For those with proper auto mechanic training - interesting in your thoughts on schooling

philcore3 said:

Hi all, I currently work in the medical field, pay is good and job is secure. I have considerable free time and was thinking of pursuing auto mechanic training classes at my local CC. Not looking for a job in the mechanics trade (due to my older age 44/ back and joint issues) but more so for my own personal knowledge, future hobbies and possible income. My question is, do you think the formal education is worth the cost and time, or should i pursue another avenue. Also for those with mechanical backgrounds, do you make any money fixing peoples vehicles out of your own garage or are backyard mechanics a thing of the past. I just find it crazy that shops are charging $100+ and hr now and mechanics wages have stagnated. It just feels like its time for the home mechanic to make a resurgence.

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Oh boy...

Lemme preface all of my answers to the individual parts of your post by giving you my background. I've worked in the car industry since 2003 (except for two years where I ran a restaurant, long story). I've sold cars, been a technician, been a parts guy, a service advisor, and a manager, with most of my time spent at a parts counter or in the shop working on cars. I have five ASEs (parts, brakes, steering and suspension, engine repair and engine performance), and certifications from Ford, Hyundai, Volkswagen, and BMW, and have worked on virtually all makes and models over the years (including some exotics, hybrids, and electrics).

philcore3 said:

Hi all, I currently work in the medical field, pay is good and job is secure. I have considerable free time and was thinking of pursuing auto mechanic training classes at my local CC.

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Good move, community colleges and state-run technical schools tend to have standards instead of being diploma mills like UTI, ATI, Lincoln Tech, or Wyotech.

philcore3 said:

Not looking for a job in the mechanics trade

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Smart. If I had it to do over again I'd have a college degree and be in a different field instead of having over six figures invested in tools over the course of a career.

philcore3 said:

My question is, do you think the formal education is worth the cost and time...

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Short answer? It's virtually mandatory at this point. Long answer? Even with a formal education, they're only teaching you up to a certain point in technology in school and you're already going to be behind the times by the time you graduate if you aren't spending time in an actual dealership service department.

philcore3 said:

Also for those with mechanical backgrounds, do you make any money fixing peoples vehicles out of your own garage or are backyard mechanics a thing of the past.

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I try to avoid side work. Customers are too shady to deal with these days. The last thing I need is some jackass saying that I'm the reason his engine is knocking after I changed his tail light bulb and trying to take me to court for it. At the dealership I'm shielded by the company insurance policy, not to mention have a service advisor and manager between me and the customer so I don't end up using a 32mm wrench to give them an attitude adjustment. I do a little side work for some of the salesmen at the BMW dealership I'm at now, and I work on the parts manager's Thunderbird and his grandson's Tacoma, but that's about it.

As far as backyard mechanics being a thing of the past... well, yeah, that's the direction it's going. Even basic repairs like brakes require a bi-directional scan tool to reset brake pad life monitors and/or retract parking brakes to the "service position" on a lot of modern cars (especially European). Replacing any given part in the fuel system can require resetting adaptations for the car to even run after repairs are completed on modern cars because with direct injection, they're that finely tuned.

philcore3 said:

I just find it crazy that shops are charging $100+ and hr now and mechanics wages have stagnated. It just feels like its time for the home mechanic to make a resurgence.

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On Point A, shops are charging more labor than ever because they need more equipment and specialty tools than ever. When I started in this industry 19 years ago, cars didn't have surround cameras, parking sensors, radar, bluetooth, and a whole lot of the other things that are normal now. Servicing and calibrating all of that requires special equipment that the manufactururers don't send to their dealerhips for free. It's even harder on independent shops who have to wait on someone to reverse engineer things or on patents to expire before they can even acquire the tools and equipment to service such systems. On point B, you're damned right they've stagnated, and worse than that, the OEMs are actively screwing technicians over by constantly cutting back labor times, deciding new things don't pay anything, denying warranty claims, and more. As far as home mechanics making a resurgence... see the two previous points. The home mechanic isn't going to be doing much more than oil changes before too long.