Vehicle technicians
mechanics and electricians
Vehicle technicians, mechanics and electricians accept calls for help and repair and service the mechanical parts and electrical/electronic circuitry and components of cars, lorries, buses, motorcycles and other motor vehicles, and repair and service auto air-conditioning systems.
- Employees (UK)
- 98k
- Median annual pay
- £36,560
- Exposure score ?
- 0.4/10 Minimal 1.4/10 Minimal strict reading, with tools is 1.4/10 with-tools reading, strict is 0.4/10
- Wage exposure
- £143m £502m
Higher exposure than 23% of the 379 UK occupations we scored.
What this score means.
Most of this role's work is still hard for AI: physical presence, practised skill, judgement in context and direct care, the things that do not turn into text.
If you are in this role
Nothing here is under pressure today, but the frontier moves. Learn enough to direct AI at the paperwork around the job. People in hands-on roles who can do that become unusually useful inside their organisations.
Most of this role's work is still hard for AI: physical presence, practised skill, judgement in context and direct care, the things that do not turn into text.
If you are in this role
Nothing here is under pressure today, but the frontier moves. Learn enough to direct AI at the paperwork around the job. People in hands-on roles who can do that become unusually useful inside their organisations.
Where the work usually starts.
This role's strict reading is low because its top tasks are judgement, not drafting. The three highest-stakes tasks below are still usually where the work starts. Switch to With tools to see what AI plus the right context can take on.
-
Inspect vehicles for damage and record findings so that necessary repairs can be made.
-
Test drive vehicles and test components and systems, using equipment such as infrared engine analyzers, compression gauges, and computerized diagnostic devices.
-
Test and adjust repaired systems to meet manufacturers' performance specifications.
These are the most important tasks AI can already handle when paired with the right tools and context. The first wins usually come from building workflows around them. That is the difference between a model that could do the job and one that actually does it inside your business.
-
Inspect vehicles for damage and record findings so that necessary repairs can be made.
-
Conduct visual inspections of compressed natural gas fuel systems to identify cracks, gouges, abrasions, discoloration, broken fibers, loose brackets, damaged gaskets, or other problems.
-
Estimate costs of vehicle repair.
Every role has three or four places like these. Finding them takes an hour. Turning them into a workflow your team actually uses takes a few days.
Every task in the role.
Every O*NET task for this occupation, split by what AI can do unaided and what still needs a person. Importance is O*NET's 1 to 5 rating of how central each task is.
Tasks via O*NET "Automotive Service Technicians and Mechanics" (49-3023.00).
What AI can already do
1 of 30 tasks, unaided
Plan work procedures, using charts, technical manuals, and experience.
What still needs a person
29 of 30 tasks
Inspect vehicles for damage and record findings so that necessary repairs can be made.
Test drive vehicles and test components and systems, using equipment such as infrared engine analyzers, compression gauges, and computerized diagnostic devices.
Test and adjust repaired systems to meet manufacturers' performance specifications.
Repair, reline, replace, and adjust brakes.
Review work orders and discuss work with supervisors.
Conduct visual inspections of compressed natural gas fuel systems to identify cracks, gouges, abrasions, discoloration, broken fibers, loose brackets, damaged gaskets, or other problems.
Estimate costs of vehicle repair.
Confer with customers to obtain descriptions of vehicle problems and to discuss work to be performed and future repair requirements.
Align vehicles' front ends.
Align wheels, axles, frames, torsion bars, and steering mechanisms of automobiles, using special alignment equipment and wheel-balancing machines.
Tear down, repair, and rebuild faulty assemblies, such as power systems, steering systems, and linkages.
Perform routine and scheduled maintenance services, such as oil changes, lubrications, and tune-ups.
Follow checklists to ensure all important parts are examined, including belts, hoses, steering systems, spark plugs, brake and fuel systems, wheel bearings, and other potentially troublesome areas.
Maintain cleanliness of work area.
Change spark plugs, fuel filters, air filters, and batteries in hybrid electric vehicles.
Repair and service air conditioning, heating, engine cooling, and electrical systems.
Disassemble units and inspect parts for wear, using micrometers, calipers, and gauges.
Test electronic computer components in automobiles to ensure proper operation.
Rebuild parts, such as crankshafts and cylinder blocks.
Overhaul or replace carburetors, blowers, generators, distributors, starters, and pumps.
Repair or replace parts such as pistons, rods, gears, valves, and bearings.
Rewire ignition systems, lights, and instrument panels.
Troubleshoot fuel, ignition, and emissions control systems, using electronic testing equipment.
Diagnose and replace or repair engine management systems or related sensors for flexible fuel vehicles (FFVs) with ignition timing, fuel rate, alcohol concentration, or air-to-fuel ratio malfunctions.
Tune automobile engines to ensure proper and efficient functioning.
Repair, replace, or adjust defective fuel injectors, carburetor parts, and gasoline filters.
Install, adjust, or repair hydraulic or electromagnetic automatic lift mechanisms used to raise and lower automobile windows, seats, and tops.
Repair or rebuild transmissions.
Retrofit vehicle fuel systems with aftermarket products, such as vapor transfer devices, evaporation control devices, swirlers, lean burn devices, and friction reduction devices, to enhance combustion and fuel efficiency.
Tasks via O*NET "Automotive Service Technicians and Mechanics" (49-3023.00).
What AI can already do
4 of 30 tasks, with tools
Inspect vehicles for damage and record findings so that necessary repairs can be made.
Conduct visual inspections of compressed natural gas fuel systems to identify cracks, gouges, abrasions, discoloration, broken fibers, loose brackets, damaged gaskets, or other problems.
Estimate costs of vehicle repair.
Plan work procedures, using charts, technical manuals, and experience.
What still needs a person
26 of 30 tasks
Test drive vehicles and test components and systems, using equipment such as infrared engine analyzers, compression gauges, and computerized diagnostic devices.
Test and adjust repaired systems to meet manufacturers' performance specifications.
Repair, reline, replace, and adjust brakes.
Review work orders and discuss work with supervisors.
Confer with customers to obtain descriptions of vehicle problems and to discuss work to be performed and future repair requirements.
Align vehicles' front ends.
Align wheels, axles, frames, torsion bars, and steering mechanisms of automobiles, using special alignment equipment and wheel-balancing machines.
Tear down, repair, and rebuild faulty assemblies, such as power systems, steering systems, and linkages.
Perform routine and scheduled maintenance services, such as oil changes, lubrications, and tune-ups.
Follow checklists to ensure all important parts are examined, including belts, hoses, steering systems, spark plugs, brake and fuel systems, wheel bearings, and other potentially troublesome areas.
Maintain cleanliness of work area.
Change spark plugs, fuel filters, air filters, and batteries in hybrid electric vehicles.
Repair and service air conditioning, heating, engine cooling, and electrical systems.
Disassemble units and inspect parts for wear, using micrometers, calipers, and gauges.
Test electronic computer components in automobiles to ensure proper operation.
Rebuild parts, such as crankshafts and cylinder blocks.
Overhaul or replace carburetors, blowers, generators, distributors, starters, and pumps.
Repair or replace parts such as pistons, rods, gears, valves, and bearings.
Rewire ignition systems, lights, and instrument panels.
Troubleshoot fuel, ignition, and emissions control systems, using electronic testing equipment.
Diagnose and replace or repair engine management systems or related sensors for flexible fuel vehicles (FFVs) with ignition timing, fuel rate, alcohol concentration, or air-to-fuel ratio malfunctions.
Tune automobile engines to ensure proper and efficient functioning.
Repair, replace, or adjust defective fuel injectors, carburetor parts, and gasoline filters.
Install, adjust, or repair hydraulic or electromagnetic automatic lift mechanisms used to raise and lower automobile windows, seats, and tops.
Repair or rebuild transmissions.
Retrofit vehicle fuel systems with aftermarket products, such as vapor transfer devices, evaporation control devices, swirlers, lean burn devices, and friction reduction devices, to enhance combustion and fuel efficiency.
Stay on top of this.
An email when there is something worth reading: what is real in AI at work, what is noise, and what operators are doing about it.
Free. Unsubscribe any time.
Related occupations.
Other roles in Skilled trades occupations, and roles close by exposure.
What it means for your sector.
This role's score comes from Eloundou et al's 2023 task labels, weighted by O*NET importance within each O*NET-SOC code, then bridged to UK SOC 2020 through ISCO-08 (the ONS coding index) and US SOC 2010 (the BLS crosswalk). Employment and median pay come from ONS ASHE Table 14.7a, 2025 provisional, which covers employees only.
Back to the mapMethodologySources (PDF)Built 29 April 2026
Pictures
- "Census pantograph and 1930s keypunches" by U.S. Census Bureau employees, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
- "Shepard Barclay, St. Louis lawyer, in his office" by Missouri Historical Society via DPLA, no known copyright restrictions, via Wikimedia Commons
- "Accountant's Office LCCN2016824374" by National Photo Company Collection, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
- "Employment service in Oulu in the spring 1931" by Finnish Heritage Agency (Museovirasto), CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons