The program, in its first year, is intended to help Autobahn meet a need for technicians while providing a pipeline to a lucrative career for the community college\u2019s students. If Wiltshire does well during her internship \u2014 and her attitude has already impressed the Land Rover team, a supervisor said \u2014 the Mansfield High School graduate will have a job as a full-time technician waiting for her when the two years are up.<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/rice_autobahn_02.jpg\")
Shay Wiltshire, 24, works with Zach Williams to troubleshoot a problem on Nov. 6, 2025, at the Land Rover service center in Fort Worth. (McKinnon Rice | Fort Worth Report)<\/p>\n
Wiltshire\u2019s introduction to automotive work came from a troublesome 2005 Chevy Impala.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Once, the hood flew up while she was driving down the highway. Another time, the power steering pump needed to be replaced.<\/p>\n
\u201cEvery single problem you could have on a car, that car had,\u201d she said. \u201cAfter that, I was like, you know what? I\u2019m going to start doing it myself. And then when I started doing it, I was like, I actually love this. I could do this for the rest of my life.\u201d<\/p>\n
She began taking courses at TCC\u2019s South Campus in January and was offered the Autobahn-funded scholarship and internship this fall along with nine other students.<\/p>\n
Although Wiltshire has worked on cars before, prior experience is not necessary for someone to participate in the program, said Jason Baisden, service director for Land Rover Fort Worth.\u00a0<\/p>\n
What is required is accountability, a good work ethic and a willingness to learn.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe biggest and best thing they could do is just be a sponge and absorb everything,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Rice_autobahn_03.jpg\")
Shay Wiltshire and her mentor, technician Zach Williams, peer into a car\u2019s engine on Nov. 6, 2025, at the Land Rover service center in Fort Worth. (McKinnon Rice | Fort Worth Report)<\/p>\n
Thinking of an auto repair shop might conjure up mental images of mechanics doing greasy, dirty work in a hot garage \u2014 but those are the ways of the past, Baisden said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThese guys are probably 60% computer engineers to 40% mechanical,\u201d he said. \u201cWhen you go in our shops, they are clean. They are climate-controlled.\u201d<\/p>\n
The field offers a way to make a good living without much college, Baisden said. A technician hired after an internship starts out earning $24 to $30 per hour, based on their performance, and the wage grows as skills do \u2014 highly skilled technicians can make as much as $250,000 to $300,000 per year, he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The auto industry has a high demand for technicians with more than 65,000 openings for such jobs across the country, Baisden said, adding that Autobahn Fort Worth will need at least 20 new technicians next year.<\/p>\n
This demand is why Autobahn works to communicate the reality of the work and the pay to young prospective technicians \u2014 and their parents \u2014 before they graduate high school, encouraging them to attend TCC.<\/p>\n
For its part, TCC fills its automotive classes to capacity, said Tony Edwards, an automotive instructor at the South Campus who served on the scholarship\u2019s selection committee. TCC offers three automotive associate degrees<\/a> and seven certificates stackable toward those degrees.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have waiting lists every semester. People trying to get into classes,\u201d he said, adding that demand has grown since he first began working at the school 12 years ago.<\/p>\n Job openings and interests are not the only aspects of the field that are growing \u2014 so is the number of women in the male-dominated careers, said Angela Adams, parts director at Land Rover Fort Worth.<\/p>\n She began working in the industry in 1987 and said she has seen more women take jobs in the automotive field in the last 10 to 15 years.<\/p>\n \u201cSometimes, you felt like you had to work twice as hard just to get half the recognition, and you had to prove yourself,\u201d she said. \u201cBut it\u2019s changed a lot, and it\u2019s a breath of fresh air, let me tell you.\u201d<\/p>\n Looking to the future, Edwards is hopeful that the program will be successful in training skilled workers for Autobahn.<\/p>\n As for Wiltshire, she still has two years to go. In the meantime, she is excited about spending more time doing something she loves.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m just looking forward to actually being able to work on cars all day, being able to learn all the knowledge that entails in it, just to be able to really get my feet wet and start doing it,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n McKinnon Rice is the higher education reporter for the Fort Worth Report. Contact her at mckinnon.rice@fortworthreport.org<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n Autobahn is a financial support of the Fort Worth Report. The Fort Worth Report also partners with Open Campus on higher education coverage. At the Fort Worth Report, news decisions are made independently of our board members and financial supporters. Read more about our editorial independence policy here<\/a>.<\/p>\n \n\tRelated\n<\/p>\n Fort Worth Report is certified by the Journalism Trust Initiative<\/a> for adhering to standards for ethical journalism.<\/p>\n Republish This Story<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/rice_autobahn_04.jpg\")
Shay Wiltshire measures the thickness of a car\u2019s brake lining on Nov. 6, 2025, at the Land Rover service center in Fort Worth. (McKinnon Rice | Fort Worth Report)<\/p>\n
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