Has the automotive industry change over the past 20+ years? I'm trying to do an annotated bibliography about being an auto technician and the qualifications. However, I found an online article that was published around October of 2004 and I have a feeling that it may not be accurate today.
In answer to your question "Has the auto industry changed", the answer is yes. The cars today are almost totally plastic and don't last half as long as the cars made in the 2000s.
Has it changed? Dramatically I'd say, absolutely.
The knowledge required to work on modern cars is much different than it used to be. I use my I.T. degree knowledge all the time as there are a ton of applications for it with the programming in modern vehicles. Not to mention the complexity. Think back to 2004 for a second: about the only car that had what we consider to be standard safety/tech features today (blind spot monitoring, cross traffic warning, etc.) was the S-Class Mercedes. Now you get that in Hondas, Toyotas, etc. Knowing how to work on those systems is paramount to success.
Ask yourself: what is my end goal with my career? You know you want to be a mechanic. So, do you want to stay a mechanic? Or do you want to specialize in something like fabrication, or interiors, or engines? Do you want to evolve to making your own designs, doing ground up builds? Not everybody wants the same thing, so you need to know where your road ends, so to speak. It will help you get through the rough parts and guide you towards the knowledge you need.
If you are referencing books from 2004, you are WAY out of date. Nowadays ASE Certification is, of course, recommended as it was then, but the criteria is completely different. You can take some ASE test courses for free online if you want to....Google can help you with that.
Every mechanic is different in what they want to do. I knew from the start my goal was to open my own shop one day. So, the first thing I did was get an entry level job in the industry (I.T. tech for the local GM dealer) while I went to school to get the formal education I felt I needed. This let me do two things: get in the classroom, and apply that knowledge at my day job. As an I.T. tech, I was using the GM MDI (multiple diagnostic interface) software daily and programming cars/troubleshooting issues constantly. This meant working alongside some very talented mechanics with 40+ years of hands on experience. And all the while, I was forming connections within GM that would allow me to advance to working directly for them as an engineer in the motor division. That led to more networking and extensive experience in building/designing engines with modern technology, while I also began working intently on car projects when I was home to try and improve even more....test some theories I had and see what worked and what didn't. I have been working on cars since before I could drive, but this experience helped me develop skills I otherwise would not have had.
Eventually I got the point where I had the know how and proper connections to go into business for myself.
That is all a HIGHLY watered down version of the path I took and though it didn't take long to type, it took decades to actually do. Point being, figure out your end goal and focus your most important asset, time, on gaining the knowledge and experience you need to get you there. Hope that makes sense.
20 years is a long time. I would say most industries have changed.
When it comes to career research, you want the most up to date information as possible. Foreseeing trends is incredibly important in today's changing world. What you want is job market data published within the last year or two. Government economic statistics can be a good source for this.
Well, I said in my question that I found an article published in 2004, and it talked about the qualifications to be an auto mechanic. There was one section where you should pass an ASE exam and it’s probably still true today. Additionally, you’ll need training at your secondary/high school and maybe even post secondary.
Sure. But I think that the direction the auto industry is heading, has shifted a lot since 2004.
First of all, many car companies disappeared in 2008. Some entered bankruptcy, some restructured and consolidated, and some changed ownership. ALL of them had to implement cost cutting measures.
We've seen more regulation of emissions and fuel economy.
More hybrid and electric cars, and alternative fuels.
Gas prices have gone up.
We saw car dealerships push more of some services, and take away others with sealed components.
Lockdowns have caused more global shortages and inflation of the new and used car market.
All these things shaped and pressured the automotive ecosystem and will continue to do so.