REGISTRATION OF MOTOR MECHANICS

Dominion, Volume 13, Issue 179, 24 April 1920, Page 7

REGISTRATION OF MOTOR MECHANICS

Sir—As one who has had some saddening experience- of motor mechanics' work I writo to suggest that the time is ripe for the registration of motor mechanics. : Under- the present "system"— save the mark!—any Thomas, Diehard, or Henry is allowed to tackle motor repair work. That hundreds of good cars have.been ruined cannot be questioned. Anyone with a pair of overalls on scema , fully ■ competent to "fix" your car for you! If your car is• "improved" as a result ofi its overhaul, .then you can count: yourself very lucky ■ indeed. My experience teaches-me that a motorist should, very- carefully test his car be* tore taking it out of - ttio repair shop. .For-every-nut'and .bolt tightened probtiblv half a dozen .have been slackened. Of course, th« bulk of drivers of cms ,'bnve no: real .technicarknowledge of the internal mechanism of their care, so the Raid owners are absolutely at the mercy of the mechanics. You know, and we all know, that it is no.uncommon thing for.-si motorist to .call at a garage to . have, some slight adjustment made, only to find later on that through rank care; lessness and inefficiency on the part of the ."mechanic" some vital injury has •been done to his'car, necessitating a visit to another mechanic! 'If I want a man to fix my gas supply at the house, or a man to mend my drains, or a man to stop my teeth, such men must pos-1 sess certificates proving they know some- , thing about their jobs,- but when it comes to fixing a car costing anything from. i£3oo to • i£lsoo, no certificate is necessary! . Garage'owners ought to be made responsible for the work of their employees.. Men who havo previously been employed at other trades are employed in garages, as though previous : experience was not at all necessary. . The evil is most pronounced .in country garages, where, in some cases, unskilled labour is employed. - These men, are-al-lowed-to "experiment" on your car, and you are charged as for flrst-class work — [ am, etc- ■-.■»■■■,„, ■... BUICK. April 20, ma: