What’s happening is techs are leaving the industry at a rapid pace, so what you’re now getting is a lot of folks with inexperience (and they’ll leave too).
Let’s take a look at this AC problem. Compressor. If he worked as an HVAC technician, first off he’d be making $120,000 grand a year...and he’d happily tell you that you need an entire AC system, the works, and give you an estimate for $12,000. Instead, an automotive tech can’t do that, it exceeds the value of the car, PLUS, if he were to change the entire AC system he’d have to try do it in less than four hours, so he can make $60-$100 bucks. Meanwhile he’s going to really really struggle to no wits end to remove that evaporator and everything else.
On the flip side, the HVAC tech will make ten times more than that, have a helper and is a hero if he can finish the job in 3 days. His hands won’t get dirty, and his tools will consist of some simple hand tools, some gauges and a vacuum pump supplied by the HVAC company in their van (I’m speaking in generalities). The automotive tech will have $50,000 grand worth of snap on tools (that he paid for out of his own pocket), and half of them won’t work on this particular model, so he’ll have to go out and buy more.
And the automotive tech not only needs to be an HVAC technician, but also a mechanic that can diagnose oil consumption, an engine overheating and a misfire code. He’s basically a doctor
, but a doctor that no one respects, and he’s making somewhere around the poverty level. Bottom line, take a 6 month HVAC course and make $120,000 grand a year in less than five years.