Want to work on cars for a living, but don't know where to start?
Learn how cars work. Get hired at a shop. Skip the tuition.
16 video modules from a former flat-rate dealership technician, plus a step-by-step plan to land your first shop job.
Instant access · Lifetime access
Prefer to pay in installments? 3 payments of $99 →How I got hired without finishing tech school
Sound familiar?
You don't know where to start, or how to get through the door.
Shops won't hire you because you have no experience, and you can't get experience without a job.
Tech school is quoted at tens of thousands of dollars, and you can't pay that and rent.
The only places that will hire you look like dead ends where you'll change oil forever.
You've never worked in a shop. You don't know the words, the workflow, or how techs get paid.
You don't know what tools to buy, and it feels like you need thousands of dollars of them on day one.
YouTube taught you a few fixes, but not how the car actually works.
Every one of those has an answer on this page.
This is for you if you like cars, want to get paid to work on them, and are deciding between two roads: pay for tech school, or go to work at a shop now.
It's not for you if you want a job handed to you. The Get Hired Guarantee only pays out if you pass the exam and do the applying.
How I did it
I tried tech school. Two semesters in, I dropped out. It wasn't worth it for me, so I went to work.
I started as a lube tech at Valvoline. About a year later I was at a Chevrolet dealership, working my way up: lube tech, then apprentice, then flat-rate technician on my own.
Flat-rate techs get paid by the job, not the clock. A tech who knows the car finishes jobs faster than book time and flags more hours than they sit in the building. My first week on my own, I flagged 70.50 hours.
How techs actually get paid
Most shops pay technicians flat rate. Every job has a book time. If a job books at 3.0 hours, you're paid 3.0 hours whether it takes you two or five.
That's why knowledge is money in this trade. The tech who understands the system finishes faster, flags more hours, and earns more in the same week.
Everything I had to learn on the shop floor is in this program, in the order I wish someone had taught it to me.
What you'll be able to do
16 modules and a final exam. Every major system on the car, and how techs diagnose it.
Instant access · Lifetime access · Covered by the Know-Your-Car and Get Hired guarantees
Prefer to pay in installments? 3 payments of $99 →Everything you get
Bonus 1: The Get Hired Playbook
The step-by-step plan for landing your first shop job without a diploma:
- Which shops hire people with no experience, and which ones actually promote. Many quick lubes are dead ends. Dealership lube and express departments have a ladder: I went from lube tech to apprentice to flat-rate tech at the same Chevy dealership.
- How to get through the door: a one-page resume, walking in, and asking for the service manager in person.
- The interview questions service managers ask, and how to answer them.
- Shop Talk: the words you'll hear on day one (repair order, book time, flagged hours, comeback, multi-point inspection, upsell) so you don't sound new.
- Your first 90 days: how lube techs get noticed and move up to apprentice.
Bonus 2: The Starter Tool List
What to buy for your first shop job at three budgets, what the shop usually provides, and what to skip until you're making money.
Bonus 3: 1 month of Ask The Mechanic
Stuck on a lesson, or looking at something at work you haven't seen before? Message a mechanic directly.
- 12 questions for the month, sent as private messages from your Auto Academy inbox.
- Answered by a former flat-rate dealership technician within 48 hours on business days. Most get answered the same day.
- Ask about anything in the program, a car you're working on, or the job itself.
- Capped at 30 members, so every question gets a real answer.
After your free month, you can keep it for $29 a month or let it end.
Instant access · Lifetime access · Covered by the Know-Your-Car and Get Hired guarantees
Prefer to pay in installments? 3 payments of $99 →Your ASE certifications
ASE certification is how technicians prove their skill to employers. Here is the path, and where this program fits:
The core ASE certifications (A1–A8) require 2 years of hands-on work experience.
You can take the tests before you finish the 2 years. You're certified once your experience is approved.
Getting hired sooner starts your 2-year clock sooner.
The program covers all eight systems the core ASE tests are built around: engine repair, automatic transmissions, manual drivetrain and axles, suspension and steering, brakes, electrical, heating and air conditioning, and engine performance.
It's a foundation for the tests, not a test-prep program. Auto Academy isn't affiliated with or endorsed by ASE.
For parents
Here is what the options cost:
This program teaches your student how every system on a car works and gives them a plan to get hired at a shop. They start earning and building experience now, instead of paying tuition first.
Buying for a student under 18: a parent or guardian creates the account with their own details, makes the purchase and accepts the Terms. Your student then logs in on that account.
Two guarantees. All the risk is ours.
That's 3.5% of the cheapest tech school option above.
Why now
Ask The Mechanic is capped at 30 members, so every question gets a real answer. Your included month comes with a seat while seats are open. When the cap is reached, new students get the program and bonuses without the mentor month.
Questions
Your first shop job starts here
You can spend the next year in a classroom, or the next few weeks learning how cars work and applying to shops.
Instant access · Lifetime access
Prefer to pay in installments? 3 payments of $99 →All course content, videos, written materials, and Q&A responses provided by Auto Academy LLC are intended for educational purposes only. Auto Academy LLC does not accept responsibility or liability for any damage to vehicles, property, or injury to persons arising from a student's application of information learned through our courses or services. Working on vehicles involves inherent risks. Students assume full responsibility for any repairs, modifications, or maintenance performed on their own or others' vehicles. Auto Academy LLC strongly recommends consulting a licensed professional mechanic for any repair work beyond your skill level. Ask The Mechanic responses are educational guidance based solely on the information you provide and are given without physical inspection of your vehicle. Responses are not a substitute for in-person diagnosis by a licensed professional mechanic and do not create a professional-client relationship. By purchasing or accessing any course or service, you expressly and voluntarily assume all risks associated with automotive repair, maintenance, and modification, including risk of personal injury, death, and property damage, and to the maximum extent permitted by law you release Auto Academy LLC, its owner, and its affiliates from any claims arising from such activities. You agree to follow all manufacturer service procedures, torque specifications, and safety warnings, and to use appropriate safety equipment at all times. You are solely responsible for ensuring that any repair or modification complies with all applicable federal, state, and local laws, including emissions regulations. Auto Academy LLC content does not constitute advice that any modification is legal in your jurisdiction.
Auto Academy is not affiliated with or endorsed by ASE. Auto Academy doesn't place you in a job; the Get Hired Guarantee is a money-back guarantee with conditions listed in the Terms. No certification is guaranteed. Results depend on your effort and your local job market. Tuition figures: UTI Sacramento catalog (enrollment on or after 8/1/2026) and TCAT Knoxville Spring 2026 cost sheet.
