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Vocational Students Gear Up to Showcase Skills at AAPEX 2025 Competition
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Highlights
- AAPEX 2025 launches student competition on Chevy 350 engine assembly.
- Selected teams receive free AAPEX tickets, hotel, and $1,000 travel aid.
- Competition features professional tools and prizes from Milwaukee Tool.
- Teams include two students and one instructor from vocational programs.
- Registration requires video submission; up to eight teams will compete.
- Competition aims to address growing auto technician labor shortages.
The TechForce Foundation expects the gap to grow to more than 400,000 unfilled technician jobs by 2026. This shortage could lead to fewer repair options, longer waits, and higher costs as shops compete to attract skilled workers.
To compete, each team must consist of three people: two students and an instructor. The students must be recent high school graduates enrolled in vocational or technical auto repair programs.
Registration requires a short video submission, with up to eight teams selected by a judging panel based on their entries.
Several notable AAPEX partners are helping support the event, including AutoZone, Dorman Products, Euro Clinic, Milwaukee Tool, Motor Age Training, and Ratchet & Wrench magazine.
These partnerships demonstrate broad industry support and ongoing investment in attracting young talent to the automotive aftermarket. The student engine assembly challenge builds on a long-running AAPEX program aimed at connecting emerging technicians with real-world experience.
As automotive repair demands grow, supporting new talent is increasingly critical.
Industry leaders hope programs like this will help ease labor shortages and bring fresh energy to the field.
AAPEX 2025 offers a platform for students to showcase their technical skills and take meaningful steps toward rewarding automotive careers.
John Martinez delivers real-time NASCAR Cup Series and Truck Series news, from live race updates to pit-lane strategy analysis. A graduate of the University of Northwestern Ohio’s Motorsports Technology program, he breaks down rule changes, driver tactics, and championship points with crystal-clear reporting.
