Lee High School

The Role of Technology in Auto Mechanics in 2018

Rough Draft

Alex Deleon

Lee High School Senior Capstone

Brian Cahoon

13 April 2018

Alex Deleon
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Brian Cahoon

Senior Capstone

13 April 2017

Webster's dictionary defines the job of a mechanic as of or relating to manual work or

skill. Over decades, even with many different hoops, the automobile industry has to jump

through with all the advances in technology, safety laws, and government restrictions, the word

and job description has remained unaltered and true to its origin. However, take this comparison

into consideration, if a painter gets a new brush made of synthetic materials compared to the

short animal hair like they used to back in the day, does that make him any less of a painter? The

answer is no; the painter has adapted to the new materials, concepts and methods of painting that

have proved to be most effective over the years. Just like that is fact, so is the incredible

adaptability of a mechanic. The impact of technology has been a double edged sword, it has

affected the automobile industry in both positive and negative ways. Positive, cars are now more

safer and economical than they have ever been. Negative, cars are harder to fix. It's not just the

mechanics anymore. The tech perspective now intermingled with the mechanics of a car. Just to

list a few off the top of my head, your radio, lights, turn signals, brakes, and airbags are all

working in harmony with technology. So now it falls on the mechanic’s duty to make themselves

familiar with all the details and specifics. Technology has affected the way mechanics do their

jobs in 2018, by requiring mechichals to work with intricate systems and computer

technology. In 2016, the average annual income for mechanics and or service technicians was

around middle-wage pay, the highest amount made in this field can make its way into a high

wage pay. A mechanic, Mike, from Rodriguez Tires, said he grossed just north from a mid-wage
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and making it way onto a higher-wage pay. He mentioned to me the difficulty on staying up to

date with all the new tech involved with these newer modeled cars and how when he looks to

hire employees he notices the competitive backgrounds between the applicants and how they

have taken the proper measurement to make themselves capable of working with all the new

gadgets and gizmos inside cars. They have participated in classes and other schooling methods to

learn and understand these now, modern day vehicles. Mr. Rodriguez also told about the

schooling process he took when becoming a licensed mechanic. He mentioned the vocational

school he attended and how he continued and obtained his certificate. Mike really emphasized on

the importance of really enjoying your job and and he left me with some advice, "When you love

your work truly, you can consider yourself getting paid to do absolutely nothing and that is my

life" (Rodriguez, Fernando).

Technology has definitely changed our lives. Most of it, for the better. It has taken a part

in our everyday lives. Not just personal lives, but as well as our professional. We can gives

thanks to all of these innovations being a mechanic or auto repair technician. What takes us now

only thirty seconds to diagnose your vehicle would have taken about 7 days maybe a decade ago.

So it's quite obvious how helpful it proves to be. However, it can also be a pain. People learn

from personal experience.This prevented the local family mechanic to have access to the car

itself.

Nowadays people use all sorts of technology to make their car more advanced. There is

nothing wrong with that. However, what can become an issue is when you don’t carefully decide

on what is being purchase . Most aftermarket product can be used and interchanged within a

car’s dynamic. However when you go cheap on your product you can expect bad performance

and sometimes, and it isn’t uncommon for these parts and accessories to damage or
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misconfigured other parts in the car. This could be an issue for a mechanic because they have to

pick up where you left off and try to fix what could have been avoided. On the other hand, it will

not take that long to figure out the issue with newer cars with the expensive computers built

inside.

In conclusion, that five-thousand dollar computer in that thirty-thousand dollar car can be

a pain. It could be amazing. It could literally save you hundreds, or cost you thousands. That's

where we are at in the timeline of everything pertaining to vehicles and computers. The

technology will definitely get better over time. Eventually, the two will most likely be one.

However for now talking about the mechanics and technological innovations that is a vehicle in

today's world. People now can all agree on one thing. Positively or negatively, technology has

definitely changed the job of a mechanic in 2018.

Work Cited

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www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/technician.