Where should I go for my internships?

[NAZ1998BMWM3]

I go to my local community college for automotive technology and I'm almost done with my degree. I need to complete this semester, take auto electronics 2 next semester, and complete my interns. I was wondering what type of garage I should try to get into for my interns. I like to work on foreign cars like subaru, bmw, etc. I hate working on dodge, ford, or anything like that. I don't own many tools though. I have a small carry tool box and some air tools but thats about it.

On a different topic, maybe im not sure if I'm cut out for this line of work. Everytime I work on my car I end up screwing something up. I understand it may be due to my limited work space and tools. I usually have to make shift with what I have and sometimes things get banged up and arent perfect. I'm a bit of a perfectionist and impatient at the same time. If something isn't fixed perfectly or it gets slightly damaged I bothers the crap out of me to the point I will buy completely new parts and redo the job perfectly. I also want to get things done fairly quick so I do what I have to do to get the job done. Like for instance, I'm working on refreshing the rear suspension on my M3. I was trying to figure out a way to get the (rear of rear) subframe bushings pressed out. The front (front of rear sub frame) bushings pressed right out. But the rears wouldn't budge. So I decided to drill them out like I've read on the forum. I've never dealt with a bushing like this before so I had no idea where to drill. I was using my air drill (which only has forward capabilites).I started by trying to remove rubber from the middle of the bushing but my bits either kept getting jamed up or broken. Then I notice there was a thin layer of aluminum that was on the outer wall the bushing. I decided to drill through it. I managed to drill through the bushings aluminum casing and remove the bushing but in the process I removed some of the sub frame. I couldn't tell how close I was to the wall of the sub frame while I was drilling through the bushing. After removal I noticed I took off a good amount of sub frame material. I would say about 30% of it straight down the inside wall. These types of mistakes make me think I won't be a good tech. :(

What do you guys think? Maybe I need more training or maybe this type of work just isn't for me.

[kellie]

I'm going to be blunt with you:

Grow up. You have no shop experience, correct? Get some experience under your belt, and stop thinking so much. Everyone screws things up, but what really matters is that you can admit your mistakes, fix the car quickly once you realize it, and move on to the next car. You won't always have the tools you need to get the job done "the right way", but if you can think outside of the box and come up with a solution to make it work, that's all that really matters. Not everything needs to be done by the book.

Of course you need more training, you're still in school. You will never be done with your training. Jobs are hard to come by, so you probably won't be able to afford to be picky when it comes to your internship. Take what you can get, learn as much as you can from it, and STOP WORRYING.

[NAZ1998BMWM3]

I'm going to be blunt with you:

Grow up. You have no shop experience, correct? Get some experience under your belt, and stop thinking so much. Everyone screws things up, but what really matters is that you can admit your mistakes, fix the car quickly once you realize it, and move on to the next car. You won't always have the tools you need to get the job done "the right way", but if you can think outside of the box and come up with a solution to make it work, that's all that really matters. Not everything needs to be done by the book.

Of course you need more training, you're still in school. You will never be done with your training. Jobs are hard to come by, so you probably won't be able to afford to be picky when it comes to your internship. Take what you can get, learn as much as you can from it, and STOP WORRYING.


Thanks for the advise. I do overanalyze everything.

_________________

How should I go about doing my interns? Like, what should I study before I go in for an interview, what tools do it need, what should I bring etc etc.

[NAZ1998BMWM3]

Close to home. But I'm willing to relocate.

[m60b30530i]

Hey, what school do you go to ?

I live in Carmel NY and it would be cool to talk to someone about schools, programs etc...

[NAZ1998BMWM3]

Hey, what school do you go to ?

I live in Carmel NY and it would be cool to talk to someone about schools, programs etc...


PM me.


I decided to go for a bachlors in electronics because I'm at the top of my class in auto electronics right now and, renching on cars sucks:shifty

[Pinzon89]

Lol. Wrenching* on cars only sucks for some people. It just depends on the type of person and if they're good at it

[NAZ1998BMWM3]

No it sucks. You back hurts, your hands hurt, your knees hurt. Imagine 10-20 years of that crap. You'll be a hurtin old man.

[that318]

your hands and back wont hurt if you have the right tools for the job.. if your laying on your back and working with out a lift of course you back will hurt. why have two people drop a tranny by hand when one person can do it with a tranny jack and not stress their body at all? fixing cars isnt the job for everyone..

[Fijian]

your hands and back wont hurt if you have the right tools for the job.. if you're laying on your back and working with out a lift of course you back will hurt. why have two people drop a tranny by hand when one person can do it with a tranny jack and not stress their body at all? fixing cars isnt the job for everyone..




I have always had the right tools, followed proper lifting posture and worked on a lift and yet after only a few years I can already feel the stress and pain in my legs, back, wrists and countless other places.

This really isn't worth it anymore but yes then again maybe this just isn't for me.

[NAZ1998BMWM3]

See this is for me, its the only thing I could see mmyself doing. Thats why I plan to become very good with electronics and I'll let all the grease monkeys deal with the back braking work.

[NAZ1998BMWM3]

See this is for me, its the only thing I could see myself doing. Thats why I plan to become very good with electronics and I'll let all the grease monkeys deal with the back breaking work.

[Pinzon89]

Confused. So you want to work on cars but are getting a degree in electronics? Where do you plan to work on cars and electronics and have no back breaking work? R&D? Engineering?
Also define the term grease monkey. I'm just curious.

[ALEX 540i]

These days you can't just specialize in any particular area like diagnosis or electronics. Especially at the dealership level. When the car comes in the shop, you must be able not only to correctly diagnose the problem but also properly fix it within reasonable time.
Lets say that the car comes in with some type of shifting issue and ends up needing a transmission. Are you going to give it to someone else?
Usually diag work doesn't pay mych. It's the dirty gravy that pays the bills.

[Pinzon89]

Eh I disagree. If you can write your stories right you can be just as efficient as doing big repairs. Depends if you want to spend the time to write the story.

[ALEX 540i]

Agreed, spending a little extra time writing a good story can be rewarding as long as you have a good warranty clerk/booker. My point was that specializing in any particular area is not a good way to make money in a dealership environment.

[MrBen]

See this is for me, its the only thing I could see myself doing. Thats why I plan to become very good with electronics and I'll let all the grease monkeys deal with the back breaking work.

It doesn't work like that. These days you're expected to be a bumper to bumper tech. Also you will be getting dirty just removing things for access to get to certain connectors.

[Pinzon89]

Agreed, spending a little extra time writing a good story can be rewarding as long as you have a good warranty clerk/booker. My point was that specializing in any particular area is not a good way to make money in a dealership environment.

I agree. And we had an awesome warranty clerk that just transferred out of state. We have two now that are ok. We don't have a problem getting paid, just takes a phone call to explain.

[NAZ1998BMWM3]

Confused. So you want to work on cars but are getting a degree in electronics? Where do you plan to work on cars and electronics and have no back breaking work? R&D? Engineering?
Also define the term grease monkey. I'm just curious.


My auto electronics teacher keeps telling me that there are guys in the shop that know the ins and outs of electronics and ones that dont. He says the guys that do, make a lot more money. He also says that cars are becoming more and more electronicly advanced. I figured if I got a bachlors in electronics I would be ahead of the game and have a very good job. Like Ferrari tech j/k haha. :D

[ALEX 540i]

A degree in electronics will not make you a better tech. Just like a degree in culinary arts will not make the guy flipping burgers at Wendy's a better cook.
You'll get all the electronics knowledge that you need if you pay attention in your electrical automotive classes. Study and ask questions if you're not sure about something.

[Pinzon89]

Lol. Talk to a Ferrari tech and see how "awesome" there job is. I have talked to a few and have had the opportunity to make the change and haven't. The higher end of master techs for BMW make more than Ferrari techs. Most Ferrari techs are salary for obvious reasons. There pay is usually higher as the shops are usually in "high end" areas where the cost of living is much more. but no the degree won't give you too much at a dealer. I would guess and say 95% of master techs don't have degrees and do great. May want to re-consider a few things and see if it's worth the extra time, money, and effort. Good luck

[Fijian]

define the term grease monkey. I'm just curious.



http://www.picturesof.net/_images_300/Grease_Monkey_Mechanic_Royalty_Free_Clipart_Pictur e_081212-023782-792042.jpg

[NAZ1998BMWM3]

A monkey with grease on it:rolleyes God everybody knows that.

[GETill]

Only a select few people enjoy the "dirty back breaking grease monkey work" I happen to be one of them. But as an entry level tech... You're in for a rude awakening if you think you can walk into a dealership (especially as an intern) and do what you want. You gotta work your way up in the world. The service managers that sit behind the desk and get paid the big bucks for telling you what to do... They were in your position at one point. It sucks but that's the way it goes. And with the advancements in shop technology, life's is getting easier by the min for a tech. But if you don't like the work you're doing . There's a thousand more people that do. I would be happy with having a job PERIOD right now. Even an internship.

[NAZ1998BMWM3]

Looks like I got the interns I wanted at Subaru:) YES!:buttrock Filling out the paper work with the shop manager later today.:D

[RaviAuto]

I go to my local community college for automotive technology and I'm almost done with my degree. I need to complete this semester, take auto electronics 2 next semester, and complete my interns. I was wondering what type of garage I should try to get into for my interns. I like to work on foreign cars like subaru, bmw, etc. I hate working on dodge, ford, or anything like that. I don't own many tools though. I have a small carry tool box and some air tools but thats about it.

On a different topic, maybe im not sure if I'm cut out for this line of work. Everytime I work on my car I end up screwing something up. I understand it may be due to my limited work space and tools. I usually have to make shift with what I have and sometimes things get banged up and arent perfect. I'm a bit of a perfectionist and impatient at the same time. If something isn't fixed perfectly or it gets slightly damaged I bothers the crap out of me to the point I will buy completely new parts and redo the job perfectly. I also want to get things done fairly quick so I do what I have to do to get the job done. Like for instance, I'm working on refreshing the rear suspension on my M3. I was trying to figure out a way to get the (rear of rear) subframe bushings pressed out. The front (front of rear sub frame) bushings pressed right out. But the rears wouldn't budge. So I decided to drill them out like I've read on the forum. I've never dealt with a bushing like this before so I had no idea where to drill. I was using my air drill (which only has forward capabilites).I started by trying to remove rubber from the middle of the bushing but my bits either kept getting jamed up or broken. Then I notice there was a thin layer of aluminum that was on the outer wall the bushing. I decided to drill through it. I managed to drill through the bushings aluminum casing and remove the bushing but in the process I removed some of the sub frame. I couldn't tell how close I was to the wall of the sub frame while I was drilling through the bushing. After removal I noticed I took off a good amount of sub frame material. I would say about 30% of it straight down the inside wall. These types of mistakes make me think I won't be a good tech. :(

What do you guys think? Maybe I need more training or maybe this type of work just isn't for me.
really i don't have any information about the internship. that's why i can't share any information....

[NAZ1998BMWM3]

My subaru needs a mid pipe. I havent started the interns yet but the paperwork is all set. Would it be bad to ask for the dealer discount?

[nickdrivesm3]

Don't *uck up the landing. Do it after you're hired.

[kellie]

OEM midpipe? Pshh...time to upgrade.

[NAZ1998BMWM3]

OEM midpipe? Pshh...time to upgrade.

Ok send me one for $80 cuz thats what i can get a pipe for. Cant afford more its my dd anyway

[533idriver]

i dont know about any of you, but i work in a volkswagon dealership, and there is NO refusing work, sure certain people get jobs that there particularly good at, but everyone does alittle bit of everything, back breaking work? grow a pair, maybe hit the gym alittle if your so frail and fragile that you cant to a damn tire rotation, wrenching, most of the time, is much more enjoyable than electrical problems, no such thing as electric gravy work