The Current Online

by Kyle Gross

Classic car owners revved their engines at LV's auto show (Rachel Cantrell/The Current).

Classic cars shone forth in quiet, and sometimes noisy, brilliance at MCC-Longview’s Automotive Career Day. Under the bright, warm sunlight, classic cars and trucks basked in glory for fans new and old alike to see.  View slideshow.

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by Su Bacon
Kansas City Star/MCT Campus
27 May, 2009

When Ysabel Arias acquired her older brother’s 1976 Plymouth Volar, she added her own feminine touches — colorful Tinker Bell floor mats.

She also replaced the heater core and installed a radio and speakers. This summer, Arias, 17, plans to rebuild the carburetor.

Arias said she likes the famous fairy character because “Tinker Bell” was a nickname often given to her because it sounds like Ysabel.

Yet, it could also describe Arias’ talent at tinkering or fixing things, especially cars. Overhauling engines is one of her favorite repairs.

“She really has an aptitude,” said Bill Hansen, general service manager for Midway Ford Truck Center in Kansas City, North, where Arias worked as an intern. “How things work and how things are put together make sense for her.”

But Arias goes beyond fixing what’s broken, Hansen said.

“She wants to figure out why it broke.”

Arias is one of only two young women to graduate this year from the male-dominated automotive technology program in the district. But that hasn’t kept her from speaking her mind — softly but assuredly.

“She was shy when she first came to us,” said Amy St. John, career education coordinator. Students from the district high schools can apply as sophomores to be accepted at the district’s career and technical education center when they are juniors.

“Ysabel had hardly spoken a word when she pulled me aside one day and asked me to get her an internship,” St. John said.

But it wasn’t just any internship Arias had in mind. The district already had an internship course where students held down a job and earned credit for employability skills. What Arias wanted was to learn the ins and outs of a dealership.

“She owned her learning,” St. John said.

St. John arranged an internship for Arias with a dealership.

“I started in accounting and ended my internship in the body shop,” Arias said.

Arias will continue to pursue her passion for all things automotive at Metropolitan Community College -Longview in the fall. She will participate in a program that rotates eight weeks of classes with eight weeks on the job at Midway Ford. The dealership is sponsoring her in the program at the community college .

When Arias graduates in two years, there’s a full-time position awaiting her at Midway Ford.

• School: Winnetonka High School
• Honors/activities: SkillsUSA; Missouri A+ Schools program tutor
• Next step: Metropolitan Community College -Longview
• Career aspirations: To work full time as an automotive technician and eventually become a general manager for a dealership or have her own shop.
• Parents: Octavio and Marisela Arias of Kansas City, North

It’s the time of year when readers ask questions about their vehicles. The GM ASEP and Ford ASSET students are here to help.

I drive a 2002 Ford Escort that is approaching 100,000 miles. At what point should I take my car in for a tuneup? Speaking of that, what exactly is a tuneup?

Depending on the vehicle’s make and model, tuneups will vary. For newer cars like yours, we recommend that you take your vehicle in and replace your spark plugs, fuel filter, air filter and the Positive Crankcase Ventilation (PCV) valve. The spark plug wires don’t need to be replaced if there are no signs of wear. If you have any further questions about service intervals, the owner’s manual or care guide will tell you what needs to be changed at different mileages.

I have a 1995 Honda Odyssey and a 1995 Toyota Camry. We are planning on replacing one with a green car. How do we decide which one should be sold? How do we decide which is the best greenie? Should we lease the new car assuming there will be a more fuel efficient one available in 2 to 3 years?

If you need room to haul around kids, dogs, and groceries, then you should replace the Camry. To truly decide which car to keep you should take both in to a shop and have the condition checked on both to see which one is in better shape. A Ford Escape Hybrid would make an excellent substitution. With an MSRP of around $29,000 and an average fuel economy of 34 MPG, you can still have enough room for a family and still get better gas mileage than most cars. If space is not an issue, we recommend getting rid of the Honda Odyssey because the Toyota Camry will get better gas mileage, and it will also be a more reliable car. Replacing it with a Honda Civic Hybrid would be a good idea. This car has an MSRP of around $23,500 for the base model and boasts an average fuel economy of 45 MPG. Either way you go, MPG should not be the only factor you look at when purchasing a new car. Although you can see the savings at the pump with a foreign hybrid vehicle, you may end up spending much more in maintenance and repairs. Cost of ownership includes more than just the cost of fuel.

I am having problems taking the lug nuts off of my car; is there some way to make it easier?

We would recommend buying a four-way lug wrench from a parts department to make it a little easier to take the lug nuts off and keep it in the trunk. It gives you more leverage to pull and to push at the same time which is much better than just pulling with a tire iron. Also, just loosen the lug nuts while the vehicle is still on the ground, but do not take them all the way off. Then place the jack in the appropriate jacking point and raise the car up. Make sure to secure the car with a jack stand if one is available and then remove the lug nuts. Once you get the lug nuts off, put some anti seize on the lug studs. This will prevent the lug nuts from rusting up on the lug studs, making it a little easier to take them off. Whenever you’re putting the tire back on, tighten the lug nuts as much as possible while the car is in the air, then let it down on the ground, and finish tightening the lug nuts.

The clear coat is starting to peel. Is there a cheap way to fix my car?

A:

If your clear coat is peeling, there is really no inexpensive way to fix it. One way you could fix it is take it to a body shop or MAACO and have them repaint it. Another way is to repaint it yourself, but we would not recommend it unless you have prior experience because you would have to sand down the body panel and then repaint it. If you just have small rock chips, then you could go out and buy clear coat touch up paint, but be careful because you could just make the problem worse.

by EDITH ERICKSON

Large groups of high school students stood in awe looking over the antique and vintage cars that lined the parking lot at the automotive building on the two Automotive Career Days, Sept. 30-Oct 1.

Car owners proudly displayed the engines of their cars and answered questions that high school students had. Longview automotive teachers gave an overview of the different automotive programs here on campus. Students also had the opportunity to observe current Longview students working on vehicles in a lab.

Afterward, high school teacher Jeff Green said, “Initial reaction was very positive; some of them were really excited and wanted to sign up right away.”