Would you trust a pair of 15 year olds to work on your car?

[JACK250]

A friend of mine and I, after doing some work on my ute, thought we could start up a small business making things like sub-boxes, speaker pods and other mostly interior-based items.
We both have experience working on cars, his dad owns a car yard, and I have done up an XY, am currently doing up an XP ute and have worked in a restoration workshop before).
We would have some of our work to show the customer (that has been done on my ute) and we were thinking we could do our first few jobs for the price of materials, so people will be more interested.
We both have experience working with most power tools, fiberglass, mdf board, and bog, the main materials we would be working with, and he can weld too.
So my question is do you think the general public would take us seriously enough to let us work on their cars?
Cheers

[Kryton]

being taken seriously depends on how you present yourself.
dress neatly (and not like i did when i lived in Shep at your age) be mature and act professionally and you will go a long way.
if you dont know the answer to a question, dont spout B.S and try and bluff your way through an answer as it wont be bought.
be honest with your work, show the customer EXACTLY what you CAN do and are GOING to do to their car. dont do anything that you havent already said you will do either.
present some pics of previous work or even show them the work if possible.
dont take short cuts, it always bites you in the butt.
i guess, think about the fact you live in Shep, get a bad name and not only will everyone know about it, you still have to live there.

im pretty sure though that if you conduct yourself professionally, word will get out and youll be swamped with work.
dont know if the lake is still a lake or if its even where everyone goes anymore, but try and get a bit of work on those cars.

[bf tubs]

its a pretty tough nut to crack. perception of inexperiance can be so hard change ,if you had some runs on the board to show them then that would really make it easier good luck anyway

[Jack91]

15 year olds working on cars? It already happens. Noone cares as long as it's done right and you aren't driving the car.

[vztrt]

Originally Posted by 93_eb_fairmont

15 year olds working on cars? It already happens. Noone cares as long as it's done right and you aren't driving the car.

Its called Ford Car Servicing!

[Daymoe]

People seem to look at people our age like we know nothing and they wouldn't trust us. As the others said look neat, be mature and act professionally. I'm 16 and i've built PC's for people and work at the Flemington Race Course

If i owned a car, and i saw your work and liked it, of course.

[JC]

Originally Posted by 90sFTW

People seem to look at people our age like we know nothing and they wouldn't trust us. As the others said look neat, be mature and act professionally. I'm 16 and i've built PC's for people and work at the Flemington Race Course

If i owned a car, and i saw your work and liked it, of course.

Building PCs and working on cars are a bit different - you guys were all born with Pentium chipsets in your hands, weren't you? The rest of us just got 10 digits to count with, LOL.

If it were me, I'd be asking you to help (and I suppose paying for it) - which really means you'd work, and I'd supervise.

[Daymoe]

Originally Posted by JC

Building PCs and working on cars are a bit different - you guys were all born with Pentium chipsets in your hands, weren't you? The rest of us just got 10 digits to count with, LOL.

If it were me, I'd be asking you to help (and I suppose paying for it) - which really means you'd work, and I'd supervise.

Yeah thats true, they are quite different hehe.

[ea90gl]

yes mate if your work is well worth the money, doesnt matter if you were working in ape suits im sure you will get somewhere one day. You also have to build TRUST with your customers, without this you wont get very far. Dont forget people talk and if you help one guy and impress him, he will tell his friends and they will tell thiers etc etc. Also its works in the same way but vice versa, so be careful. Make sure before you start anything that you know your products are great so you know as soon as you wanna show them off you will have the extra confidence. And remember speak with knowledge and confidence (not bull crap), people will also take you more seriously if you do this. there are more things but anyway goodluck with what ever you do

[JACK250]

Thanks for all of that guys. If we do it I will be keen to set up properly - neat well set up, well maintained workshop, maybe a few business cards and some ads in the local paper or maybe a few radio ads.. If anyone has any other ideas post 'em up.
Also if I do get started if anyone here is interested I'll definately do it for the cost of materials until I kick on

[Lightning Strike XR6]

Originally Posted by JACK250

Thanks for all of that guys. If we do it I will be keen to set up properly - neat well set up, well maintained workshop, maybe a few business cards and some ads in the local paper or maybe a few radio ads.. If anyone has any other ideas post 'em up.
Also if I do get started if anyone here is interested I'll definately do it for the cost of materials until I kick on

Radio may have to wait a bit.

If you want a start. Would you be able to do up a GT body kit fibe glass? If so how much.

[JACK250]

Originally Posted by jonnomc

Radio may have to wait a bit.

If you want a start. Would you be able to do up a GT body kit fibe glass? If so how much.

Mate I don't want to start on anything that complex just yet, that's probably a bit too ambitious

[mattl]

Personally for me, and please don't take this the wrong way, but no i wouldn't send my pride and joy to you, simply because you don't have the experience or knowledge yet at the age 15 to understand the car completely.

However, with my daily which i don't care about so much and don't care if a few minor things go wrong with it, then hell yeh I'd send it to you! And over time as you gain more knowledge of cars and gain more experience in working with a variety of different cars and i was happy with the job you were doing, then yes i'd deff send my pride and joy to you in a couple years time!!

However, If you are this serious about becoming a mechanic/panel beater for a future career, i would strongly recommend getting into an apprenticeship ASAP! I mean your 15 now, if you start a 4 year mechanic apprenticeship or a 4 year panel beating apprenticeship, you'd be finished by 19 with a qualification under your belt, a bucket load of experience and knowledge about different cars and materials and a lot of connections in the automotive industry and i reckon you'd find it a hell of a lot easier get customers/clients with a qualification!!

Well best of luck and would love to hear from you, keep us updated with your progress!

[Ohio XB]

As mattl said above, get into the industry ASAP so that experience and reputation can be built.

Speaking for myself, but then again I am a Yank, I would not let 15 year olds work on my car. Then again it kills me to let anyone other than me work on my or my wife's cars but I cannot afford an alignment machine or tire balancer.

At 15 many teenagers don't know what the things are that they don't know. Experience will shine the light on this. Knowing what you don't know will get you ahead of the game. By that I mean if you know what things you need to get more info on and can admit to yourself "I don't know enough about this" then you do better than the teenagers that don't know that there is something about what they are about to do that they don't know about.

Sound confusing? All the other old farts here know what I mean. :

Also from someone my age (43) the amount of time that you have been working on cars is very short in comparison to how long we have been working on cars, and we remember how long it took to get a complete understanding of every nuance of something on a car. Some things we are still working on to master......ok, most things. But learning how to do things is an ever ongoing journey. After you have done something for 5-7 years you will look back and see how much you learned over that time. Then you will also realize just what you didn't know at 15.

When I was your age I wanted credit for what I did know. Even when I was 21 I was told "Ah, you think you know everything but you don't." This usually came after I said something correct. I would tell them "Well, I do know this much..." and I knew that I knew what I was talking about with that little bit. But I also told them that it is all that I know about that, whatever it may be. I still couldn't seem to get credit for what I did know, so I know the frustration you will be facing. Never be afraid to admit what you don't know. That is half the battle because now you know what you need to find out.


Sorry if that is confusing but I tried to make it as clear as I can. I would say the same thing to my son if he were still 15. Good luck.

Steve

[Mark351]

Go for it, do those projects for materials cost and build a good looking portfolio you can show prospective clients. If the work looks good and is of good quality, your age won't be an issue.

[Rodp]

Sorry, experience to me counts. A 15yr old can sit in my passenger seat or my rear seat but will never use tools on my car, regardless of the labour charge.

[Ruger]

Originally Posted by Rodp

Sorry, experience to me counts. A 15yr old can sit in my passenger seat or my rear seat but will never use tools on my car, regardless of the labour charge.

Ditto, although the only person that touches my car with tools besides me is one of my good mates who is a mechanic.

[dave289]

hi jack250,it is great to see how enthusiastic and confident that you are,both good things to have.unfortunately the one thing you dont have is experience.and that counts for a lot to a lot off people these days.i remember when i was 15 hearing the same thing about experience and not being round long enough to know.i'll just try and give you a bit of an example.
If you had a great computer and bought new hardware to install would you let your 11 year old brother put this together for you while you went to the shop.the answer i would think would probably be no.why, because you feel he would not be experienced enough to know.unfortunately that is the way that older people sometimes look at younger(less experienced)people.
the fact is you might be quite capable of doing all these things but with no experince people just dont know that.i have seen first year apprentice spray painters who are better than some four years and even qualified tradespeople.
the short answer to your question is no i would not let 15 year olds work on my car. but if i was to hear good things about you guys and how well you worked and the quality of your work i probably would change my mind.my son will be 15 in 3 months and is to busy down the beach or on the computer,he certainly does not show the kind of enthusiam towards things that you do and for that you should be proud.
keep at it,you have the right attitude and will gain more experience over time.
good luck jack250

[gthofan]

Jack250, How about you post some pictures of your work here

[Daymoe]

Or you could be like Microsoft and play on peoples stupidity?

- Jokes hehehe.


Honestly, if people see that you do decent work, i reckon they will trust you.

[Mr Cube]

My thoughts are you will have a bit of a battle to win because of your age. But my thoughts are you do a good job and get a few runs on the board, yeah you should be right.

Going away from the mechanical side, my mate's boss had a then 14 year old, who loved his computer and spent all his time on the PC in his room. The old man couldn't understand why he would be in there all the time.. Anyways turns out months later that this kid was building and running websites for US companies and was turning out quite a good income.

Moral of the story is: Age can matter initally but proof is in the pudding regardless of age...

[Daymoe]

Originally Posted by Mr Cube

My thoughts are you will have a bit of a battle to win because of your age. But my thoughts are you do a good job and get a few runs on the board, yeah you should be right.

Going away from the mechanical side, my mate's boss had a then 14 year old, who loved his computer and spent all his time on the PC in his room. The old man couldn't understand why he would be in there all the time.. Anyways turns out months later that this kid was building and running websites for US companies and was turning out quite a good income.

Moral of the story is: Age can matter initally but proof is in the pudding regardless of age...

Same here, except i don't build websites. I build PCs.

(Web Developers can be paid upwards of $60,000 for a website)

[DDXR6T]

Depends on the type of work. Interior stuff yes, But any engine/driveline stuff no.

[DBourne]

i'd let you guys do stereo work on my car sure, but i sure as hell wouldn't leave you the keys.

[[Tonko]]

Sounds alright Jack, I wouldnt usually, but because i know you, i would trust you with stuff on my car.
As for radio and ads, you guys could get in a bit of strife if something goes wrong and your not a registered business etc...
Did i mention the XD needs a sub box? and im too lazy to do it myself... :

[JACK250]

Originally Posted by [Tonko]

Sounds alright Jack, I wouldnt usually, but because i know you, i would trust you with stuff on my car.
As for radio and ads, you guys could get in a bit of strife if something goes wrong and your not a registered business etc...
Did i mention the XD needs a sub box? and im too lazy to do it myself... :

Maybe we could cut a deal, you do a few wiring jobs and I'll fix you up a box
As for pics requested;
A-pillars almost ready for painting, pictured next to the original. (the black parts are for the tweeters).

Pods; Don't look too flash in the picture but are as smooth as, and ready for vinyling.

[Rodp]

Originally Posted by JACK250

Maybe we could cut a deal, you do a few wiring jobs and I'll fix you up a box
As for pics requested;
A-pillars almost ready for painting, pictured next to the original. (the black parts are for the tweeters).

Don't get me wrong, and I'm certainly not doubting your work and wish you all the best in your endeavour (and don't let sour bastards like me discourage you) but the proof really is in the pudding. Put some good, observable projects behind you and the work will come.

When you do reach 'of age', then asshats like me will hire you, for good dough!

[[Tonko]]

Originally Posted by JACK250

Maybe we could cut a deal, you do a few wiring jobs and I'll fix you up a box
As for pics requested;
A-pillars almost ready for painting, pictured next to the original. (the black parts are for the tweeters).
[IMG]*snippity*[/IMG]
Pods; Don't look too flash in the picture but are as smooth as, and ready for vinyling.
[IMG]*snip*[/IMG]

Will do, now i just got to get rid of the gas system...

[R0BD0G]

im 15 i work at a panel beaters. i occasionally screw up but im careful around cars even when there trashed. have some faith

[Rodp]

Originally Posted by Kermit 73

im 15 i work at a panel beaters. i occasionally screw up but im careful around cars even when there trashed. have some faith

At least I have faith that you're honest, occasionally screw up isn't someone I want around my car tho! I don't want to be that occassionally.