MHCC Hosts Statewide Auto Repair Contest

Vale High School students Logan Boyle and Cody Collins took first place in the 2013 Ford/AAA Student Auto Skills State Hands-on Competition at Mt. Hood Community College, May 10.

Students from high schools across the state took part in the challenging car repair competition. Jacob Thornes and Lance Vigil of Benson High School took second place. Justin Smith and Justin Johnson of Springfield High School were third.

The two-person student teams were presented with a challenging task – a race to identify and fix many different problems on a single car. They raced the clock to correctly identify and fix intentionally installed "bugs" on identical vehicles. Then after they had diagnosed and repaired every bug they could find, the students drove the cars across the finish line, to be inspected for accuracy.

Jerry Lyons, automotive instructor at Mt. Hood Community College managed the statewide contest, his sixth time in the six years the contest has been held. The winners will receive scholarships and other prizes, and will represent Oregon at the national finals at Ford Headquarters in Dearborn, Mich.