The cars were great, but we didn’t see the behind-the-scenes grind to get them ready
The recent Future Classic Car Show hosted by ClassicCars.com in Scottsdale, Arizona, showed the importance of a good automotive education.
The custom work that went into some of the vehicles was highly impressive, especially considering most of it was performed by the owners.
For those people, like me, it began with an automotive education. I got mine from an ROTC program many years back (we don’t have to talk exact numbers, people), but for a lot of up-and-coming gearheads, that learning comes from Universal Technical Institute.
The school’s local admissions marketing manager, Chad Ogle, told me he was impressed by the array of work he saw during the Future Classic Car Show.
“Blood, sweat and tears on a lot of these vehicle and it’s just fantastic to see,” he said. “Look around: There’s just such amazing cars out here and I love coming out here.”
He’s right. Some of the cars were stunning and, as all car people know, working on your vehicle is rewarding, but it can be maddening. Ogle said the temptation to take your car to a small shop to save some cash can be tempting after a long, hot day in the garage.
“Anybody can take their car or their vehicle to a little mom and pop shop and have it done poorly and we’ve all experienced that,” he said.
But Ogle said its important to find a shop that will do the work right as cars become more and more advanced.
“The best part is when you go in there and it’s done right by a professional that knows how to do this and knows how to work on these vehicles,” he said.
“Today’s cars, they’re not something people can do in their home garage. They have to take it to a shop that understand the technology, understand the computers that go into these things. We’re just getting more advanced. So you’ve got to have that training to be able to do that.”
And that tech-focused education will only become more important as the number of future classics -– most of which will rely heavily on computers –- continues to grow.
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