LHD220Turbo

iTrader: (4)

Not quite as easy as that Martin!

fuzzy

computer whizz? what you mean is you need to be able to plug in a diagnostic reader then read the screen whilst being devoid of any clue as to whats actually happening?
gone are the days of the old school mechanic who had a hunch or a feel for what could be wrong judging by the symptoms or noises etc. " the computer says this ...£1400... the computer says this....£1000 ....the computer says this £300 etc etc " until you finally find its a split hose that costs £20

ajamesc

Would be good if it was that simple lol might be for the local dim whit who dose that and thinks he has fixed it. When you get a little more expireanced you realise these codes mostly only give you a clue and can even be miss leading.
That's wear expireance comes in especially when that fancy laptop tells you an expensive component is at fault but really it's a wiring fault to another component causing the fault.

GVK.

Ah, but when Ford technical email you a patch file as there is a fault with the application that generates PATS immobiliser error control codes which stops you pairing blank keys it helps to be a 'computer wizz'

Also error codes aren't the be and end all of faults but you know that...

GVK.

Fuck, that sounds like a bloke I work with..

£300 alternator?

No... blown fuse mate...

Hardest thing about the motor trade these days I think is not the actual 'car' stuff it's all the add-on bollocks like bluetooth compatibility, DAB radio issues and crap like that..

Minirotty

If you hate your job, leave.

I worked as a teacher for years, got bored, left!

Went into another career I had an interest in, became stressful as shit after 8 years, to the point it effected my happiness and my families happiness.

I was the manager of H.M.Prison drug service, good money too!

Sacked it off now, left, opened my own garage, as it is a trade I have always had, not as much money atm as previous career choices, but I'll get there.

Love it too.

gcfcos

Good luck with the garage mate, hope it works out. Have u got an mot bay? Easy money when u have an mot bay

42Haya

I wasn't going to post on this but thought it might help someone, i'm going to be brief in some areas for various reasons. Before I start i'd like to state there was an element of luck in my working life.

I'm 28 now, but I never liked secondary school - I was bullied a lot but made it with average GCSE's. I moved on to College with the mindset that i'd be a programmer/developer.

During school and before college I started messing around in my own time learning some basics of programming, the internet (dialup days) and developing, it all went a bit underground and my knowledge and skill increased but after a short while I was banned from a couple of Internet Providers.

College was a bit of a let down, no real drive or motivation as I was unsure if I'd chosen the right path, especially with my skill possibly being higher than the education level. I stuck to it though with again, averages grades.

I was stupid enough to apply for only one university, and was lucky enough to get in to it. Experience at university was similar to college but with the addition of fee's. At this point I was even more unsure on the direction I wanted to go in but by the third year I was so eager to work i'd be silly not to follow the path for at least a little while.

During my time at university I was working with my dad, he was an ex-engineer who left due to poor pay, a lot of contracts moving to China and he was now fitting bespoke glass in to homes (showers, stairs, hand rails etc). I always wanted to own my own company, despite negative feedback from school/college/uni 'friends'. I had the drive I needed now.

Money was good (around £1400/month) but I knew I had to follow the programming/development path. My first job out of University was lower paid than working with my dad but again, I stuck with it in the hope that it would improve.

By this point I had a really close mate, we'll call him Frank. Frank never went to college or uni but was following in his parents footsteps and become a driving instructor. He was on really good money for a 21/22 year old (£3k/month) and was working all the hours he could - it was almost an inspiration to be near him, he was in to body building and over the next couple of years he slowly worked less as an instructor and more so as a dealer. We're no longer friends because of that but I dreamed of such a wage and gained a lot of drive.

Fast forward to where I am now and I take home just over 5 digits per month after taxes working in the world of e-commerce and I love it. I'm engaged, 3 kids and a nice house.

The moral of my little story is surround yourself with positive people, do what makes you happy and if you hate/dislike your job then change before things get sour.

My journey certainly hasn't been easy with plenty of up's and down's but if your passionate then go for it, you've only got one try!

gcfcos

Good advice

Bailes1992

I spent two years in college doing IT. I Was planning to go to university and do a degree in network engineering.
About half way through my college course my interests in cars grew my enthusiasm for IT disappeared and it became a chore rather than a hobby. I finished the course anyway and even applied for university as I didn't want to waste 12 months. I done the bare minimum and came out with a BTEC National Diploma for IT Practitioners (Pass/Pass/Pass).
I got accepted into a few university's and was ready to pick when I suddenly just decided that IT was really no longer for me.

I was unbelievably lucky and managed to get an apprenticeship to train as an Electrician.
I'm now just coming to the end of my 3rd year and have finished the college side of things. I have my NVQ Level 3 and AM2 left before I can qualify.

I love the technical side of my job but I absolutely hate the physical side of things. I really struggle with the general humping gear around all day, up and down scaffolds etc.
As a result I am starting my HNC in Building Services Engineering in a few weeks and hoping to get an office job in the next 3-6 months doing estimating or engineering.

BUT I still have a massive passion for cars and I personally feel I would be better off in the motor trade.
I was watching the MightyCarMods on YouTube the other day (if you haven't watched them it's well worth having a nose) and managed to watch the "Gramps" build where they turbocharge a Subaru EJ36 lump and drop it in an old Legacy and I was watching them build the custom engine looms and fitting the aftermarket ECUs and I couldn't help but feel that's what I would love to be doing. I really think if I was to excel at something in life then auto electrics is where it would be.

Now most people say to just change but it's not that easy.
I take home £1400-£1600 a month after tax.
I need £1200 a month after tax just to live with no savings.
I couldn't afford to change unless I got really lucky salary wise.

I got offered a job NVQ Assesing a few months ago. A job that I would love to give a go but unfortunately I couldn't afford to take the pay decrease.
So it looks like for now I'm stuck doing what I'm doing, I just hope sooner rather than later I can get an office job.

I've also come to the conclusion that in every trade you look at there will always be older guys saying "it's rubbish these days, it's not as good as it used to be".
Times have changed and I think they have changed for every single trade out there.

42Haya

Turboooo Yoooodaaaaaaaa..

I'm quite the avid watcher, I even trainer tested the ride height on my Smart Hayabusa build ..

Minirotty

Not yet pal, but it is in the pipe line for the future.

We use one just around the corner atm.

gcfcos

Cool mate, when I had my garage I did a buisness plan for an mot bay and would have worked out great but re cession hit and killed everything :-( no one wanted regular maintenance anymore just fix cheaply when it goes wrong :-(