# ASE certification



## Pheonix (May 21, 2012)

travelin said:


> learning a trade to carry around with you out on the road is a pretty good thing in my opinion.


 
I'm wanting to go back to college for Auto Tech and get my ASE certificate then I could get a job anywhere and have a service for trade that's valuable among most rubber tramps and RVers.


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## ped (May 21, 2012)

You can just take the ASE test(s). You don't have to go to school for it. It's really a totally bullshit enterprise though. Like Carfax or something. A marketing gimmick invented out of nowhere to make mass $$ by being pushed onto the naive public that it's somehow meaningful, forcing garages to pay for testing of their mechanics so they can hang their sign. Old timers hate that shit.


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## Pheonix (May 21, 2012)

Sorry, didn't mean to offend anyone by wanting to learn a skilled trade and live off of student loans while I'm doing it. Also I can have the school do all my auto repairs for free for the next 2 years. I don't need an ASE certificate to work under the table with Rvers and rubber tramps but if I actually want to get a decent paying job at a shop then I need the ASE certificate, not that I care about getting a real job but it's good to have that option on the back burner, just in case.


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## ped (May 21, 2012)

You talking to me? I'm not offended, just telling you what I know many people in the trade think. I got a buddy who now owns his own shop but was a "master" for Chrystler and my uncle has done it for 35 years. Most shops understand that ASE means you likely can't pour piss out of a boot. At one time it would have got you some extra pay but that is unlikely nowadays apparently. Experience is more important. You probably wouldn't want to work for a shop that's super big into ASE bullshit anyway.

I paint (auto) on my own. I have a portfolio of work I've done. But no shop would hire me because I didn't go through 10 years spreading body filler at minimum wage. On one hand I understand where places want ridiculous experience to essentially make bunk to a degree, but alot of it is bullshit to keep wages low.


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## Pheonix (May 21, 2012)

I do understand how this BS society works and that's why I'm taking advantage of Student Loans while I still can. I still think this is a great way to learn how to work on cars, but if your trying to talk me out of going to school then can you offer me another way to learn how to work on cars without pushing a broom in a shop for min. wage. Since I'm gonna be living off of the financial aid I'm going to college, I just need to figure out what to go to school for? I think auto tech is a great trade to learn that can greatly benefit me in my future travels as a rubber tramp. Like I said I'm not looking for a high paying career just a skilled trade that can benefit me in my future.


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## Bl3wbyyou (May 21, 2012)

I been working on and off on cars just myself.I can't stand the bullshit at shops and working at tire change places blows.Just throw up ads around town that you know how to work on cars and what not.

When i gave a shit about paper money i was earning more then the college grad friends i had.And they wanted me to hire them lol.

And all i did was work 30-35 hrs a week on my own time and then sell parts on ebay whenever i went to a junkyard.It was a pretty even balance and worked out till i started running out of parts to sell in the area.

I as well would like to get a shot at a euro shop.But those are far and few in between.

I have had plenty of friends who went to the auto tech schools here and so far they all told me it was just a bunch of idiots who shouldn't be near a tool chest nor should they even lay hands on a car.And i totally understand where they are coming from.Ohhh look i got a piece of paper that i worked for a yr or so to get.This still doesn't tell the employer jack squat shit about your ability's.The only real reason that you have to have the damn thing is due to insurance reasons for the shop.I was told this numerous times before.

But yeah good luck on chasing that ase thingy.I just don't see the point in it if its purely used by the shop for insurance reasons.


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## ped (May 21, 2012)

I don't know, I haven't figured it out that far either. I would think construction would be apt for transient work. Like tornando alley in the spring kind of natural disasters. You can get experience doing that by volunteering with habitat for humanity or something. Solar or wind installing might be good too. I used to do some CAT3/5/5e/6 and fiber optics install. That is a really good paying field. But those kind of things are boom and bust where as everyone always has a car breaking down no matter what the economy is doing. But I don't know how well that would translate into temporary work for tramping. Autobody is another one that's probably even better as accidents are paid by insurance companies so they always have work. Pushing a broom for $10 an hour isn't that bad if all you need is $3-5K a year to travel on.

There's also work with the USDA forest service. Remote campground hosts make state min but after the season is over you can collect unemployment through the rest of the year. But obviously you have to spend your summers doing that. There's also fire lookouts. 6 months by your lonesome in a tower way out in the middle of nowhere.


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## uncivilize (May 22, 2012)

Any multiple choice test is relatively easy to bullshit your way through, at least in my experience, but I doubt anyone would be able pass the ASE's without at least some grasp of the knowledge presented there, especially the A6 and A8, definitely L1.

They really don't cost all that much to take (and are tax deductible as a business expense), are good for five years, and can get your foot into doors that would otherwise be closed to you. Is it bullshit? Probably, but there is definitely a large contingent of the business that consider it the standard.

Most "old timers" who talk shit on ASE certifications are the ones who fell behind and can't understand all the newer, more complex, computer controlled technologies. Not saying that's the case with everyone, I've definitely met exceptions, but I've seen it plenty.

I've also seen a bunch of kids fresh out of UTI and Wyotech who could pass the tests, but couldn't even do an oil change right if their lives depended on it. There's still this idea that any idiot can start wrenching and make a bunch of money (before I coulnt spell mecanik, now I art one), but these days you've really got to understand the technology and stay on top of it. The best techs I know should have been engineers, and when I was in auto school, teachers and people I worked for were telling me I should continue along that path. Those are the ones pulling six figures, but there's a steep learning curve, and you wont even be close right out of school. If you know your shit and learn quickly, trust me, you'll stand out, and shops will do what it takes to keep you happy.

My advice, assuming you're looking for some, would be, at first, definitely make sure it's something you would enjoy and have the aptitude for. When in school, do all the lab work, no matter how simple you think it may be, there is absolutely no replacement for experience in the trade. Take your time. I would see these greenhorns come in, all excited to be done with school, wanting to make money, feeling the pressure (and potential) of flat rate pay, and they would try to go as quickly as possible from the start, and end up fucking up a bunch of cars and working on comebacks all day. I made sure I did a job right the first time, even if it took more time, because with experience, speed comes naturally, and then you're faster the right way, without a bunch of bad habits/practices (my comeback rate was pretty much zero, and that kept me in a dealership even when the general manager wanted to cut my head off).

Automotive is a good trade. It can actually get better in tough economic times, because more people maintain/repair the car they've got, instead of buying another one. As far as traveling, if I ever end up rubber tramping again someday (kind of hard to get my toolbox up into a box car), I'd put a sign up on the bulletin board and talk to the camp manager (if I couldn't pick up that spot myself), and put the word out that I can wrench.

I don't work in the trade anymore; I actually enjoy the work, just hate the business. There's also that idea that alot of mechanics are rip-off artists, but in my experience, most techs are stand up guys, it's the shop owners and service writers who rip customers (and techs) off. Also, like I mentioned, to get to the top, there's a steep learning curve, and I just don't care about money nor vehicles enough to dedicate the energy and time to get there (though I was well on my way).

Good luck!


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## uncivilize (May 22, 2012)

Oh yeah, a home mechanic can get away with craftsman, but if you're wrenching all day, every day, quality tools make all the difference, but they are expensive as fuck! That's definitely another thing to consider.


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## Pheonix (May 22, 2012)

The Construction Industry is filled with just as much BS as the Auto Industry is. Most contractors I've worked for ripped off their employees as well as their customers.


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## Pheonix (May 22, 2012)

uncivilize said:


> Oh yeah, a home mechanic can get away with craftsman, but if you're wrenching all day, every day, quality tools make all the difference, but they are expensive as fuck! That's definitely another thing to consider.


 
If I was that good with that many tools, then I would be rubber tramping in a Snap-On truck or an RV with more room for tools.


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## ped (May 22, 2012)

> Most "old timers" who talk shit on ASE certifications are the ones who fell behind and can't understand all the newer, more complex, computer controlled technologies. Not saying that's the case with everyone, I've definitely met exceptions, but I've seen it plenty.


 
The ones I know personally are far from ignorant or ludites and can run circles around any tech school auto grad with diagnostic equipment. They simply have a realistic perspective on it and see it for what it is. A manipulative public relations corporation. Technology doesn't or never had anything to do with ASE perse anyway. It was created in 1972.

Like the carfax reference. A buddy of mine has a used car lot. He gets old clunkers from dealer licensed auctions and sells them for a small profit in the hood. Price ranges of $1-5K. People come in constantly repeating the stupid commercial "show me the carfax." So he has to explain 30 times a day that it is a bullshit scheme that only shows dealer and insurance work based on the VIN and has little to no bearing on the state of the car at present. (because they're older used vehicles). But of course he loses business because Carfax has convinced the public that if a dealer refuses to buy their product they must have something to hide and are trying to rip you off. Its manipulative marketing just like ASE. Lets not even mention the NADA and their crony politics on every level.....a glarring example of everything that is wrong with the system. There's usually a large amount of hidden agenda and sleeze behind these corporate fronts. Like keeping small shops and car lots out of business for instance.


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## uncivilize (May 23, 2012)

I think we actually agree on most points, I just tend to ramble, when I could make a simpler point, and I think there are two different subjects here that are entangled, ASE and automotive technology. Re-reading it, I can see I wasn't very clear. 

It's a game, and I don't think I was implying it was anything but that. I was just trying to point out that it really doesn't cost alot or do much harm to take them, and, whether it's bullshit or not (I agree it is), it can open up opportunities that would not be available otherwise. If you want to make a statement, and be a good independent tech without ASE's, more power to you! (seriously, I'm not talking shit. and, just for the record, I had all of them, and just let my last one, L1 expire). I just don't have any delusions about "purity", or taking a stand, or trying to change/revolutionize the industry. If there's money to be made, there will always be pieces of shit trying to control and manipulate it. It's a small part in a massive industrial/economic system that is rotten at the root. The main thing, in my own personal view/experience at least, is to make money while you can, and then you'll also have some great skills when we start getting into some Junkyard Wars, Mad Max shit 

I didn't call anyone ignorant, nor a Luddite. The old timers I know who didn't keep up with the high tech shit are some of the wisest, most skilled technicians on a realistic, practical level, more so than I could ever hope to emulate. (Why the fuck should I have to know about CAN bus and those stupid diagnostic charts to work on a machine that, essentially, hasn't changed for over 100 years?) But, I've also seen ALOT of guys throw parts at something they didn't want to take the time to understand until they got it right (and I've been guilty of that shit as well).


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## Pheonix (May 23, 2012)

Yea I guess I should have stated that I'm going to be attending a community college in an Associate's Degree Program for Automotive Technology. If I want to continue my education after that, I'll do Electro-Mechanical Engineering so I can engineer a new vehicle or just a new engine-type.


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## Eager (May 27, 2012)

My partner has an ASE certification, and we've bartered his auto skills plenty of times on craigslist for extra cash/electrician work on our rig. It also helps because we use our Autozone rewards card when we pick up parts for the cars hes repairing, because you get $20 store credit for every $100 of parts you buy. So after a few repairs we not only have some extra income, but we usually have amassed enough store credit to get new parts for our rig.

And obviously it helps having someone with mechanic skills onboard when you break down on the side of an interstate in the middle of nowhere.


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## Eager (May 27, 2012)

Oh, and if you're just passing through a town, you can sometimes get small jobs by hanging out in Autozone parking lots offering to help people put something in that they just bought.


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## KingFRedo (Sep 22, 2012)

To get ASE certified you need at least 2 years of experience but i think they substitute going to school into that. Also the ASE test isnt like the average multiple choice tests. They ussually say "Technician a says this and technician B says this, but definitely not this" and these tend to confuse even well experienced technicians.


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