What I Would Tell Myself 25 Years Ago 

I’ve been in the workforce since 2008, and the one thing I would tell myself, is a) don’t get too comfortable in a job, because you never know when that job or skill set won’t be enough, and b) Work isn’t everything, there’s no point having $150,000 in the bank if you’re a zombie all the time from shift work, a cripple from doing back breaking work, and completely socially isolated because you’ve worked every weekend and public holiday, rather than enjoyed it. I very much appreciate some jobs are 24/7 and my job (railway signal tech) is definitely one of them, but you don’t have to put your hand up for absolutely every scrap of overtime. Go out and enjoy yourself once in a while.

I'm glad I stuck with Auto repair for a HOBBY since after every repair I do, I go back and sit at a desk with stiff muscles feeling like I accomplished something cool, instead of crashing in bed thinking "Crap! I gotta get up tomorrow and do the same thing in order to pay the bills!." I also makes auto repair something I enjoy since I get to take my time, I'm not on a clock with a customer waiting, and and learn things at my own pace. In short - Hobbies can fill a need too, not just making it your full time job.

Very interesting topic and video. I started in the late 80s as a lube tech at a mercury dealership in my teens. I'm 51 now. My first love was electrical stuff. I taught myself to solder connections of many kinds and learned what stuff on circuit boards was about, when i was 7. I quickly became the kid that was fixing radios for the whole neighborhood. My dad got cancer when i was 15 so i dropped out, got a GED and started working. When i ended up at a dealership, it was the dawn of cars with computers and digital dash displays. All the old timers hated it. I went from lube tech to electrical specialist inside if a week. It felt good to move up in pay and station. I ended up working at a body shop a few years later. The guy that mentored me there, was himself originally taught by the guy that invented the pearl white paint job. I learned tons of cool stuff and i love knowing it. The down side is that the boss simply didn't maintain the shop equipment. I was air chiseling rusty floorboards out of a 78 suburban shell when the lift said fuck it. 12 surgeries later i can walk, but I'm never going to be the same. There were show cars i worked on that were signed by carol Shelby. I amazed myself at times. Local guys that wanted to race in lower classes of drag race, circle track, midget cars and off road racing had me making custom suspension for them. I did everything but paint. In the mid 90s, the boss sent me to a boat shop to learn about moulding glass and other stuff. For a number of years, i was in professional heaven. My wife says i get a special glow about me when I'm fixing something. I still do most of my own work on my car. My dreams of being a rock star, astronaut and world diplomat have faded from my mind mostly. I still love making music for fun and i just put in a circuit and outlet in my garage so i can use a new welder to fabricate again at least a little. I've switched gears to making steel frame furniture that has mechanical movement. I admit i am not lucky in the job market today. Times are tough, but i have skills that make me very resourceful. Somehow i went from nearly famous in Texas, to living in Minnesota and wishing i could afford the raw materials to make some sofas with. It could be worse. The real truth is that if you have any artistic leaning, being a builder is a great pathway. Standard body shops that crank em in and out are okay, you can learn from them. If you are fortunate enough to end up in a custom shop that has some success, you can learn more. Is there a boat shop in your area that is successful enough to have good safety standards? Go learn to make and use molds with them. Watching videos on youtube is okay for a pastime, but you pick up so much more when you are in that field working for a paycheck. The need to pay rent and eat outweighs the small insecurities that make you otherwise give up way too early. Besides, materials are far from cheap. A real business can afford to apprentice a novice. Admit to yourself that you really don't know much at all. If you do that, you will soak in new info and experiences much faster. Take care of your health and make sure you are in a shop with verifiable safety measures. I do not want to see any of you end up middle aged with skills but unable to do much with them. All aspects of being a builder or auto tech are hard on the body, so self preservation is important. So is sacrifice. If you are young, understand that a lot of these skills have no app. These are hands on. You will get tired and sore, your knuckles will occasionally be bloody and bruised. You will not always be aware that the sharp corner of a hood or subframe will find your head when you are super focused on something. The sacrifices are okay though. There is so much going on in this industry, so many giant changes. Half the stuff i did with a special license back in the day isn't technically legal anymore. Since i stopped being a builder, the industry has passed me by. That's okay, it simply means it is thriving and moving forward. New tech is cool, so it's all good to me. Embrace new tech. Given what you can learn just from youtube is amazing. Couple that with fast moving technical advancements and the future looks amazing. You can buy all kinds of mechanics tools, metal fab equipment, 3d printers which some can now do metal, tabletop cnc mills for both wood and steel, you can very nearly make an entire car from top to bottom in your personal workspace. Remember when we had a phone, a camera and a PC? Now they are all better, smaller and integrated in 1 device. I theorize that inside of 10 years, we will have desktop devices that are affordable and reliable, but also be very nearly like a replicator from star trek. As that tech rises, it needs people with genuine skills and experience to refine it and make it better, safer and reliable on top of more refined. More than anything, don't rely on your ego or what you learned in public schools to carry you. Admit that you are a blank slate, be humble and seek any position in a local shop. Learn all you can while you are there. Its ok to move jobs after some time if you are not learning more of what you need. The average age of an autobody tech today is 47. That is terrible! It should be more like 26. These industries are in DEEP need of fresh faces to carry on what needs to be done. The same is true for plumbers, electricians and other skilled trades. Skip college, it's a racket. Think for yourself and learn for yourself firsthand, not from books or videos, but you getting into it with dirty hands that prove your real progress. The only real drawbacks you may have today, are ego, insecurity and massive misinformation from the failing public schooling system. Have faith in yourself. Be persistent and consistent in your efforts. Always make better ways of managing your time. Time management is crucial! Make progress in your 20s, don't waste time partying like so many other brain dead morons that will never amount to anything. Remember, always think for yourself. Have faith in yourself. If you don't believe in yourself, you might be imaginary.

You're right, I can't afford you. That's why I'm a subscriber so I can learn. You may not help us fix specific problems any longer, but I still learn from your problem solving process. If you go back 25 years, just give yourself a pat on the back and say, "Keep up the good work. You'll be just fine.".

Eric everything that you did led you to where you are, now look at the lessons you are sharing with so many ppl! Great Video man, thank you!

Nice throwback pic! :)

Hi Eric, you probably felt the same passion about fixing cars 25 years ago that you feel now about building them. In the meantime, for all those years, you sometimes love to just work and time goes by. The challenge, at the end of a long career, is what's next? You've already found it. May you be blessed for helping so many people during your working life!

As a DIY, I do my best to take care of any and all repairs on my vehicles to save me money and to know if the repair was done right. With that, I can say that there are a lot of great technicians out there that are honest and good at what they do. It is the bad ones that you must stay away from. I stay away from dealerships unless a recall needs to be done. Dealerships are just out to get your money. Some of technicians that work there are good and honest, but unfortunately it is usually the upper management that is getting the money and seeking as much as possible in any way they can. The good honest technicians deserve the big pay, not management.

14 years in, got into it for the same reasons. No regrets, my advice to past me would be children take all your time and money so plan your projects accordingly. I’ve got 5 kids, and one project car.

It's funny how in the USA "diesel" is considered something different than "cars", because over here, about 50% of all cars have a diesel engine, so if you work on cars, you work on diesel machines just as well. Only that US trucks are several decades behind in the technology, compared to the trucks we have here (which are all cabovers, due to space constraints, I guess), so what you call "diesel" would basically be a "vintage truck mechanic" over here ;-)

It's never a good thing to let the 'what could have been' creep in. You're where you want to be now - that's all that matters. If your career had gone elsewhere, we would have no ETCG. And that would be a terrible shame. I think that maybe you're overlooking a lifetime's great achievement.

I'm almost 27 and ive been working as a shop helper at a tree nursery for about a year now. "Shop helper" is a broad term there. Im pretty much the mechanic/fab guy there essentially. Its a good gig and i really enjoy working on the large trucks, tractors, skidsteers and mowers. but when i spend better part of a week building a part for a bush hog or limb risers for a tractor it makes me yearn to do that stuff all the time. Starting from a couple pieces of angle iron, square tube and flat plate to a fully realized concept is satisfying. Who knows maybe when i get tired of the tree farm ill go into business for myself

It has been an honor getting to know and appreciate you and your hard work over these past 10-11 years. I love what you started out with and watching you grow this awesome RU-vid channel into an empire!! happy thanksgiving Eric !!

Eric I used to help my late father repairing semie trucks so after he passed away I needed to support my family that what got me started thank you for sharing your wonderful videos I am from South Africa

I’m 21 about to be 22, Been watching ETCG for awhile probably since I was 15/16 maybe even 14. I quit high school at 17 and ended up getting into factory work. Started off as a temp and minimum wage worked my way up into machine operating, and today I’m a machine setup tech making $21/hr. Which is recent. I went to school for automotive July 2019, and just graduated July 2020. Best experience ever. I went in already knowing a lot but also learned a lot more specifically in the area of diagnosing and knowing the history of parts and what they’re built up as internally. Met a bunch of cool instructors with a lot of different background such as dealer master techs body work and race teams/shop owners. I want to do custom work, and restoration. Basically I want to build cool cars like you’d see in all video games and movies you can think of. I have a lot of friends in different dealerships. I never really wanted to get into a shop out of school because of the money involved buying tools. So I’m working my factory job which pays more than the $14/$15/hr the dealerships are paying new starts. And I work on cars here and there on the side, still teaching myself to diagnose cars I would rather diagnose than repair because for me replacing parts is easy and boring but I’ll still do it. My plan is to open a shop some day.

25 years ago, my youngest son was less than 1 month old, I was getting ready to re-enlist in the USAF for the second time (coming up on 8 years) and months away from a deployment to Saudi Arabia that changed the lives of me and hundreds of others. I can't think of anything that would prepare me for the next 25 years, but now that I am retired from the USAF, I will be starting school in January 2021 for Automotive Tech, because 35 years ago, it is something I wanted to do. Keep up the great work.

I'd say 'don't chase your passion'. Passions change, and passion rarely pay the bills. And trying to chase a passion while making a living can push you into the business side of the job, often far away from where you wanted to be.

Can you believe I'm 29 and still haven't figured it out? I think I love the idea of tech school and learning but hate the idea of going into work for it.

I tried doing auto mechanics starting in 1973, by 1978 all the private garages had closed and all that was left was dealerships and they were looking for people like you with 25 years, so I got a job at a window and door factory and am still there after 67 years, I didn't really like auto-mechanics but I wanted to build the fastest and quickest N.A. '60s muscle car ever up here in northern michigan, and I did, the car lasted 20 years. It was the ultimate sleeper, it literally looked like a piece of junk, but would go from 0 to 60 in a little over 3 seconds in first gear, had a 10 to one starting ratio, and in 4 hours could change it from a drag car to a road car, after this I tinkered with pickup trucks but never had the desire or the compulsion to build another, the car was terrifying a death trap waiting to spring, but the quickest death trap.

I enrolled in GM's ASEP program in the fall of 2000. Got sponsored by a Pontiac/GMC dealer to apprentice at. I loved every second of school and working at the dealer. But every where I turned I had adults who'd been in the game for 20+ years telling me to "Get out while you can". Their reasons are the same reasons I hear from you RU-vidrs in 2020. Flat rate, low pay, not so great benefits, tool expense, toll on the body...etc. I had friends who were enrolled in Computer Science at that same time. They were loving it and already making good money while in school. And to make a long story short I took their advice, dropped out of the GM program and enrolled in Comp Sci. I regretted it immediately. But I stuck it out. Got my degree. From 2004 to 2014 I worked in the IT world. Never had to worry about a job. Was always paid well. And occasionally enjoyed what I did. But overall I was dying to go back into the automotive world. I've been in a new gig for the past couple years and enjoy it well enough. I still have all my Snap On tools from my brief stint. And I still wrench on cars. I never stopped. And I even flirt with the idea of getting back into it at some point. But if I go back 20 years and talk to myself? I would say to finish that GM program. Work as a tech for a few years and then decide if I want to do something else. Because you can succeed in a career you didn't want and had no passion for. And also fail at a career you didn't want or have passion for. Either way it's better to succeed or fail at something you chose for yourself. Not because you caved to peer pressure. I say it from experience.

I watch most if not all of the mechanic RU-vidrs and what I really find interesting is, you are one of the most well spoken RU-vidr/technician. I’m sure that you’re well educated. I want to thank all of you as RU-vidrs to further gain interest in the auto industry, as I was feeling sort of dry In my line of work as a dealership technician. I have about 19 years of automotive experience. Truth be told I was getting bored and just making a paycheck until about 3 years ago when I started watching RU-vid religiously. I truly believe that most of us as technicians feels the same way. Thank you again, I feel in a way reborn as a technician and I’m very curious on taking on new tasks!

If I could go back and talk to the 20 year-old me, I would tell him 1) The stuff that is fun doesn't pay very much, but the stuff that pays a lot isn't very much fun - so make your decisions accordingly. 2) High level knowledge is valuable, but practical knowledge is priceless. 3) Don't be afraid to find and follow your own path - not the ones chosen for you by parents or counselors or peers.

Eric, what a deep conversation and so honest. Thank you for your words of wisdom as you just may influence some of your viewers to really think about what path they take. Your videos mean a lot to so many and the knowledge you share is priceless. You made a choice when you had to and I feel as thought you did yourself a favor. Each step you took, helped you to be someone who helps thousands in a great way. I addition you also get to build your dream of creating your own designs and challenging yourself which helps renew your choices of years gone by. Many don't ever come close to achieving their goals as you did. You did pay your dues along the way but what an inspiration you are to so many. Thank you for all your efforts, videos and advice....

I believe we all do what was best at the time. If one regrets what choices were made, then they would have missed the growing process. Eric, you were quite a looker 25 years ago; not to say you are not now. You are a true and honest person and that has been molded in the past 25 years

Guy since I knew since elementary school became a machinist. Lots of the stuff he makes now is in outer space. I still go, dang that's something. Hindsight is 20/20.

Awesome. You’ve made mistakes, but never stopped growing. You’re an inspiration

25 years ago... telling myself to buy every square body Chevy truck I can afford & park them somewhere. Also, sit on any 60's/70's Mopar you can find for dirt cheap in 1995.

I was a friggin mess 25 years ago! I knew what I wanted to do, sort of, but it seemed so far out of reach that I put it out of my mind. My goals at that time were booze, drugs, and easy women. I was racing to the bottom at warp speed. Took another 4 years of hell before I had mentally had enough - I finally took the leap, got rid of the dead weight that was keeping me down, and loaded up my '86 Grand Marquis (my 1st one - not the same one I own right now), rented a U-Haul trailer and headed out 2,800 miles southwest to AZ, and enrolled in the Motorcycle Mechanic's Institute. Was a life-changing moment! Life didn't quite go the way I had planned after that, but things got exponentially better in every way. If I had to do it all again (I'd refuse!! ONCE WAS ENOUGH!! But if I HAD to ...), I'd have focused on ONE thing, and became a master at it. I think automatic transmissions and differentials would've been a great field to focus on. Or, OBD-II like Paul Danner has. It's taken me 25 years of battling life to figure this out!! These days I do everything and anything with an engine. Right now I've got in the shop chainsaws, a powered parachute aircraft, 2 ATVs, and 2 trucks for repairs. One day I'm cleaning carburetors, the next engineering a throttle and oil injection pump system for an aircraft, and after that, troubleshooting a no crank on some modern crapbox. Had I just focused on ONE thing, my life would be much easier, and I think my pay would be higher, just because of the efficiency gained from experience. I do alright, but, I really should've picked ONE thing and stuck with it. The benefits of juggling a million different things is, it's never boring, LOL. Happy Thanksgiving to you and your family, Eric.

Very interesting discussion. 10 years ago I went to school for auto tech. After years at a Ford dealership the wife and I moved back to my hometown for family reasons and I ended up in the diesel industry. I honestly have no intention of looking back from here and wish I would have gone diesel to begin with sometimes because I would be farther ahead than I am now. But without my prior experience I wouldn’t have my weekend work for friends and family so at the end of the day I don’t regret anything. I appreciate the honesty you display in all of your videos and the way you make me reflect on my past experiences and what could make me a better tech. Keep pushing forward bud you’ve obviously done right by yourself to get you where you are.

I started my career as a Field Engineer working for IBM. Money was commensurate to skills, ambition and job duties. Unfortunately they were not to be my final employer. After 15 years due to the selling off of my division, my journey passed through 5 employers in total. I was making at the end of my career of 46 years, only $1.50 more than I was making at the end of my time at IBM. Most of my employers did not have a pay scale like IBM's. The point of sharing this is it mirrors your statement about not being able to charge what a mechanic is worth. I always brought up the point when talking to my managers about compensation, that I was not overpaid in the past, I was just under-valued in the present.

I wouldn't change a thing. Everything I've done and been through, whether building my business, building hot rods or raising my kids, has helped make me who I am. Through good times and bad, I wear all of the "battle scars" proudly.

I have been a mechanic for 18 years... I like you was drawn into it for the love of performance cars. Your 100% correct, totality different world. Early in my career I tried to jump over to the performance/fabrication industry a few times and never got past the interview process. Lets face it, those type of motorsport jobs are not very common and are hard to get. Where as an automotive technician positions are everywhere. The fact is if I was to be laid off or fired I could find another job at a different shop within 30 minutes. I don't think it works like that in the performance world. The worst part about it is I got into this for the love of cars but now cars are just a job. Now I just wrench with no joy just for a pay check.

I was lucky back in the day. I got an aprenticeship after that in 1982 I was lucky enough to work with 5 guys that were formula 1 mechanics in a privateer team and I learnt loads in the few years I worked with them about auto electrics,Fabrication,engine building and performance modifications. The learning curve never stops. I would not change a thing.

I grew up in auto mechanics. 2nd generation independent garage. A.S.E. Advanced level master tech. I left the auto industry back in 2008 and took a union job to support the family (better pay, health coverage yada, yada, yada. It allowed me to enjoy working on cars, building race engines. installing and now tuning efi. Something I didn't get to do while wrenching. I was always chasing driveability and emissions repair problems. The NASCAR guy was right in some way. Most mechanics oops I meant technicians (you know who you are) aren't given the opportunity to build, tune and do R&D work. Although I am grateful for the skill set my Dad showed Me and I built from them. Kids these days aren't handed down those skills. They have to diligently seek them out and self teach. I don't want to discourage those looking to do repair as a career. As cars become more efficient. The less they break down, the more you have to push the pen. That was something I wasn't willing to do so I got out.

Collision Repair Trade School 1998. An address to the autobody students by a local "prominent" body shop owner: "...who in here wants to paint?...yeah, monkies can paint. Half of you'll end up shootin' Centari at used car lots..." After that motivating speech, I switched to auto tech at the end of the semester, and thankfully, a decision that paid off in the end.

Right a hobby becomes a job and then you hate your hobby! Same thing here, got a job at a GM dealership and was all excited and pumped to be working on GM products, but after a year, it was a job and that fire inside me was dying, turned into that 9 to 5 looking for the gravy CP jobs and not getting stuck with warranty stuff.

Cars are my hobby and I've done a lot of things because of the University of RU-vid that I never would have thought I could do, channels like yours have been a fantastic resource for us DYIers! that being said I hate fixing broken vehicles but I love bolting on shinny new parts that make my car, truck, motorcycle, UTV better, faster, and more fun!

you have a lot of people learning from your work here on RU-vid..one of them is me..so thanx man and keep up the content

Fine and Applied Arts degree in industrial design to become a car designer... Always obsessed with designing cars, planes, boats etc... This was before personal computers, so I got into computers... (Short stint as a tool & die machinist to learn working with materials).

Thanks for sharing Eric👍

Great video Eric!

Good for you Eric I hope you continue enjoying doing what you do!!! Looking forward to videos of your next build. Keep moving forward with all you've got brother!!!

Lots of maybes out there. I wanted to be a marine biologist like jac jac cousteau. 40 year linemam at a electric utility company. Retired now can't complain

I found your channel searching for repair advice and have greatly appreciated all of the repair info I found. I’ve also followed along your builds and that’s been really fun too!

Many guys got into working on cars for the reasons you mentioned, me included. However, there’s certainly nothing wrong with working as tech. Honestly, I’d recommend it, even if you like the performance end, or want to do custom work. I’ve worked with many young guys who think cars and performance are cool, however could never grasp basic concepts. I honestly think it was because they truly didn’t want to challenge themselves, not because they weren’t capable. Once they realized it’s hard work, they folded.

I wouldn't have been as mechanically inclined if it weren't for your channel, I'm not sure on the number but I'd say I've known your channel for at least 8 years. Thank you

Eric you are doing it right!!!!!! It always good to check out your path not just you final destination.

Access to data and info combined with overhead, is what will hold back an independent. I'm trying to work the hurdles, and starting late in life. It's ALWAYS been a fun hobby, until a recently, when the virus provoked a career change. All of you Erics, (ETCG, SMA, ALA) showed me yet, another way to have fun with it!

Finally my birthday fell on a Monday! Thanks for the digital cake Eric.

This is very similar to current situation. Thanks for bringing light to it!

eric aged like fine wine 🍷.

General auto mechanics provides a much better foundation than jumping into fabrication, which really means searching for solutions to problems every day that a mechanic already knows.

Of all your great videos ... This is a very great video ... very VERY great 👏🏾💪🏾

I got into the autobody and restoration shops specifically because of what you stated. I wanted to learn about mechanics, and repairing cars, but I also wanted to learn how to build, modify, and fabricate, paint, and create custom objects. I feel like it was a wise choice.

Watching Eric reminds me of myself. I'm an HVAC tech and small engine mechanic both. I became a small engine mechanic by accident to fund money to convert a 01 Explorer from a V6 to a V8. I'm now a very good small engine and vehicle mechanic in my area, and the car I wanted to build is sitting in the driveway as my pride and joy, and I make $500 a week off JUST the small engine work. I feel accomplished at 21

Totally agree, thank you!!! to share your story.

I really appreciate you guiding me through my career this last two years. Is tough being the newbie in this industry. Bosses seem to lie and coworkers manipulate to take advantage of someone that has little experience in the field.

Eric you ROCK!

Don't look at what you could have done. Look at what you can do. It doesn't matter if you are satisfied with past decisions or not. What is important is what are you going to do now, that is what you can change!

I'm sure you've done all right and you're still young enough to do whatever you set your mind to!

Thank you. Im at that point in my life, i want to get in the Engineering Design field of automotive industry, thank you sir. You are always like another dad,helping out and being humble. Thank you.

Eric, You are the best RU-vid channel I see and have learned so much from. Thank you for sharing with me and the rest of the world.

Great advice. Something to consider though is just like show biz it helps to live where the industry thrives. Where I live performance shops are few if any. If you want it, you do it yourself. There's no place to get employment & learn on the job & school only teaches you so much. Love your vids. Eric. Your a inspiration to many. Be blessed.

I watched you on RU-vid you’re a hell of a mechanic

I've been a professional mechanic for a long time now and if there's one piece of advice I could give people looking to get into the trade it would be: GET A JOB WITH THE COUNTY, CITY, Ect! Flat rate and retail can suck a big fat one!! Best decision I ever made in my life was getting out of all of that and working an hourly paid job for the city where I live as a mechanic!!!

Things happen for a reason 😊. It made/it's making you a well rounded person with hands-on experience. I went to school for graphic design. But i needed a stable income. I'm a pharmacy technician now.

I workt for 13 years with cars. Now i dont want to do it no more. Now i keep it as a hobby. But i learnt a lot in the years

I've always been a hobbyist. When I'm in the garage, my creative juices start flowing. Sometimes the frustration gets to me more than anything, but it doesn't dissuade me from giving up and closing up shop. That's where I am in Saskatchewan Canada, the climate is not stellar for mechanical work in the garage without a dedicated heater in the winter months, which I cannot afford at the moment. But getting back to the question of asking myself in the past and if I wanted to do this or where do I see myself, I would say stay the course. It's going to get frustrating it's going to get annoying at times, but it's where you're happiest is what I would say to myself.

Lots of wisdom here. Thankyou.

I'd tell myself to not listen to my parents, who more or less forced me into getting a "proper" education. 3 very expensive years at university, even if education is basically free in Norway.

Right now I'm recertifying by getting my ASE N1 so I can get back into a shop and get fresh again. I want to eventually focus on collision repair, which is something my Dad gave me a crash course on how to do. (Hehe, get it?) In the past year, out of necessity- I found collision and body repair is a happy place for me. Just seeing all the pretty curves and body lines meet up, on a freshly washed and waxed paintjob. It's art, is what it is.

Eric hope you and everyone is having a GREAT DAY and hope everyone has asafe a GREAT Thanksgiving.Eric you have come ALONG way and have HELPED countless of people that those NASCAR guys have not.Keep going and doing what you are doing or what ever you want to do,because i was always told you can do and be what ever you want to do or be in life,and this is someone that grew up in a one parent family did not have a father figure around.

we all take different roads, but the ones that care are in the cars they built. keep youtubing brother. keep on trucking!

Thanks Eric for all the great how to videos, I hope you’re around for another 25 years. I found your you tube channel where you showed how to replace rear axle bearings and I kept going back for more great content. Here’s a 25th anniversary digital cake 🎂, enjoy.

Eric, I've been with you a long time now. Now that your name is known and out there, and you've done a few personal builds and now this customer-requested build, KEEP AT IT. If you choose to do so, I can guarantee that more and more people are going to request you build their vehicles and do custom work (engine swaps, etc.) for them. You will continue to grow and enjoy the challenges that come along with it. I wish you the best moving forward!

2:08 I remember seeing the old ETCG video of a clean shaven Eric driving in an NSX! Thought it was cool lol

When I started in my field, which is computers, computers were much more like cars. They had thick clunky metal cases that you could unlatch and tilt upwards like a hood, lots of stuff needed to be fastened with screws, and some connectors really took a lot of force to either losen or push in tightly. Nowadays, cars are much more like computers (but not like the ones back then), especially now everything is so miniaturized that in order to fix anything (instead of just replacing the broken assembly), you have to have a whole new subset of electronics skills...

Man, I can so relate to most of this. I grew working on cars with my dad, so my love for this started very young. I managed to have a some mechanic jobs for a few years before I finally went to college for automotive technology (age 24) but realized that mechanics is really just like any other job and working on cars all day would ruin the hobby that I've grew up to love, at least 15 years at that point. Now as I've aged, (34) I realized that I too look back and wish I would have went more so into the "specialty" work or performance side of things. While it still may be a job, I feel it's more of something that not everyone can get in and try, you're with more people that are skilled and like-minded and I think that's where it really matters to really "enjoy" a career. While I'm still somewhat young, maybe this is the spark I need to really push myself back into that workforce.....maybe once Co-vid is under control.

Eric you have given me the skill to work on my own car. Thank you.

Yours has quickly become my favorite channel here on the Tubes. I am almost 60 and wish I had learned auto mechanics a lonnnng time ago. Wonder sometimes if it's not too late to give it a try...

Good story and good looking dude 🙌🏻

Well, 25 years Is one hell of a mile stone Eric .. Putting things in some form of perspective you are now in the survivors club of this mélange of technology , should be proud of that and your skills fed and kept a roof over you families head... Thats a big deal... Me I have been at this trade for 40 + years as a medium duty truck tech and yes I am still working in the trade surviving the technical mélange of both sides of the fence gasoline and diesel ... Been in and out of racing too. Now in the middle of a sprint car build for 2021 ... and yes owning and operating a tow company . My Dad passed away 9 years ago and he left me with these words of wisdom which is written on my tool box it is a great statement ... " The antidote for ignorance is practical experience " I think you fit that well... Keith

I was in auto and went to diesel now I work on everything from a lil power washer to a 18wheeler and forklifts and excavators and bulldozer and garbage trucks really cool stuff

It is my birthday, and couldn't pass the opportunity to watch an ETCG1 video and be wished a happy birthday. Thanks Eric!

this advice speaks to me

Great great video Eric! A video after my own heart. I’ve had countless nights of laying in bed thinking about my short lived career as a mechanic. And asking myself what the hell was I thinking?! Where’s the money?! My body was wearing and stuff started becoming bland. My passion was no longer there and it became a paycheck. But then the paycheck wasn’t even worth it. So I switched it up a bit and tried my hand at railroading. Got an entry position and I’m truly happy. Blessed to have the knowledge of a mechanic but on those countless nights I also ask myself, did I fail my passion? Did I bitch out? Was this the right move? But now I think to myself, none of those questions matter. I did it. I learned from it and now I’m in this new vehicle (my new job) taking me to my next destination. I would never have done anything different. I met a ton of people as a mechanic and had tons of fun FSU! (Messing shit up)

When I graduated in 1995 from RPI with a BSME, with friends going to work in the automotive industry, I was ambivalent about it...I wanted "design work" running ProE (3D) etc but had no focus. I didn't do anything to a car except change it's oil. I wish I had gotten my hands dirty and attempted that half-shaft, brakes, etc. I was afraid I'd mess things up. Granted my own maintenance work can take longer than I initially expect, but I wish I had collected tools and had a little more confidence in myself. Eric, on the other side of the coin, having done design work and knowing it can become compartmentalized and repetitious if one isn't a top dog lead engineer, you'd have been bored as hell working on only one system, like "similar to last project" etc if weren't able to steer yoursel into a development project. Can you imagine spending your career on only passenger car suspension systems? I'd say you've got freedom that comes with paying your dues. Well done!!!!

I was in tech school in 2008, I got master certified and then in 2010 my dealership closed. I joined the Army after that, 4 years later I got out and went to Mechanical Engineering school. At the time my dealership closed I was pretty mad. Now I’m really happy with where I am.

Hey Eric...... lol well I for 1 am glad you took the mechanic way. Because with out your videos and teachings I would have never been able to keep my civic on the road for as long as she was. I am very appreciative of all your videos. Thank you Eric.

It IS my birthday! Thanks Eric!!

Ive allways loves to work on engines and build stuff so i want to go to school for both and turn it into a restoration and building shop so people can come up to me with crazy ideas for vehicles and i can make their dreams come true right alongside my own

Started in Motorcycles in the 80's, switched to Aviation in 87 and had some pretty amazing experience over the last 30 + years as a technician. If I had one message to send myself back then it would be to never settle for what you have. Challenge yourself and don't be so darn happy fixing other people's expensive toys even if you love it...

I'm 32, started at a automotive machine shop when I was 13, worked there like 8 years, worked at 3 dealers and a few mom and pop shops, opened up my own shop when I was 26, so 6 years in now, it's a struggle, the first thing is I didnt realize how spoiled i was with all that top of the line dealer equipment, im 200k into my shop now and just barely got lifts and tire machines last week, still havent got to use them, second it's nice having 20 other mechanics in the shop to ask advice or help, so this last few years has really worn me down on mechanics, I just got down with a 6 month long 57 belair restoration, it was impossible to quote out, I ended up atleast 100 or 200 hours more into it then I thought, it is the most time consuming thing I have ever done, and didn't know how to charge for it correctly, it made me miss doing struts when you look at book time charge that and get it out the same day, it's one thing to underestimate a 4 hours job, it's another thing to estimate a 1000 hour job, but the work is alot more rewarding, there are no correct answers, you just do things in life and figure out wether it was a good idea or not after they're done.

I have always had a passion to work on things and I learned how to do a lot of things to cars from you Eric. The engine has always facilitated me and always wanted to learn more about how it all works. I am currently going to The School of Automotive Machinists and Technology, and it’s an absolute blast. I agree with you on how you wished you went into the more performance side of things and that’s how I felt. This school is nothing but the best in the performance of an engine. I get to do some awesome things at the school and have great opportunities. This school deals with NHRA and Nascar and a lot of graduates currently work for those teams. It’s amazing the opportunities that this school has, if you haven’t heard anything about it you should check it out. Anyone that wants to learn more about engines and going fast, look the school up and talk to them. It is well worth it.

My life re-do would be to avoid corporate office politics entirely and be a field trades person.

Eric, I've followed (and been a FAN) of your channel and you for a long time now... you always do the best thing for your life at the time in question. You always come out on top, or so it appears.... I think you made the right choice, but you may have been the next Chip Foose or Troy Trepannier (spelling?)

Diesel mechanic here, self taught through tinkering with automotive gasoline. The fundamentals I learned through failure and success help as I transition into fabrication and auto body. Time management is a big part I had to learn and could have only learned through my trajectory in life. Everyone is certainly different so my path is mine.

THANK YOU!!!

I am glad I kept it as a hobby and not the job in my experience.

Excellent advice. There's nothing more sobering than waking up one moring forty years after high school (after having paid off tens of thousands in college and prefessional school tuition loans) only to realize that you've been doing it wrong and you don't have much time left to fix it.