Advice from a technician, on becoming a technician

[ryan2022]

Hi guys,

As an addition to my recent career rant, I was wondering if there were any technicians that would steer me clear of the industry?

I'm in my mid thirtees, and have been looking at a change from my daily grind as a technologist/draftsman.

Originally I started my career with automotive in mind, and have a major in it.

I may have an apportunity to do some design work, as well as work my way to a mechanical apprenticeship in a shop that specializes in race service, as well as servicing higher end cars like Porsche, MB and BMW among others.

It's an interesting role, and a great group of guys. I'm just wondering if it's worth jumping into an apprenticeship with both feet, and what the industry is like if I were to carry on, down the road.

Thanks for any insight.

 

[Danno]

As a fleet manager for a major Canada fleet, I do know there is high demand for technicians. Repair shops, especially western Canada shops are constantly short staffed. Even with the lower oil prices.
Good luck on your journey.

 

[zray]

I worked many years as a motorcycle mechanic, technician was too fancy of a word for us.

Aside from working around toxic materials all the time, the main drawback is you don't get to "rub up" against many women in most shops.

Z

 

[Mr Nice]

Read Flat Rate Tech . com as there are many unhappy mechanics.

How much hourly $$$ do you want to make in your possible new career ?

are you that unhappy at current job to want a career change ?

 

[SnowDrifter]

You need to be resilient, positive attitude, honest. There will be days/weeks where it feels like you're beating your head against the wall. It's fun, it's also very frustrating at times. It's luck of the draw

Be careful how you work, this field WILL take it's toll on your health. Work carefully to minimize problems. Gloves when using impact tools, disposable gloves so you don't get your hands dirty, back brace, mask when doing anything dusty, ear protection, etc.

Also... Hourly>flat rate

 

[bradepb]

I have been an auto or truck/bus mechanic since 1978.
If you can get an hourly job at a municipality or fleet which I eventually did it's not a bad career.
But the hard truth is it's just no fun anymore working on the modern vehicles.

 

[carock]

I got out of it in 1996 and went back into engineering because the pay was better. I think your job satisfaction in the business is 100% dependent on who you work for. There are shops where work is often a joy and shops where idiots just make your life horrible. Here in SoCal I would never work at a dealer. The independent shops and fleet shops are better. It is tough work and like they said above, you have to take care of your health.

 

[eljefino]

I worked one winter at a chain tire shop. The work was ok. I broke my ankle at work by wedging it between two lifts posts and decided it was not for me.

The funny thing as a "bay rat" is you get wicked blinders vs working by yourself. What the customer wants is transposed by the service writer to a work order, and this is constantly getting screwed up.

I was given a can filter for a corolla but it had the other engine that took a cartridge filter. Looked all over the darn thing, top and bottom, assuming I'd find an old can somewhere on it.

A cusomer brought in a mistubishi eclipse and a NAPA filter for some reason. But the filter was for the mitsu engine with 20mm threads, yet this eclipse had the dodge neon engine with 3/4 (19mm) thread. If I put that filter in service it would have threaded on and blown off later.

"Nail in tire" is often found in a different corner than described on paperwork.

We had seven bays and about two mechanics, so we'd pull cars in before we could work on them, so, to the customer, it looked like we were "on it", having their car in the air. Heck, they'd have to hoof it to leave. My empathy for the waiting customer led me to hurry and not do the internal quality control/ double checks I'd have liked to have done.

Co workers were really mellow as was management. Lead mechanic left his tollbox unlocked and let everyone use his stuff.

Training was dreadful to nonexistent. My trainer told me directly, the first day, that safety glasses were optional. She wore them on her scalp, ready to pull down if the boss walked in. She also said small car lug nuts got 80 ft lbs, big cars 100, and trucks 125. This, despite a laminated chart with the correct values, and color-coded torque wrenches preset to appropriate values.

We put universal antifreeze and 5w30 in everything, which kinda bugged me.

Now my ankle's healed and a part of me misses it.

Even the money was okay, minimum wage plus a flat rate plan could get someone into the mid 'teens per hour right off the street.

 

[01rangerxl]

A higher end shop is where you want to be. Generally everything is better...equipment, clientele, the cars you work on, pay, hours, etc.

Working in a mainstream shop or service department is usually a pretty rough career. Hard to make decent money, hours aren't great, many customers are simply awful (at least when it comes to car repair), corporate/middle managers tend to be disconnected and unrealistic (see the Maaco thread from a couple months ago), getting decent equipment is like pulling teeth (even basics like a heater or safe lift), time pressure is very high, margins are low, tool investment is very high, etc. Basically all the fun gets sucked out of the job. You'll find moments of peace and enjoyment on some jobs when you're being left alone and things are going right, but they will be just moments.

If you feel good about the high end shop you mentioned, definitely look into it more and consider pursuing it. Just stay out of the trenches of dealers, chains, and even average independents. It's not a cake walk.

 

[ryan2022]

First of all, I wanted to honestly thank you guys for taking the time to respond with well thought posts. This is really a great site, full of great people.

I'll admit that although I've been on the other end of the post in the past, I've been taking more than I've been giving lately.

Thanks again.

I think what appeals to me is the nature of the cars, and what these guys are hoping to accomplish with the position. It'd allow me to stretch my legs a bit as a designer, and do some interesting stuff, along with picking up a solid skillset.

I've never really felt like my design background was a tangible skill I guess, I have ten years in, and not too many interesting stories to tell.

The work would be hourly, which is nice. The pace is slightly slower than a standard shop, because the cars are mostly high end, and the processes can take a while and require a fair bit of focus.

My only thoughts would be down the road. If I ended up moving on, I'd be left with either a dealership or private shop. I have to look at the big picture and not be swayed by the fancy emblems.

 

[CT8]

It really depends on what you work on and where you work.most cars these days are really poorly designed and not fun to work on. The industrial equipment is still "fun" although I gave up on holding a regular type when I turned 50.

 

[Falken]

Eljefino and SnowDrifter are 100% correct.

I got into it as a way to pad my CV to get Machine Operator jobs as I have Graphics and Drafting as well at post-secondary level. It is called DEP in Quebec.

My experience in class agrees fully with SnowDrifter even if the other "Techs" don't do it and they will treat you like a wimp until they succumb themselves to rust in the eye or get an oil drop in the eye then they usually stop the joking around.

So keep up with the good safety practices at ALL COSTS, even if it slows you down.

I highly suggest you don't bother with this as a career, unless you have friends and family that can keep you employed in it to get your Red Seal.

My teachers told me Flat Rate is horrible until you get amazing and have a jig or trick for every problem on the books and have a good mechanic buddy that works along side you, then you can make excellent flat rate $$$

But these are all special cases, real plum scenarios, so you have to be careful.

In Eastern Canada the pay really isn't that great.

This is truly a trade that you start at the age of 16. I started it at 36 and again, it was only to back up other skills.

Besides, I have a Diploma in my back pocket that at least I can work on my own car for most things, and I get a little professional respect when doing office work Drafting etc when they know you have a mechanical related diploma.

I wouldn't have my current Drafting job if I didn't have my Mechanics diploma, when I was hired they needed some sage advice, and someone who can unscrew something here and there.

People are sheepish to disagree over mechanical matters when they know you have schooling in it, regardless of what job you take.

Never hesitate to get education that all compliments eachother, that is key.

 

[mehullica]

I've been working at Toyota/Lexus dealers since the 90s. Money is great, but the more you know you'll end up doing tougher work that pays less. Stupidity pays more since all they can handle is higher paying maintenance work. Hourly shops are good, but not worth the lower pay & other damage you'll do to your back, shoulders, knees, etc. the recent change in California flat rate pay will help to earn you more money in a flat rate shop than hourly shop with the same wear/tear on your body

 

[SumpChump]

I can probably guess but.... please explain flat rate.. how it works.. perhaps an example of the work in a weekly paycheck and how it affects work speed and effort.

 

[rjundi]

My only observation is working conditions look hard in certain shops.

Some definitely are much nicer(BMW & MB have radiant heated floors locally) vs a drafty shop with freezing cold tools and feet.

 

[mehullica]

I'd say almost all shops/dealer use the flat rate system. I've been in it for 21 years. Let's use a Toyota Corolla as an example. Starter replacement pays 1.1 hours labor. If I make $20 per hour flat rate, the I get $22 to replace the starter. If it takes me 25 minutes or 2 hours to do the job, I still get $22 total. If you're fast you'll produce lots of hours of work in one shift. Yesterday I worked 10 clock hours. I got paid 16.4 hours since I beat the flat rate time on almost all my jobs. I had a check engine light diagnosis that pays 1.2 flat rate. It took me 2 hours. I lost 0.8 on that job. Some days you win big or lose big. Last week I worked 42 clock hours & produced 34.5 hours. I lost that week. If you don't have the right tools to do the job, or work really slow, or get job is that pay low, you'll lose your [censored]. When you lose your [censored], you start cutting corners on jobs & the snowball effect starts

 

[Quest]

Originally Posted By: Falken
Eljefino and SnowDrifter are 100% correct.

I got into it as a way to pad my CV to get Machine Operator jobs as I have Graphics and Drafting as well at post-secondary level. It is called DEP in Quebec.

My experience in class agrees fully with SnowDrifter even if the other "Techs" don't do it and they will treat you like a wimp until they succumb themselves to rust in the eye or get an oil drop in the eye then they usually stop the joking around.

So keep up with the good safety practices at ALL COSTS, even if it slows you down.

I highly suggest you don't bother with this as a career, unless you have friends and family that can keep you employed in it to get your Red Seal.

My teachers told me Flat Rate is horrible until you get amazing and have a jig or trick for every problem on the books and have a good mechanic buddy that works along side you, then you can make excellent flat rate $$$

But these are all special cases, real plum scenarios, so you have to be careful.

In Eastern Canada the pay really isn't that great.

This is truly a trade that you start at the age of 16. I started it at 36 and again, it was only to back up other skills.

Besides, I have a Diploma in my back pocket that at least I can work on my own car for most things, and I get a little professional respect when doing office work Drafting etc when they know you have a mechanical related diploma.

I wouldn't have my current Drafting job if I didn't have my Mechanics diploma, when I was hired they needed some sage advice, and someone who can unscrew something here and there.

People are sheepish to disagree over mechanical matters when they know you have schooling in it, regardless of what job you take.

Never hesitate to get education that all compliments eachother, that is key.


Hear hear!

I was a mech (worked briefly for VW, and then Suzuki) a quarter of century ago, and was one of the newcomers specialised in Bosch fuel injection systems diagnosis and repair.

2 things that struck me hard and made me changed (veered off course) my career life choice:

(a) my wifey's flying buddy (owns a homebuilt 2-seater with rotax engine, and then a 4-seater cessna) been working as mech since his teens, and now he's into his late-40s, his knees are busted, and bad back. His GP told him that he has enlarged liver due to exposure to various toxic chemicals over the decades (brake fluid, used motor oil, brake cleaners, etc.)...

(b) my mentor (senior/head mech in VW) told me that unless your timing is right, and you have the intelligence of climbing the journeyman hierarchy and became a head-mech or senior in your late 30s/early 40s, otherwise: you will be miserable working on cars day-in-day-out.
Although you have accumulated knowledge over the years, but with ever-changing technologies (you think ported EFI is "challenging" enough, think OBD-II based GDI with high pressure fuel rails, and many other electronic monitoring and gadgetrys, etc.) will kick you out if you don't have a strong background in electronics to begin with.

Gone were the days where a 12volt lamp probe suffice to fix most of the carb'ed (or early EFI/MFI days) engined cars; Nowadays: you need to have proper understanding RE: PWM (pulse-width modulation) signals coming out onto the fuel injectors; individual over-the-plug ignition coils firing pattern and how to diagnose a diagnostic code, etc.

Learn and be able to understand how to use an automotive diagnostic grade oscilloscope is a must nowadays, for I still see too many of them failed in that arena.

The days of simple fixes are long gone. Those who are mechanically-competent can only stay on the mechanical-repair side of the biz, and w/o sufficient knowhow to venture into the diagnosis side of the matter.

My 2c's worth.

Q.

Oh and BTW: I now have a F/T office job working as IT admin; sidework mechanical repair during afterhours. I make more money than most of the folks I came to know of, and I still able to maintain a healthy lifestyle w/o any suffering RE: ill health. Best of all: I have a pension to look forward to when I retire.

 

[ryan2022]

Thanks guys,

That was an excellent description on the flat rate system. I can see how that would get frustrating quickly, although the good days would be gravy.

Although I like the industry, and enjoy cars I may keep on the road that I'm on.
I think the uncertainty of what my next move would be is enough to cause me to hesitate.

I agree with what a few others have said, I've wanted to be a mechanic for year, but it's stemmed from years ago starting with pre-OBD cars and pretty basic work. The high end cars excited me, but at the same time their complexity would be pretty intense I'm sure.

I still think it has the potential to be a great career, and will always respect the guys/girls who do it.

 

[Quest]

Best of luck, Ryan.

Make sure you spend as much time possible in learning/fortifying the basics of electronics, not just AC vs DC, or DC12V, charging current, etc. means. You must be prepared to be able to dive deep into the matters RE: how to effectively diagnose a weak/intermittent misfiring of a over-the-top style ignition coil firing pattern on the oscilloscope, etc.

If you are to read back to yesterday RE: one of the regular poster's V-8 MB suffered from misfiring code on cylinder 3, you'll understand what you are facing or you need to be able to handle.

Part swapping can solve some of the problems quickly, but at the cost of customers looking at a hefty bill when the problem was not being fixed right (1st shot); or additional frustration when customer keeps coming back, which will definitely look bad on you, image/competence-wise.

Good luck.

Q.

 

[ryan2022]

Thanks Quest.