NY International Auto Show Hosts Technology Students in Competition

24 February 1999

            The Best of the Best Will Compete for Over $2 Million

    NEW YORK, Feb. 24 -- The Greater New York Automobile Dealers
Association (GNYADA) is gearing up for its Seventh Annual GNYADA National
Automotive Technology Competition to be held at this year's New York
International Auto Show on March 31, 1999.  The contest, which pits the
nation's best high school Vo-Tech students against one another, awards
$2 million in prizes -- including full scholarships to several post-secondary
technical colleges.
    The rules of the contest are simple.  Each team of high school seniors is
assigned a new automobile that is rigged to malfunction in a number of ways.
Each student must then diagnose the problem and correct it within the allotted
time.  Each "bug" correctly diagnosed and repaired is worth a number of points
depending on the level of difficulty.  In addition, the student's knowledge is
tested through a challenging written test specifically prepared by ASE.
    The truth is, most of us are completely helpless when it comes to even the
most routine automobile maintenance.  Cars have gotten so complicated that the
art of fixing them is no longer passed down from generation to generation in
backyard garages, rather it is a high-tech field of study where a new breed of
student is being trained at a college level to get us back on the road.
    These students of modern automobile repair are the participants in the
seventh annual GNYADA National Automotive Technology Competition.  The
competition is sponsored by many of the biggest names in the automotive
industry and endorsed by the U.S. Department of Education and the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency.
    Most importantly, these students are serious about education, working
hands-on with something they love.  The competition is both visual and
emotional as teams of high schoolers use advanced diagnostic tools, computers,
and their wits in a high-energy race to be the best.
    To discuss putting together a segment on the competition or to speak with
Dr. Steve Shapiro, GNYADA Director of Education, please contact John Roderick
at 212-677-3070.