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I Have Questions $$$$$$$$$$$$

MEXICOWANDERER
Explorer
Explorer
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".
36 REPLIES 36

azrving
Explorer
Explorer
Big Katuna wrote:
Been taking Mexican med equivalents.


Peyote?

azrving
Explorer
Explorer
I keep picturing some cut rate labor guy with a jumper wire poking around under mex's hood and all of a sudden there is that SAAWOOOOSHING sound of electricity being let out of a component or wire. ๐Ÿ™‚

ScottG
Nomad
Nomad
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.

Big_Katuna
Explorer II
Explorer II
Been taking Mexican med equivalents.
My Kharma ran over my Dogma.

westend
Explorer
Explorer
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?
'03 F-250 4x4 CC
'71 Starcraft Wanderstar -- The Cowboy/Hilton

3_tons
Explorer III
Explorer III
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

azrving
Explorer
Explorer
So you couldn't just sit and solder those 200 diodes to something could you? You had to go and stir the pot. ๐Ÿ™‚

Big_Katuna
Explorer II
Explorer II
Troll.
My Kharma ran over my Dogma.

MEXICOWANDERER
Explorer
Explorer
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.

Wayne_Dohnal
Explorer
Explorer
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.
2009 Fleetwood Icon 24A
Honda Fit dinghy with US Gear brake system
LinkPro battery monitor - EU2000i generator

3_tons
Explorer III
Explorer III
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

red31
Explorer
Explorer
What is the question?

kcmoedoe
Explorer
Explorer
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.

dougrainer
Nomad
Nomad
MEXICOWANDERER wrote:
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.


HOW do you KNOW that????? Very few people are really honest about their REAL compensation. Kind of like EVERYONE on your Airline trip paid less than you and EVERYONE comes back from Vegas and did not lose or made money. If ANY shop gives close to 50% commission on a Labor Rate, THAT shows a dishonest shop. The "so called Mechanic" can only make bigger bucks by charging for uncalled for work or lying about the work he did to make big bucks. NEVER take your business to anyone that the worker is being paid a big commission to work and diagnosis your property or RV/Car. This is different between what Flat Rate really is. Flat Rate is what the job should pay and if the Technician beats it he makes more money. If you are extremely competent, you can beat the flat rate by almost 100% on some jobs. Doug

dougrainer
Nomad
Nomad
MEXICOWANDERER wrote:
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".


You can make the exact same comparison for Doctors/Lawyers, any occupation that the customer has NO clue as to what is wrong or needs to be done. I will state that the RVIA Certification process has MORE incompetent Technicians than you can shake a stick at. The criteria for passing basic RV certification and the Master Certification is a JOKE. I have interviewed and met so many unqualified Master Certified RV Technicians and as a Master myself, I think the RVIA should just quit selling the program. Doug