I have a question:Automobile mechanics make fifty some odd dollars an hour, flat rate.FAA/PMA certified mechanics make slightly more than half of that.An auto repair shop tech gets a repair order. He surveys the job. The faster he works the more money he makes. Bolts get stripped or forgotten, he has no clue as to how to go about troubleshooting so he invents some weird problem so he gets paid normal wage.I had to be FAA/PMA certified to work on aircraft charging, starting and electrical. In that area there is (or was) -zero- latitude for incompetence.Celso, the local mechanico shakes his head when i tell him stuff like this."The Americanos, they must have too much money".

I think you are mistaking what a shop charges vs. what the technician is paid.

My local truck shop charges me $65.00 per hour so I doubt if they are giving the mechanic $50.00.I have had nothing but excellent service from them with no game playing.Perhaps you should develop your shopping skills when looking for a mechanic in the states/Canada.

California, shop labor rate 110 dollars a hour, mechanic makes 50% Sorta pricey driving a few thousand miles to save 30 dollars an hour or so.

Sounds like a union shop to me.

Not many mechanics make more that $25. Most shops around here charge around $100. Most shops also estimate from the flat rate book and pay the mechanic on that so if the book says 2.5 hours for a water pump and he does it in 1.5 hours, he just got an hours bonus. Good mechanics (with $25K worth of tools he bought on credit) can hustle and get paid 50-55 hours and work 40. And the shop pays workmans comp, health care, water and electric, liability insurance, etc.

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red31
Explorer
Aug 04, 2014
What is the question?
3_tons
Explorer III
Aug 04, 2014
kcmoedoe wrote:
3 tons wrote:
Per Mex: ..."Celso, the local mechanico shakes his head when i tell him stuff like this..."The Americanos, they must have too much money"...

This, A GREAT Observation...Your point is not lost on me Mex!! I might add that when I occasionally need a casual laborer I can't hardly find a gringo. About 15yrs ago, I hired a young College summer break kid once to help carry 5gal buckets of gravel along side of me for a parameter drain system, and he quit before the lunch break - to top this off, I'd even bought him the lunch of his choosing!! (LOL)...I ended up moving the remaining 17 yards alone...Hopefully, this one experience earned the lazy kid a Phd!!

Best Regards,

3 tons
Perhaps it is because the "Americanos" are smart enough to know the difference between working hard, working smart and doing things that are just plain stupid. Moving 17 yards of gravel in 5 gallon buckets falls into the third category.

So manual labor, at least as a 'beginners job' is just plain stupid??...And the "Mexacanos" take a back seat at figuring this all out??...(thus, it must be their own pre-ordained fault...)...Sounds to me like you might benefit from a bit of real work yourself!!

Best Regards,

3 tons
Wayne_Dohnal
Explorer
Aug 04, 2014
Back when I had a small airplane I learned the the most dangerous time to fly it was the first flight after maintenance by "official" mechanics. After each annual inspection I'd usually find a few missing screws that were there before, and various other things that weren't right. The scariest was when I found a small wrench behind the instrument panel darn close to the control cables.
MEXICOWANDERER
Explorer
Aug 04, 2014
So far I like Bird Freak's response best...

When I went to college I had to live. As a line mechanic in a Chrysler Plymouth dealership. I finally could not stand it anymore quit after a year and went to work in an oil refinery. Swing shift. NIASE certification was easy.

The truth always rubs a few folks the wrong way.
Big_Katuna
Explorer II
Aug 04, 2014
Troll.
azrving
Explorer
Aug 04, 2014
So you couldn't just sit and solder those 200 diodes to something could you? You had to go and stir the pot. :)
3_tons
Explorer III
Aug 04, 2014
MEXICOWANDERER wrote:
So far I like Bird Freak's response best...

When I went to college I had to live. As a line mechanic in a Chrysler Plymouth dealership. I finally could not stand it anymore quit after a year and went to work in an oil refinery. Swing shift. NIASE certification was easy.

The truth always rubs a few folks the wrong way.

a BIG X2.....

WASS

3 tons
westend
Explorer
Aug 04, 2014
This thread started off in such a bad way, there is probably no good ending for it.
To demean a whole class of workers because you hate spending money on car repairs doesn't gain a lot of respect about the author's judgement.
Have you been skipping your meds, Mex?
Big_Katuna
Explorer II
Aug 04, 2014
Been taking Mexican med equivalents.
ScottG
Nomad
Aug 04, 2014
Your numbers are way off. Mechanics don't make anywhere near "half the shop rate". Just like avionics tech don't make half their shop rate.

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