Automotive career path question(s)

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Originally Posted By: NavyVet88
I've made my mind up that if I have some bodily issues arise from long term job experience(seems to be one of the bigger complaints) then so be it. I don't care. I'm more concerned with being happy at what I do versus being able to finance a 500k dollar house.


Being a Technician/Mechanic does take a HEAVY toll on your body, Especially when working on Class 8 Tractors....When your young you don't know how bad it will hurt after 30 years of beating up your body not counting the chemicals you will be exposed to everyday & the chance of serious injury (Thankfully I have never been hurt badly).

I know some have already touched on this & your sick of hearing it on other sites, But you NEED to know all this before hand!

I have made a decent living as a Tech, Own my own home & have zero debt, My pay ranges from 55,000-75,000 a year & I work 40 hours a week.
The bad news is my body is screwed!! Ankles, Knees, Back, Hands, Shoulders all hurt on a constant basis...Worse in the winter or when the weather changes, I have bad hearing & Tinnitus. Tinnitus makes it real hard to sleep, Then when I have to get up in the mourning....It takes 10 minutes to walk to the bathroom because my Knees & Ankles.
My lung are OK...Which surprised me, I don't smoke but I do build automatic transmissions which requires Blowing Solvent.

I LOVE what I do, If I had to do it over....I would still pursue this line of work, But I wouldn't have killed myself for pennies earlier in my career.

Stay AWAY from those tool trucks!! You can buy most stuff for a 1/4 of the price used from washed out Mechanics that didn't make it.

Doing heavy line on Class 8 Tractors has to be the dirtiest/nastiest thing you could get into, Remember this when your under a truck Torqueing Mains & Rods with 15w40 dripping on you.
 
I have the utmost respect for my mechanics. They do the work I could do, but decided not to.

One weeknight at 18 I stayed late at school to replace a driveshaft on my older brothers' 1980 Civic. I removed the shaft from the transmission and filthy, stinky ATF came and splashed all over me ruining my shirt and making me late for a date
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At that point I realized I loved understanding how things worked, but learnt where I draw the line of what I do for myself(fluid changes, tire rotations, checking air pressures etc.), my career (anything NOT in a shop), and what I'd rather pay someone else to do (wheel bearings, engine rebuilds etc).
 
Originally Posted By: Mr Nice
mehullica,

What was your best year income wise as a dealership technician ?

You mention robots. Even in healthcare, robotics is the wave of the future, they now do orthopedic surgery with Mako robot.


Probably around $30/hr flat-rate.
 
I can't speak from firsthand experience, but it seems like the things that are the worst are in scenarios where pricing is in a race to the bottom (like cut rate chain shops and whatnot), and where there's a pressure to sell sell sell.

Dealers seem to be lousy upfront as service writers take a commission, warranty work only pays some pro rata book time, etc. but it also,seems like if you prove your worth, they will make it worth your while in time.

Owning your own shop has all the challenges of entrepreneurship while also being stuck in the race to the bottom against others.

Like anything though, it's all about what value you bring to command a premium - how to differentiate yourself...

Diesel may be more specialized and less retail consumer based, so less of the race to the bottom element of it. It still makes sense to cut your teeth as an Indian, not a chief, leverage your employer to get as many qualifications as you can, provide good value to them, and when the time comes, decide if you're best suited to continue providing value to them, or else to go off on your own.

Good luck!
 
Originally Posted By: clinebarger
Stay AWAY from those tool trucks!! You can buy most stuff for a 1/4 of the price used from washed out Mechanics that didn't make it.


THIS.
 
I'm late in the game for a reply. I too after 30 yrs plus in this field my body is just worn out and broken.

$20 to $25 hr to start after finishing UTI??(Training)? Someone is delusional with that. Oh wait they have been saying the same for 20 plus years. They even used that figure in college 29 years ago. Try more like $12hr to start max for years!!!!!! Oh yeah you have to supply your own tools. I moved to a lower cost of living area. I had 5 offers to go work at local dealers and the highest Flat rate offer $18HR. Their labor rates are aprox $85hr. The highest paid dealer tech in my area is $25hr and he has been with the company over 20 plus yrs. The dealer is making the money not the tech. Indy shops here on pay $15-$18hr.

As for sitting in front of computer and fixing cars while playing on a lap-top all day. Doesn't exist. Well it does so to speak. But you will make no money. Doing .2 Re-flahes only. You will make a killing. NOT!! At the dealer level the more you know the less you make.

Someone asked about money. MY highest flat rate year was $66k. The most I ever made was $130K working in Afghanistan 84hr work weeks. I currently work a Union Fleet shop. Last yr Made $85k on a 37.5 work week with not one hr of OT. Company supplies my tools, I also have cheap health insurance, vacation time, personal time, sick days, holidays off and the best part not having to call a customer to give them an estimate or explain why there car is not done!!! Priceless.
 
I started my apprenticeship at 16, and am now 62 - still fixing cars. It has not been a career path, as one prospective employer said, my CV reads like a Who's Who. I go to work at places where I can learn new things, or work on stuff that interests me, and although I've been at this dealership for 6 years (2nd time back), I normally don't like to work at them. We don't have flatrate, or service advisors here, we just work for an hourly rate and have someone on the desk dealing with customers. I don't like big shops, and prefer a 3 man shop...I worked as a sole charge mechanic for 10 years, the best position there is, and had my own 3 man shop for 11 years. Back at the 2 man dealership workshop because it's close to home and they look after me.

I would do it all again, but maybe I should've stayed longer at some of those workshops, aimed a bit higher, maybe I shouldn't have worked at some of them, maybe taken some job offers I turned down. Although I'm pretty up to date with modern stuff, use a computer and scanner everyday, I'm a mechanic, not a tech - I fix stuff, I make stuff. Wrecked my body?...? I don't know what I'd look like if I had a desk job for 45 years, but I sure wouldn't be as fit and agile as I am now. Stiff muscles, scars, I can live with that - I know guys 10 years younger than me, that look 10 years older than me.
 
Originally Posted By: Mr Nice
mehullica,

What was your best year income wise as a dealership technician ?

You mention robots. Even in healthcare, robotics is the wave of the future, they now do orthopedic surgery with Mako robot.


The late 90's-early 00's were my best years for income. I made $22-$24 hr flat rate & made about $100,000 a year during that time. I ended at $35 hr flat rate with a $0.10 for every hour the other techs made on my team because I did most the garbage diagnosis/warranty work while they did gravy. The $0.10hr was to balance my loss of pay on loser warranty/diagnosis work that paid low hours. The dealer was saturated with young techs who couldn't do diagnosis work. Show them an oscilloscope or a short circuit & they would run away. I made $81,000 this last year & finally moved onto a government job that has the best benefits & pension I've ever had.
 
Definitely get into diesel rather than automotive. I attended a community college and became an auto tech working at a Honda dealer for a few years. I worked 6 days a week every three out of four weeks to earn 28K a year. That was in the 90's. I quit and went to Nashville Auto Diesel College. That was the best decision I ever made. Got hired on as a mechanic at a large mulch manufacturing company. Made a livable wage and learned a lot. I knew being a diesel mechanic, I could find a job at a school bus garage, city garage or someone one else with good benefits. I got on at UPS and am now a journeyman diesel/CNG semi mechanic. The pay and benefits is very good. And I like working for a fleet 100X better. And while I'm a Teamster, everyone I work with works faster/smarter/harder than other shops I worked in. We know we can't sustain the great pay and benefits we get by being slow and having come backs.
 
Don't forget retirement is part of your overall compensation.

I'm hourly but with regular OT, 2 pensions and a great 401K / company stock it adds up. I'm a non union employee.
 
Originally Posted By: Ethan1
Yeah, "technician" doesn't have any special meaning. After all, they're called "lube techs", right?
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Right!
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Its just a meaningless uppity buzz word for a dirty, ball buster of a job.
Good mechanics are few and far between these days.
 
Originally Posted By: The Critic
Originally Posted By: Mr Nice
mehullica,

What was your best year income wise as a dealership technician ?

You mention robots. Even in healthcare, robotics is the wave of the future, they now do orthopedic surgery with Mako robot.


Probably around $30/hr flat-rate.
Robots need fixing.
 
JHZR2,

I agree with you... at any place of employment you have to take advantage of company paid training and certifications to build up your resume to get a better job in the future. Where I work we get $10,000 yearly tuition reimbursement, plus any specialized manufacturer training fully paid, all travel expenses paid for each employee and you are on company time so you are not using vacation time. My boss encourages advanced education and she frowns upon if employees don't take advantage of company paid training opportunities.



CT8,
If I was the OP.... I would apply with da Vinci or Mako manufacturer. Definitely a clean blue collar job working with computers and great pay, little wear on body.
 
[censored] our new union contract continuing education classes($8,000 reimbursement) I cant take High performance vehicle repair, Outboard motors, gunsmiths, Dog garments([censored]), cosmetology, farming, captain, Turf management and wedding planner to name a few. Good paying automotive tech jobs with great benefits are out there. But they are few and far between.
 
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