Congratulations to our Nissan SCOPE & Infiniti KEI Masters
Andrew Hoy
Nissan SCOPE Master
Puyallup Nissan
Puyallup, WA
Andrew Hoy seems to have inherited his interest in cars from his father. "Working as a mechanic is how my dad put himself through school," Hoy says. "He would try to get me to come out into the garage, even though I didn't really want to do it. It wasn't until I hit high school that I actually started to get more into it. Then I was trying to drag him out there to do more."
Although Andrew earned an automotive degree from WyoTech, he believes that the best education he received came from his fellow technicians. "At the time I got hired, there were a lot of people who tried to take me under their wing. I probably learned a lot more from them in my first few months here than I did in the entire year I spent at WyoTech. WyoTech taught me a lot of theory and basic general knowledge. So it did help, but I learn more with hands-on training. If I can read a book and then actually do it, I'll understand it more."
In his off-hours, Hoy used to work as part of the film crew for the local football team, a side job he maintained for 10 years. "I thought it was pretty cool. I didn't get to travel anywhere, but I saw a lot of cool stuff. I was one of the grips that ran the cable for the camera, so I was on the field right in the middle of all the fun."
David Cook
Nissan SCOPE Master
Premier Nissan, Inc.
Paris, TN
Born in the world famous Motor City (Detroit, MI), David Cook has always been surrounded by the automotive industry. Although his father worked as a Chrysler engineer, David has chosen to make Nissan his home since 1981. "I've worked for several different companies, and Nissan has been better than all the others I've worked for." He specifies that his favorite aspect of his work is diagnostics. "It's the only really exciting thing that you've got. Everything else is usually just general maintenance or replacements. Diagnosis is the only chance you get to really think about things."
A graduate of the Tennessee College of Applied Technology in McKenzie, TN, David believes: "you can't beat two years in a trade school. Trade school is good for basics. They give you plenty of hands-on training. New technicians also need to focus on learning about computers." Although Cook recognizes the importance of computers in today's auto industry, he also makes good use of the more traditional tools offered to him. "I've watched all of the SIR videos, but for going back for reference, I usually save my workbooks from the classroom. Those are really handy if you have a problem you need to go back to and look up. Because there's no way you can remember everything in school. You're going to forget most of it."
When he is not working, Cook likes to spend his time skeet shooting and trap shooting. "We've got a nice gun club here just north of Paris. We go out once a week and shoot up about a case of shells."
Gary Crouch
Infiniti KEI Master
Infiniti of Kansas City
Kansas City, MO
Gary Crouch's love of automobiles began at a young age. "I've been around cars all my life. I started working on cars with my older brother when I was about 12 or 13 years old. He had a '57 Chevy, so I got to work on all kinds of things. That includes carburetors and everything. Lots of technicians don't even know what a carburetor looks like now." Gary's interest in automobiles extends to his hobbies outside of work as well. "I go to races, usually Sprint Cup. Where I grew up, we used to have Sprint Car Racing at the fairgrounds almost every year."
In regards to the recent move toward HEV and electric vehicles, Crouch is already pondering what the next evolution of automotives will be. "It's a stepping stone, but you still need to use something to make that electricity. If you have to plug it in, then you still have to have a grid, and I don't believe the electrical grid of the United States is going to be able to handle all electric cars. I think we'll eventually need to go beyond electric. I think it's maybe going to be hydrogen."
Shawn Woods
Nissan SCOPE Master
Walters Nissan
Pikeville, KY
Shawn Woods comes from a long line of automotive technicians. "Everyone in my family worked on cars. My father, my grandfather . . . So, I just naturally fell into it." Even now, Shawn's favorite part of his job is simply "fixing a car and seeing it go down the road." Woods' hobbies also "revolve around cars." He owns several classic cars, including a couple of 1972 Oldsmobile Cutlasses. Shawn says he is also hoping to find a 1963 Ford Galaxy 500 in the future.
Although Woods has only been working for Nissan for two years, he worked for a number of years as a technician for GM Cadillac. In comparing the two, Shawn has been particularly impressed with Nissan's technical training both in the classroom and on Virtual Academy. "I really like it a lot. I do tend to like the classroom training better since I don't like to read." A graduate of Mayo Technical College (now part of Big Sandy Community and Technical College), Shawn firmly believes that prospective technicians should "go to school first." Due to the increasing complexity of the job, he believes "it's crazy not to."
Tim Rode
Nissan SCOPE Master
Rosen Nissan, Inc.
Milwaukee, WI
Growing up with a father who was also an automotive technician, Tim Rode was introduced to mechanics at an early age. Tim ended up enrolling in Milwaukee Area Technical College right out of high school where he earned his certificate in general automotive repair. "Other than that, I've gotten all of my training in the dealership." Rode recommends that new technicians follow his lead and get some hands-on experience before enrolling in a college or trade school. "Get certain basic mechanical skills. Once you already have a general knowledge of it, you'll probably understand the schooling a bit more."
Outside of work, Tim pursues various automotive hobbies. "I race dirt bikes, and I'm into building cars. Whatever people bring to me: older cars, low-riders… Whatever kind of car I'm working on at the time instantly becomes my favorite. I actually have a BMW 5-series I'm working on right now. Fun stuff."
Aaron Christensen
Infiniti KEI Master
Infiniti of North Shore
Glendale, WI
Originally a computer science major, Aaron Christensen made the brave decision to drop out of college in order to turn his hobby of fixing cars into a career. "I was so into cars that I decided I was going to go to WyoTech out in Wyoming to learn how to fix them, make them better, faster and just have fun with them." Now Aaron describes Nissan as the brand he fell in love with, and indeed his first car out of high school was a 1995 Nissan 240SX. "I proceeded to own a couple of them over the years. Those were kind of my babies. I had fun toying with them, getting them hopped up a little and taking them to the track. But they were very well-built cars to begin with."
Unsurprisingly for a former computer science major, Christensen's favorite part of his job is "staying up-to-date with the new technology that comes out. I'm kind of an electrical guy. There is plenty of new technology to play with and new stuff to learn how to fix." In his off-hours, Aaron also finds time to run his own shop, specializing in high-performance vehicles. "Even though I didn't get my car to the racetrack, I've helped a lot of people get their cars there. I have some customers where if they want track support, I'll go to the racetrack and kind of pit for them. I set the car up for them, make sure it's running right, and then they take them and go and have their fun. And then, if they break it, I fix it."
Andrey Lats
Infiniti KEI Master
Infiniti/Tacoma at Fife
Fife, WA
Andrey Lats did not grow up around cars, but he first started working on bicycles when he was younger than 10 years old. Over time he slowly worked his way up to much larger vehicles. "Basically, the first car I ever got was when I was 17. I really liked it and that's how it started." Andrey ended up going to college to become an automotive technician, and now he really enjoys working with the team at Infiniti of Tacoma at Fife. "We have a really good team here. We work together really well."
Along with working on his own project cars at home, Andrey often uses his weekends to maintain his side job, driving his own limousine. "It's a 35 feet long Hummer H2. I do have to maintain it quite a bit. It's just a thing I've tried. You get to meet new people and get to know more people."
While working at Infiniti, Lats has found the Virtual Academy training videos to be a helpful supplement to the classroom training. "The videos help a lot when we get something challenging. We can re-watch the videos and refresh ourselves on it. I think of the online training as a prerequisite to the classroom training. Actually sometimes when I go to training, I try to brush up and watch as many videos related to whatever training class I'm going to, so I know as much as I can before I get there. But it's better to get handson training in the classroom. It's very important to actually touch the car."
James Pero
Nissan SCOPE Master
AutoNation Nissan Brandon
Tampa, FL
James Pero was first inspired to pursue a career in automotives when an unskilled mechanic messed up his very first car. He says: "That's when I started working on them myself." Soon afterward, James was attending trade school while he was still in high school. Now Pero says that he enjoys working on electrical issues the best. "They're educating because you can stay up-todate on all the technology."
Although James used to work on automotive hobbies in his spare time, he now says he has outgrown them, and they quite simply have become too costly to maintain. Now he likes to spend time on the computer and has even taken some computer classes as well as classes in computer repair. Pero believes that one of the biggest things new technicians need to learn is how to make use of the service manual. "As far as training goes, you either have the aptitude or you don't. "
Jarid Yogi
Nissan SCOPE Master
Kamaaina Nissan
Hilo, HI
Jarid Yogi fell into an automotive career fairly naturally. "I pretty much grew up around it. My dad was into cars, so I just picked it up. I don't have very many other hobbies just working on my own cars and my friends' cars." But Jarid's favorite part of his job is diagnosis. "You get to think more. It's not the same thing over and over again. You actually get to apply the skills that you learn over in training."
Yogi received his automotive training at a local community college in Hawaii, and he recommends that new technicians also go to school before starting a career as a technician. "It's better to start out with something first. A base knowledge to work from so you have a better understanding of the vehicle you are repairing." He also warns that "electrical is something that everybody should get a handle on. Nowadays everything's electronic, so it's something you need to be really good at."
John Fink
Nissan SCOPE Master
Lake Manawa Nissan Inc.
Council Bluffs, IA
John Fink has been working on cars all of his life, but surprisingly Fink is one of only two people in his immediate family to enter the automotive field. The other is his younger brother, who works as a diesel mechanic. John has a degree in diesel mechanics from Iowa State Community College. He also earned a third grade engineer's license at ITT Tech in Omaha. John highly recommends that new technicians follow his lead by going to school to train. He says: "Cars are too complicated nowadays not to. You almost need to go to school to learn it."
When he is not working, Fink enjoys going camping and fishing. In the past, he used to race circle track cars, but he has stopped in recent years. After spending ten years working at Nissan, John still has no real complaints about the company's vehicles. "I'm pretty satisfied with the cars. If I were going to pick a favorite, I'd say a Juke probably. They've got some power and they're economical. They're kind of cute really. But I own a 2010 Sentra myself."
Kin Lun Leung
Nissan SCOPE Master
New City Nissan
Honolulu, HI
Born in Hong Kong, Kin Lun Leung is best known to his fellow technicians at New City Nissan as "Edwin." Although Edwin's father had worked as a technician in Hong Kong for over 30 years, he did not encourage his son to enter the field. "When I didn't do well in school, I figured I should try to be a mechanic like my dad, but he never recommended it to me. It's different being a mechanic in Hong Kong. Here in America, it's pretty good. My dad started to change his mind about it after I'd been here for 10 years."
Before getting hired by Nissan, Edwin first attended a community college in Honolulu for two and a half years. "I just learned the basics there, got my degree and then worked on my ASE stuff over here one by one. Since English is my second language, I had a little harder time with it, but I got it." In general, Leung likes doing diagnostics the most, but he finds diagnosing unknown noises to be the most difficult. "Noises can drive us a little crazy. Sometimes, if you can't find them, you've got to have the customer come in and drive it. Once we had a customer who was using both feet when driving and that was the real problem.
In working with LEAFs, Edwin wishes that he owned one in order to better understand and explain any unexpected noises to customers. "Then, I could understand how the LEAF normally works. If you don't drive it daily, you don't know what is normal. Sometimes the normal function of the vehicle creates a kind of noise which is normal.
Michael Tetro
Nissan SCOPE Master
Oak Ridge Nissan
Oak Ridge, TN
Although Michael Tetro always liked cars, it was not until he received his driver's license at the age of 16 that he started to learn to work on them. "That was when I really started working on cars. Sometimes it was because I had to keep them running." Now Tetro says that his favorite part of his job is "just working in the shop and diagnosing vehicle problems for the customers."
Even outside of work, Michael's hobbies revolve around automotives. "I have a 240SX with an updated engine, and I compete on drifting events with it. We actually just held a drifting event in Knoxville, TN." Concerning new technicians coming up, Tetro recommends "all new technicians go to school in order to have something to start with." He also believes that potential technicians should concentrate on learning about electrical issues. "The most difficult issues are electrical issues."
Patrick Simpson
Nissan SCOPE Master
Lou Fusz Motor Company
Saint Louis, MO
Patrick Simpson first began his career at Nissan working as a porter back in 1997. He eventually rose to automotive technician in 2000 and has now earned the distinction of becoming a Master Technician. A third-generation automotive technician, Patrick credits his grandfather with inspiring him to enter the field. "My grandfather kind of raised me, and he was the neighborhood repair guy. Everybody came to him, and I thought it was just kind of neat to be able to help people out like that." Simpson also says that he "loves working with his hands." His favorite part of being a technician "has always been figuring things out when a car comes in and being able to please that customer."
Always willing to volunteer time to help his community, Patrick has worked as a volunteer firefighter in his hometown for about 13 years. "Anything really to do with my community I try to do. I was also on the local fair board. I enjoy doing things like that." Although very much "a hands-on kind of guy," Simpson is the first to recognize the importance of getting classroom training in school as well. "You need on-the-job training and training at school. I think both worlds are equally important."
Robby Stull
Nissan SCOPE Master
Fitzgerald Nissan
Chambersburg, PA
Robby Stull first began his automotive education by enrolling in the Franklin County Career and Technology Center while he was still in high school. "It was a 3-year program for 10th, 11th and 12th grade. It was about 3 weeks of high school and 3 weeks of vocational-tech classes. Then my last year, I went to work in the field and that was basically my schooling." This early vocational training seems to have been well worth it. Stull recommends that new technicians focus on developing their knowledge of the new computerized technology found in modern cars. "That's my weak spot, Bluetooth® and things like that. It's hard to keep up with all the new technology."
Due to Robby's busy schedule as a Master Technician, he has not had much time for outside hobbies; however, he says he still plans on one day fixing up the 1965 Mercury Comet he has waiting for him in his garage. "The way I want to do it will take a lot of money and time, but I've got a new motor just sitting on the motor stand for it."
Steven Rivas
Infiniti KEI Master
Infiniti of Naperville
Naperville, IL
When Steven Rivas was younger, he never dreamed that he would one day become a master automotive technician. "As a matter of fact, I told my dad that I wanted to find a job where I didn't get my hands dirty. I wanted to get into computers, but look where I am now, so much for not getting my hands dirty." Steven actually kick-started his automotive career when he went through Nissan's apprenticeship program. "It was a program called the PROCAP Program, and I was actually in the first year that it came out. I stuck with it, and I even still talk with some of the guys that went through it with me.
When he is not working in the shop, Rivas is busy organizing his flag football league. "It's an adult flag football league, and I run it. I also referee. I deal with 63 teams in the Chicago area, and it's actually pretty cool. It takes up the majority of my time after work." In regards to new technicians coming up, Steven keeps his advice short and to the point: "Just pay attention. Listen with your ears, not your eyes, and remember you don't know it all. You've just got to pay attention."
TechTalk would also like to congratulate and recognize these Nissan Master Technicians
Luis Romero
Nissan SCOPE Master
Metro Nissan of Montclair
Montclair, CA
Michael Popovich
Nissan SCOPE Master
McDavid Nissan
Houston, TX
James Bain
Nissan SCOPE Master
Nissan of Gadsen, Inc.
Gadsden, AL
Peter Tagliere
Nissan SCOPE Master
640 Nissan
Knoxville, TN
Congratulations to our Nissan SCOPE & Infiniti KEI Senior Specialists
Scott Le
Nissan SCOPE Senior Specialist
Connell Nissan
Costa Mesa, CA
Chet Putman
Nissan SCOPE Senior Specialist
Crown Nissan
Birmingham, AL
Uriel Espinoza
Nissan SCOPE Senior Specialist
Bob Moore Nissan/Norman
Norman, OK
Travis Todd
Nissan SCOPE Senior Specialist
Tom Wood Nissan, Inc.
Indianapolis, IN
Mark Herman
Nissan SCOPE Senior Specialist
Harr Motors
Aberdeen, SD
Jim Czegan
Nissan SCOPE Senior Specialist
Cochran Nissan/South Hill
Pittsburgh, PA
Justin Damarin
Nissan SCOPE Senior Specialist
Santa Barbara Nissan, LLC
Goleta, CA
Adam Jermagian
Nissan SCOPE Senior Specialist
Santa Barbara Nissan, LLC
Goleta, CA
Cory Madrid
Nissan SCOPE Senior Specialist
Don Davis Nissan, Inc.
Arlington, TX
Lawrence Nickles
Nissan SCOPE Senior Specialist
Streater-Smith Nissan
Conroe, TX
Robert Sitton
Nissan SCOPE Senior Specialist
Texas Nissan of Grapevine
Grapevine, TX
Ken Berry
Nissan SCOPE Senior Specialist
Tonkin Nissan
Wilsonville, OR
Jerry Cazaux
Nissan SCOPE Senior Specialist
Mossy Nissan El Cajon
El Cajon, CA
Daniel Krall
Nissan SCOPE Senior Specialist
Bertera Nissan, Inc.
Auburn, MA
Andrew Maifield
Nissan SCOPE Senior Specialist
Power Nissan Tempe
Tempe, AZ
Doung Ly
Nissan SCOPE Senior Specialist
Autonation Nissan/Clearwater
Clearwater, FL
John Pham
Nissan SCOPE Senior Specialist
Nissan San Francisco
San Francisco, CA
Eric Reis
Nissan SCOPE Senior Specialist
Grubbs Nissan
Bedford, TX
Tom Sippel
Nissan SCOPE Senior Specialist
Nissan of Mckinney
Mckinney, TX
Paul Knapp
Nissan SCOPE Senior Specialist
Buckeye Nissan, Inc.
Hilliard, OH
David Owens
Nissan SCOPE Senior Specialist
Deland Nissan
Deland, FL
Carl Ogan
Infiniti KEI Senior Specialist
Infiniti of Kansas City
Merriam, KS
John Hamilton
Infiniti KEI Senior Specialist
Jackie Cooper Infiniti
Tulsa, OK
Jeff Loring
Infiniti KEI Senior Specialist
Infiniti of Omaha
Elkhorn, NE
Joshua Sandoval
Infiniti KEI Senior Specialist
Austin Infiniti, Inc.
Austin, TX
Hector Belloso
Infiniti KEI Senior Specialist
Austin Infiniti, Inc.
Austin, TX
Tyler Wright
Infiniti KEI Senior Specialist
Sewell Infiniti
Dallas, TX
Kevin Chevrier
Nissan SCOPE Senior Specialist
North Country Nissan, Inc.
Saint Albans, VT
Kenny Hung
Nissan SCOPE Senior Specialist
Nissan of Reno
Reno, NV
Duane Johnson
Nissan SCOPE Senior Specialist
Nissan of Clinton
Clinton, NC
Charlie Mcgrath
Nissan SCOPE Senior Specialist
Gettel Nissan of Sarasota
Sarasota, FL
Jamie Moses
Nissan SCOPE Senior Specialist
Nissan of Muskogee, LLC
Muskogee, OK
Matthew Osgood
Nissan SCOPE Senior Specialist
640 Nissan
Knoxville, TN
Kevin Brooks
Nissan SCOPE Senior Specialist
Coggin Nissan
Jacksonville, FL
Cori Hutchins
Nissan SCOPE Senior Specialist
Bob Moore Nissan/Norman
Norman, OK
Richard Parks
Nissan SCOPE Senior Specialist
Nissan of Bowie
Bowie, MD