in high school did you....?

Did you have the option to take a automotive? if so do you think it was worth it, did you learn much?

Also did you school have any kind of drag racing event?

[WADS56]

We had auto shop in highschool (kind of). We also had an option to go to carear center. During the second half of my day I went to a auto tech class. It was cool we got to build real v8 engins and work on customer cars. I learned all the basic stuff about engins and had hands on experiance there.

[MidNiteBlu 5.0]

I am in my second year of auto shop now as a senior. I think it is very much worth it. I have learned alot last year and this year. in my school 2nd year and above are considered advanced students and we get to do whatever we want to in the class. Which is a good thing for my stang Plus access to a lift for free is a good thing.

Later

[95mustanggt]

I wanted to take Auto Mechanics, but when you want to take engineering in Canada you've got to take every Math and Science option. Then take both French and English too. I had no courses left over .

I still would like to take some courses in Auto Mechanics just for fun.

I'd take it if I were you.

[PonyGirl2000]

Hell, I just wanna go back to high school!!!!

[00 Ram-Air]

i went to auto mech. the 2nd part of the day,it was fun but i learned more doing it on my own........

[#1 Pony]

I wish I had a chance to take an automotive class!
If any of you got the chance, do it! I want to learn but I don't have the chance so I have to learn off of others.

[PonyGirl2000]

You still can take a class. Take it at a community college.

[6T9PONY]

We have Auto Maintenence and Auto Tech at our school. I'm not in either class. I have too many other classes I need to take instead of those, and plus I've already built one car pretty much from nothing and I'm in the middle of my second.

[father joe]

my school sucks i want to take auto but my school doesn't offer any shop classes. but my brother is grease monkey at the ford dealer so i work on my falcon there

Yup I took auto-mech in high school..

first year we mostly did classroom work,but second year we disassembled motors,then had to check clearances when we put them back together of course they had to run when we put them back together

We could also work on our cars or if we had some friends car that needed work we could bring them into the shop,the main thing was,to have some project to keep each of us busy,was the best class I took in highschool

[mean81GT]

i had the option to do auto mechanics, auto body, auto electrical, auto heating and air conditioning. did i take them? no. cause i am a moron.

but, my best friend did the auto body. the big project he did with the class was to take a porsche body, and graft it onto a VW bug chassis. He's the best body man i know, and that helps me with my projects. We have his brothers 70 fastback, then his 67 convertible, then my 81 all three need major work on the shells, and without him we couldn't do it.

so in my case, even though i didn't take them, my friend taking them has benefited me

[mustangdani55]

Originally posted by PonyGirl2000
Hell, I just wanna go back to high school!!!!

AAAAHHHHHH YEEEEAAAAAHHHHH!!!!

[red82gt]

Originally posted by 95mustanggt
I wanted to take Auto Mechanics, but when you want to take engineering in Canada you've got to take every Math and Science option. Then take both French and English too. I had no courses left over .

I hear ya! I'm not in engineering but even to get into sciences it's no easy task at UBC either. At least I'm going to one of the best schools in the country though.
I probably learned more from my father and trying to keep my POS 4 cyl. capri running than any of my friends who took auto mechanics did, heck I still fix their cars today.

[elmir50]

Hi guys,

I took auto mechanics as a career preparation program in highschool. I would reccommend the program to anybody who enjoys auto mechanics. My highschool didn't have a drag car to participate in high school drag racing competitions, there are other high schools that participate.

If the subject interests you ( this goes for anything) then you will strive to do well by learning on your own. There are many good high performance books out there that deal with engine dynamics and building.

I learned hands-on skills in high school auto shop. I learned basic theory and troubleshooting. My main interest is drag racing, so I steady engine and chassis dynamics on my own because I am working towards a career in motorsports.

As far as not being able to attend University after highschool and attain a Bachelors Degree in whatever disipline you desire, that's not true. You can go to college and then bridge over to university to finish a university degree. Both routes will take the same amount of time and end up with the same piece of paper!

[PKRWUD]

I ended up going to several high schools before I graduated, and they all offered an auto shop class, except for the one I graduated from. I never took any of them, but I think everyone should. I learned alot hanging out with my street racer buddies, and my neighbor who had a blown & NOS injected 427 Vega. I also learned alot from my own vehicles. My first car was given to me by my parents when I was 14 or 15 because it didn't run, and they figured I would never be able to fix it. Well, they were wrong. The first carb I ever rebuilt was on that car, and it ran great afterwards. It was a green 1974 Datsun B-210 hatchback. It had a whopping 78 horsepower. I went from that to a 1969 Chevelle Super Sport with a 325 hp 396. Big difference. It had brand new T/A radials on it when I bought it, but I had the back tires showing belts within 8 days. I learned alot on that car too. Nothing beats hands on experience, but the education that explains it is just as important. When I returned from Australia in 1986, I moved to Ventura and enrolled in an engine rebuilding class at the local cc. That was awesome. I learned so much, it was incredible. I went on to take just about every automotive class they offered over the next couple years, and took and passed 3 ASE certifications as well. I have since taken another years worth of classes there to become more affluent with fuel injection and OBDII, but that was 4 or 5 years ago. The trick to taking any auto class, whether it be high school or college, is to take it because you want to. There will be tons of knowledge just waiting for you to absorb, but you have to want it. You also have to be prepared to learn alot about other makes and models, not just Fords. It's great knowledge to have, though, and I strongly encourage anyone with the desire and opportunity to take as many classes as you can handle.

Take care,
-Chris