Ladies And Gentlemen, Start Your Careers!

“SN OY "Qa Cy oH OEE O45 REBag Ea Af 5 Se. "he Osen 4s oan ae Pr at > — v7 _ 46% CO “NX 'S Fe on Oe Veg 4 2 Ladies And Gentlemen Start Your Careers! Automotive Technicians Wanted (NAPSA)—It can be a chal- the word about these great career opportunities.” erships across the country are scrambling to find qualified automotive technicians for their own “pit crews’—even with salaries of $30000 to $70000 or more depending on the market and the two-year programs earn while lenge to land a prime spot on a race car pit crew. Yet vehicle deal- Students enrolled in GM ASEP they learn rotating their time between classes and interning at GM dealerships and other GM service centers. There are 66 GM ASEPparticipating schools in 38 technician’s level of training. U.S. states 15 in Canada and one The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates that the auto industry will need 35000 new technicians every year through 2010. Lucrative But Overlooked Careers in the People’s Republic of China. Successful students graduate with an associate’s degree and either are ready for or have passed their National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence (ASE) certification test. More than 2000 stu- dents are currently enrolled in the With that in mind an unusual contest is getting into gear with the purpose of increasing awareness about this lucrative and rewarding yet often-overlooked career and support training opportunities for future techni- cians. It’s called the No. 29 Goodwrench Expertise Challenge. And it is a challenge. “Historically being an automotive technician has been depicted as a dirty deadend kind of job” said Peter Lord executive director GM Service Operations. “That old stereotype could not be further from the truth. Today’s cars and trucks are very sophisticated—the computer technology in them alone for example is nearly 1000 times more powerful than what took the Apollo mission to the moon.” “Dealerships need trained qualified technicians because they know that satisfaction with vehicle service and repair work is closely tied to how customers view their vehicles and the dealership.” The Challenge benefits auto- motive technician training like this: If driver Kevin Harvick’s No. 29 car wins two out of 12 selected NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series Today’s trained automotive technicians earn competitive wages and they’re in high demand. races beginning May 28 with the Coca-Cola 600 GM Goodwrench will set up a $200000 scholarship fund to encourage Automotive Youth Educational Systems (AYES) high school students to continue their automotive technical education by attending GM Automotive Service Educational Program (ASEP)colleges. AYES is a nonprofit business and education partnership that creates automotive technology career opportunities for promising young men and women at automotive dealerships. It was founded in 1995 by former GM Chairman Jack Smith as a way to address the growing needfor technicians. Spreading The Word “There are thousands of NASCAR fans—and others—who are ideal candidates for a career program and there are more than 14000 graduates. If Harvick and the team meet the Expertise Challenge by winning two of the 12 select races GM Goodwrench will award 29 Grand Prizes which consist of an all-new 2007 Chevy Avalanche a $1000 GM vehicle maintenance certificate and a trunk full of Reese’s products. Program Rules Available If only one race is won during the promotion two lucky winners will be awarded an all-new 2007 Chevy Avalanche a $1000 GM vehicle maintenance certificate and a trunk full of Reese’s prod- ucts. They will also donate $25000 to the GM Goodwrench Scholarship Fund. If no races are won during the promotion the promotion will still give away an all-new 2007 Chevy Avalanche a $1000 GM vehicle maintenance certificate and a trunkfull of Reese’s products to one lucky winner and provide a $25000 donation to the GM Good- as an automotive technician” said wrench Scholarship fund. and engaging way to help spread www.goodwrench.com/expert. Larry Cummings CEO of AYES. “The Expertise Challenge is a fun Further program rules and award details are available at