VOCATIONAL STUDENTS REBUILD WRECKED CAR

A 1993 Chevrolet Corsica repaired by auto collision students at the Cape Girardeau Area Vocational School will be resold, teaching students lessons on the marketplace as well as auto body skills.

The car will be showcased at West Park Mall April 29-30 and May 1. Bids are being accepted until 3 p.m. on May 5.

Auto collision instructor Ron Baker said: "In the past, most of what we have done has been rust out jobs. That didn't provide adequate training for a career in auto body."

Commercial auto body shops spend most of their time restoring newer cars through insurance companies, he said.

So this year, Baker purchased the 1993 vehicle, which had been in a front-end collision, to give his students more realistic experience.

"We still do cars with rust out," Baker said. "But with the newer car we give our students better training in all areas."

Purchasing a wrecked car, repairing it and then reselling it is a new process for the auto body program.

Several years ago, Baker said, the class worked on outside cars. But some customers were unhappy with the time it took for students to complete the work.

For the past couple years, students have worked on their own vehicles or cars owned by school district faculty and staff.

"When students went to work, they would tell me it's a different world. They just didn't do too many rust-out jobs," Baker said.

So this year they decided to work with a newer car.

"We think it went real well," Baker said. "We may try to do two cars next year, depending on the size of the class.

"The students are real proud of it," Baker said. "And they should be. They've done a good job."

The white Corsica has 11,874 miles, retains the balance of its 36,000 mile/three-year factory warranty, has cruise control, AM/FM stereo, tilt steering, air conditioning and a 3.1 liter V6 engine. It will be sold by bid, and additional information on the car can be obtained by calling the vocational school at 334-0449.

"We hope to make a little profit," Baker said. "The money will be put back into the program to purchase tools and supplies."

Student Chad Abernathy said when he first surveyed the car, "It took a while to figure out what parts were what."

"But it was just the outside shell that was messed up. We replaced the hood, fenders, bumper, headlights," Abernathy explained.

Students even refinished a hubcap which had been scuffed before the accident occurred. "We wanted it to be right," said Baker.

Abernathy, a junior, said he hopes to land a job doing auto body repair. "I've worked on old cars too," he said. "We redid our family station wagon."

The student said auto body repair offers a challenge. "Sometimes you get into a predicament, and you have got to find your way out of it," he said. "It's kind of like putting a puzzle together."

Baker said the course is conducted similar to an actual body shop. Students even have time cards to keep track of the amount of time spent on particular projects.

"That way when they get into a job situation, nothing is really a shock to them," Baker said.