Friday, April 27, 2012

"Confessions of a mechanic"


That's the title of an article in the Brisbane Times of Australia.  It contains a number of weird and funny episodes in an auto mechanic's experience.  Here's one to whet your appetite.

After having an accident on the way to work, a mechanic had to call in a favor with his colleagues.

A witness had seen the incident and reported it to police, citing the vehicle's registration number.

The rego was traced to the mechanic's business and within an hour the police had shown up with a few questions.

In the meantime the mechanic and his mates had ripped the engine out of the car (a task that can take as little as 15 minutes for that particular type of vehicle if you know what you're doing), put a cover over the car and lifted it up on the hoist.

An apprentice was wheeling the engine on a trolley out the back of the workshop just as two police officers showed up.

"Do you own the vehicle with the registration number ... ?" one of them asked the boss.

"Yes," he replied.

"Who was driving it this morning?" the first officer asked.

"No one, we're rebuilding the engine right now. I'll show you the car on the hoist," he said, bringing the officers into the workshop and lifting the cover off the rear numberplate to show the police.

The officers looked at one another, then at their paperwork, double-checking that the vehicle had the correct digits.

"The witness must have got the wrong registration number," the second cop said. "Sorry to have wasted your time."

The mechanic and his workmates put the engine back in the car that afternoon.

There's more at the link.  A tip o' the hat to reader Snoggeramus for sending it to me.



Peter