Shortage of skilled mechanics

All true. Really reinforces what Goebbels said about telling lies. "If you tell a lie big enough and keep repeating it, people will eventually come to believe it."
I know someone with a 575 that broke its gearbox and he had it sent to Classiche because they are the only ones who can fix it right. Makes me wonder who they subbed it out to. They are in many ways just an agent for subcontractors. And not always very good ones.

 

Sounds like the restorer who did my Corvette.

 

[/QUOTE]Quite the racket. There are a few(very few) situations where Classiche adds value but at outrageous cost.[/QUOTE]

It is a security blanket for those not immersed in Ferrari culture. In that sense it does have value.
It is also sadly become the ante paid for entree to many Ferrari functions not unlike paying protection to be sure your restaurant does not burn down.

 

We built slot cars and model airplanes. I used to hop up model airplane engines and make them make a lot more power. We broke stuff and then fixed and redesigned it. We built and broke coasters, graduated into go carts and mini bikes. Broke and fixed those too. Graduated into real cars and repeated the process all over again. We knew a lot and had a lot of good experience and knowledge before we ever had a job.

 

Wow…
He clearly didn’t claim to be a mechanic. He said he works on his cars.
Get over yourself

 

In my prior experience skilled labor is very hard to find, especially with the Italian breeds. There needs to be a deep passion for the cars and the work being performed. As mentioned by Bobileff, the hours spent to repair/maintain do not equate to the $ charged to owner. However, some owners contribute to the situation.

Boys: spend every penny to buy the Ferrari, without any reserve capital to maintain it.

Men: write open checks, knowing the investment is worth the value (financially, emotionally, mentally).

It made me realize:
Any one can buy a Ferrari, few can maintain one.

 

Such ridiculous things to say- let people buy however they want, whenever they want without your silly bracket ranking system and assigning names to them.

I’d say that boys differentiate between boys and men by whether they paid cash for a Ferrari or not. And men just say enjoy your life and do what makes you happy as long as you’re not hurting others.


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I guess the "timer" deal gives him (in his opinion) the right to lecture Ferrari owners that have the bad taste to work on...their Ferraris.

 

It's nuts and bolts, not a holy shrine that only the properly ordained can enter.


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Yes and I imagine a Toyota mechanic is under way more time pressure than a Ferrari mechanic. No one needs there Ferrari back in a hurry so they can to get to work tomorrow.

 

I totally agree! There's nothing special about maintaining a Ferrari since no one is re-engineering the cars or the parts. Its simply nuts and bolts to replace worn out parts for new ones. Yet, try explaining that to new labor. The perception is different due to the costs associated with the nuts/bolts/parts. Coupled with Owner's emotion attachment to the cars, makes servicing these vehicles challenging at times.

 

That is true in some cases, but there is a flow to things that must be maintained.

Second.. depending where you live, driving seasons vary. That means the owners want have have as much Starbucks posing time as possible. They need their parking lot meet-ups to discuss their Daytona seats for the umpteenth time that month..local show and shines become the dominant event in their lives. So yes the time pressure can be a major factor in exotic car service.

 

the skill shortage is real.
but the innate intelligence, paired with desire to be good at your job, are the culprit.
my ferrari doctor is constantly complaining and giving me examples of the numbnuts and irresponsible young guys he has to work with.
the dealer retired or fired most of the people who actually know how to fix something (as opposed to parts swappers), so he hired some of them - fortunately.
he tries to train young people but 90% of them dont care, have no work ethic, or do not have the intelligence to get past the simplest hurdles.
so everything takes longer.
however, he still gets a ridiculous number of ferraris - and lambos and mclarens - anything that is not oni warranty at those 3 dealers, usually comes to him too.

we live with it, and pay for it.... that is your obligation as a 'vintage' ferrari owner.

 

So…owning a Ferrari is a time management deal? You have to schedule maintenence/repairs so you can drink coffee and preen?
Who knew Ferrari owners were so shallow and egocentric?

 

Over and above time as a shop foreman at dealers I tried that many times. The younger generation simply cannot look at learning the trade as a long term issue. The feel they are due top level pay in six months. Unless they were watched full time, expensive mistakes were regularly made because step by step instructions were just ignored. I had one guy after 3 times being told to stop doing it his way and follow instructions his response was unless I proved my way was better he was doing it his way. I had people install brake pads backwards. Probably because every time I was out of sight they are on the phone. Phones were not even supposed to be in the shop but the only way to stop that is to frisk them every time they walk in. Unless you are standing there to stop them the mistakes on these cars will cost you far more than they can ever make up. Of all the people I hired I had one I would gladly have back but exotic cars were just not his interest. He wanted to build retro rods.

 

My wife was a school psychologist for 33 years in the Boston school system. She tested probably a 1000 or more grammar school and high school students. A not uncommon theme with high school students when asked about job aspirations, some were not willing to start at the bottom, but rather immediately assume the manager's position. They didn't want to start flipping burgers at Burger King, or running a cash register in a Walgreens. They wanted to manage the store, to be the boss, even though they had zero experience.

As an aside, one other disturbing trait was some kids who tested as having violent or anti-social tendencies often stated they wanted to be a police officer. My wife would tell me some of those kids would be the last person you would want to have that kind of authority. No telling how many eventually did become a polce officer.

 

And just like that I was a Ferrari mechanic!
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Her story:

https://www.hagerty.com/media/people/fixing-vintage-ferraris-is-30-year-old-victoria-brunos-dream-come-true/?utm_source=SFMC&utm_medium=email&utm_content=MED_UN_USA_EML_UN_BR_NeverStopDriving_Newsletter&hashed_email=8e43f6a5abf43ff70e0771781e4993de6c08fd1510eadb1414b4ce6b84c34e12&dtm_em=8e43f6a5abf43ff70e0771781e4993de6c08fd1510eadb1414b4ce6b84c34e12​

 

Started following her on the gram. Basically, we will have talent for the future in women and men like her, but it will get way more expensive!!


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It's a really crummy job. I do enjoy it..but it's horrible. The shortage will only continue. If Manufacturers continue to build cars that are ridiculous to service ie..alfa and Ferrari requiring engine removal and gearbox removal to fix a valve cover leak to the tune of 25k..techs don't want that work.

 

I did a couple weeks' worth of workshops at McPherson this past June; it was encouraging to hear some of the stories from the instructors and parents of students about the school and where some of the graduates end up - as upholsterers at Singer, working on vintage Astons at Kevin Kay, and Ms. Bruno at Patrick Ottis were just a few. As of now the school gets twice as many applicants for the auto resto program than they have room for, and I believe they require an in-person interview for every prospective student. Even some of the Summer Institute classes filled up within minutes after enrollment went live. They have a deep pool of relationships with folks in the restoration industry and most grads have jobs lined up before graduation...it's a niche industry for sure, but it's good to see there's a school out there doing something to fill that need, and there are people lined up to take advantage of it.

Got to see the student-restored Mercedes that went to Pebble, and that was a treat, from seeing the before pics to what it looks like now was pretty astounding, and all student work. If there was such a school when I was graduating high school (and I was aware of it), I would've jumped at the chance to go through the program there.

 

Maybe they can’t afford to almost work for free for 3 to 5 years. At least it is that way in the aviation business.