all over the US and abroad. And if you like big toys- how about working on an engine so huge you can stand in the cylinders and the fuel pump has it's own 300HP diesel:Q