Vehicle technicians, mechanics and electricians accept calls for help and repair and service the mechanical parts and electrical/electronic circuitry and components of cars, lorries, buses, motorcycles and other motor vehicles, and repair and service auto air-conditioning systems
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Take a closer look at our Automotive courses
What can I do with a qualification in Automotive?
Daily tasks:
- Organises and establishes control systems to monitor the performance and safety of electrical assemblies and systems.
- Ensures that manufacture, operation and maintenance comply with design specifications and contractual arrangements.
- Determines and specifies manufacturing methods of electrical systems.
- Supervises, controls and monitors the operation of electrical generation, transmission and distribution systems.
Daily tasks:
- Tests, diagnoses faults and undertakes repair of electronic equipment.
- Organises and establishes control systems to monitor performance and evaluate designs.
- Determines and specifies appropriate production and/or installation methods and quality and safety standards.
- Undertakes research and advises on all aspects of telecommunications equipment, radar, telemetry and remote control systems, data processing equipment, microwaves and other electronic equipment.
Daily tasks:
- Repairs and services air conditioning, heating and engine-cooling systems.
- Installs additional electrical amenities such as radio/CD players, aerials.
- Checks condition of electrical/electronic systems and carries out servicing tasks.
- Diagnoses faults in electrical/electronic circuitry, removes faulty components and fits replacements.
- Carries out routine maintenance checks on oil and air filters, brakes and other vehicle parts/systems.
- Reassembles, tests, adjusts and tunes the appropriate parts, systems or entire engine.
- Removes, dismantles, repairs and replaces defective parts and prepares new parts using appropriate tools.
- Visually checks, test drives or uses test equipment to diagnose engine and mechanical faults.
Daily tasks:
- Positions, secures and repairs external fittings including windows, doors, door handles, catches and roof attachments.
- Installs and repairs interior fittings including seats, seatbelts and fascia in cars, sinks and special features in caravans and mobile shops.
- Hammers out dents in bodywork, fills in small depressions or corroded areas in solder, plastic or other filler compound and replaces body panels using hand and power tools.
- Repairs damage to chassis and engine mountings using hydraulic rams, jacks and jigs.
- Selects, cuts, shapes and assembles materials to form parts of vehicle underframe, framework and body.
- Diagnoses job requirements or ascertains work specifications from drawings or instructions.
Daily tasks:
- Visits and advises clients on the use and servicing of electrical and electronic systems and equipment.
- Diagnoses and detects faults and implements procedures to maintain efficient operation of systems and equipment.
- Plans installation methods, checks completed installation for safety and controls or undertakes the initial running of the new electrical or electronic equipment or system.
- Sets up equipment, undertakes tests, takes readings, performs calculations and records and interprets data.
- Plans and prepares work and test schedules based on specifications and drawings.
Daily tasks:
- Liaises with professional staff in carrying out care plans etc.
- Monitors service users.
- Undertakes light cleaning and domestic duties including meal preparation as required.
- Helps with daily activities such as letter writing, paying bills, collecting benefits.
- Provides interest and activities to stimulate and engage the service user.
- Generally assists with service users.
- Serves meals to service users at table or in bed, and assists with feeding if required.
- Assists and enables service users to dress, undress, wash, use the toilet and bathe.
Daily tasks:
- Orders new supplies, arranges storage and updates stock records.
- Organises delivery of parts and handles payment.
- Obtains parts from store or orders from suppliers.
- Receives orders for parts by phone, email or in person and checks availability on stock record.
- Updates stock record, orders new vehicles from manufacturer, buys in used cars.
- Carries out pre-delivery inspection and formal hand-over of vehicle to customer.
- Negotiates sale price including any ‘trade-in’ and extra accessories, works out finance arrangements and completes sales paperwork.
- Discusses customer.
Automotive at Newcastle College
Meet Our Tutors
Ashley Deane
Curriculum Leader - Automotive"I’ve made an amazing career in this industry and want to help others do the same. I love the satisfaction of seeing a student progress, turning into an employable professional. Growth, technological advances and change are in abundance in this sector and we are at the edge of some huge fundamental differences in personal transport that will create a new era of technical experts. If that’s not exciting, I don’t know what is!"
Colin Greathead
Programme Leader - Automotive"The projection of technology and the rate at which it changes in the Automotive Industry makes this subject so exciting. I have worked in Industry and Education helping apprentices, trainee’s and students develop their skills and knowledge. Automotive has been part of my life longer than I can remember!"
Kevin Illingworth
Course Leader - Automotive"I have lots of years’ experience teaching and working in the Automotive industry, working for brands like Nissan. My job gives me the chance to teach the things I am most passionate about. Teaching Automotive is interesting, rewarding and lots of fun."
Tony Neild
Lecturer - Automotive"Automotive is an ever-changing sector that has grown faster than most other things of our time. I want to share my knowledge so I can help build a new generation of skilled, professional and diligent Technicians."