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Texas Students Win National Auto Repair Crown

Racing against the clock and 49 other student teams from around the country, aspiring auto technicians Bradley J. Bolton and Aaron Clay, seniors at Paris High School in Paris, TX, needed just 29 minutes and 34 seconds to accurately diagnose and fix their Ford Mustang convertible to win the 2006 Ford/AAA Student Auto Skills national finals, held recently at Ford World Headquarters in Dearborn, MI.

The pair, who spent months preparing for the competition with their instructor, Michael Schmidt, took home thousands of dollars in prizes and scholarships to a number of the nation s top auto technology colleges. Hoping to encourage students to pursue automotive careers, Ford and AAA handed out a total of more than $6 million in prizes to the competitions participants.

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"Aaron and Bradley today proved they are America's most auto-savvy teens," Allan Stanley, manager of Ford/AAA Student Auto Skills, said. "Their hard work and drive to be the top high school auto technicians is typical of every participant here. The auto industry must attract such dedicated young people to keep America's vehicles operating safely and trouble-free."

Each year, the Student Auto Skills competition determines the nation's best high school auto techs through a two-part test. Following a written exam counting toward 40% of their overall score, the 50 two-person teams-each representing a state-convened outside Ford World Headquarters for the hands-on portion, worth 60% of their total.

Responding to the call, "Gentlemen, start your engines, if you can," at 9:15 a.m., the teams raced to 50 2006 Ford Mustang convertibles with identical mechanical problems. After popping the hood, they had 90 minutes to diagnose and repair numerous "bugs" in the starting, charging, ignition, electrical, lighting, braking, climate control and/or powertrain systems. The team from Texas drove their car across the finish line, winning the contest after judges determined they had removed all the bugs.

"Millions of car owners depend on well-trained auto technicians to maintain and repair their vehicles," said John Nielsen, director of the AAA Approved Auto Repair program. "Cosponsoring the Auto Skills contest, as we have since 1984, is one way AAA ensures that consumers' vehicles are properly cared for at all AAA-inspected and approved repair facilities."

Darryl Hazel, senior vice president of Ford Motor Co. and president, Ford Customer Service Division, said, "Ford and its dealer network offer these contestants and other talented young people unparalleled opportunities to train for a high-tech career with excellent salaries."

Second place this year went to Travis Bradfield and Ken Netcher, seniors at Vale High School in Vale, OR. Mark Mitchell and Raymond Swan, seniors at Willowbrook High School in Villa Park, IL, took third place. Teams placing second through 10th in the Ford/AAA contest received general education scholarships valued from $2000 to $400 from Ford Motor Co. and AAA, as well as partial scholarships to top-rated auto tech colleges.

For the sixth year in a row, 11 Ford-certified Master Technicians competed in a similar contest adjacent to the students, vying for $350,000 in cash and prizes in the Ford Ultimate Master Technician Challenge.

Automotive Industry

Texas Students Win National Auto Repair Crown

Motor, Aug 2006

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