Study Automotive Mechanics

Yesterday's automobiles were simple and fun. Backyard muscle mechanics were plentiful back then, but really well-trained professional technicians with the skills to straighten out those really tough problems were scarce.

And while backyard mechanics are still around, they are fewer in number, and well-trained technicians are increasingly hard to find. Conservative analyses from the U.S. Department of Labor put the shortage of automotive technicians at 35,000, but Ford Motor Company estimates the shortage to be more than 60,000. One source at the Institute for Automotive Service Excellence (ASE) reports that as many as 50% of the automotive technicians in the field will reach retirement age within the next 7 years.

While the engine still has rods and pistons, and greased wheel bearings still carry the weight of the vehicle, most of today’s automobiles are saturated with sophisticated electronics coupled with dozens of computer-controlled relays and modules, not to mention the many miles of complicated and colorful electrical wiring that make it all work. Electronic engine controls are the order of the day, even on modern diesel engines like Ford’s Power Stroke and Chevy’s Duramax. From remote convenience features to satellite communications and drive-by-wire throttle control, active suspension and steering systems, hybrid electric vehicles, and 42-volt electrical systems, the world of Automotive Technology is changing at warp speed.

So what does Lurleen B Wallace Community College have to offer an aspiring auto technician?

Employed at LBW MacArthur since January, 2001, Instructor Richard McCuistian is a Master Technician with nine ASE certifications, hundreds of hours of factory training, and more than twenty-five years professional experience in the field of automotive repair. As a contributing editor to Motor Age Magazine (140,000 circulation) as well as the Power Stroke Registry magazine, Mr. McCuistian has written dozens of technical articles that have been read by professional automotive technicians in all fifty states. He has compiled course material and taught multiple seminars to professional technicians in Forth Worth and Houston, having been a feature instructor at the Southwest Regional Automotive show. He served at the state level on the curriculum and articulation committees for Alabama Auto Mechanics programs. His Motor Age Garage articles can be found at: http://www.motorage.com

LBW Community College has allowed Mr. McCuistian to purchase contemporary electronic engine control diagnostic equipment, including Snap-On/Sun’s Computerized Digital Data Collector and sophisticated handheld scan tools like OTC’s Genisys ,the Hickok New Generation Star Tester, as well as EASE Diagnostics’ Wireless Vehicle Interface system.

The LBW Auto Mechanics Department also has an electronic 4-wheel alignment system, professional grade rotor and drum lathes (including an on-car rotor lathe). Additional equipment includes valve and valve seat

grinding equipment, oscilloscopes (handheld and cart mounted), an exhaust gas analyzer, an electronics laboratory, a new refrigerant recycler.

The shop is equipped with two large air compressors, a pressure washer, six vehicle lifts, and an extraction system to eliminate vehicle exhaust while engine-related lab exercises are under way.

Students receive live work training on pertinent qualified jobs as well as exercises on engines, transmissions, and several late model trainer vehicles to satisfy NATEF task list requirements.

PC based automotive information retrieval systems commonly used by modern, well equipped repair facilities provide students with comprehensive access to shop manuals on both import and domestic vehicles marketed in the U.S. from 1982 to the present model year.

Serious automotive technicians must be hardworking, intelligent, persistent, dedicated, and resourceful. Students attending LBWCC MacArthur Auto Mechanics are taught to develop critical thinking and creative problemsolving skills, both of which are necessary qualities for twenty-first century technicians.

While job security in many career fields is deteriorating, the world of automotive repair is continually expanding. Earning potential and job prospects have never been higher for quality automobile technicians. Wage earning potential generally increases in proportion to the size of the city and/or dealership; dealership technicians in large cities can make 100,000 per year.

For any student who has the interest, attitude, and aptitude to become a successful automotive technician, Lurleen B. Wallace Community College has the tools and the instructor to build a solid foundation for your future.

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