[tsk1979]

Always wanted to work in automobile "electronics" or the brain. Its still not a forgotten dream, and still very feasible!

[Joz]

Viper, what you have laid is a ditto of what i dream to set up. Except that, i wanted it to be a one stop shop for any auto enthusiast (Cars & Bikes) - stocking everything from scale models, apparels, performance parts, tuning workshops and and the works. Oh yeah, add in the race track in the backyard which allows folks to test their machines/practice and rent karts and also possibly hold drags.

Wouldn't mind being the stuntsman for Ajmats Ronin II. Have written one article for an auto mag. Would love to do more of that too.

Dreams aside, i do work in the automotive line at the moment... i ain't got an engineering degree, so did my MBA and now do business research and consulting for companies in the automotive space. In fact we are looking at recruting more people and i keep telling my colleagues that this forum is the best bet to get people with a never ending drive. Was wondering if i should put this in market place. Guys with related experieicne (auto comp, auto industries) and an MBA to boot, do PM if you are keen.

Looking at working with the likes of MB and BMW some day and definitely working towards it at the moment.

[Dippy]

My dream was always to work in some field related to the automobile. Though my day job is that of a graphics designer, I fine immense satisfaction in my other job that is auto writing. There are no words to express the feeling I get when I work on auto motive write ups. Some of dreams have come true because my writing has allowed me to get behind the wheel of many an amazing car. One of my dreams is to drive a Ferrari and I know that day is not far off, my auto journalism will get me there soon. About my ultimate dream of owning my own F355 , well thats another story but hey dreams do come true at times dont they ?

[manson]

i have always had something similar to viper s plans in my mind, but after going through all the rubbish when i was looking for a superbike i ve been thinking of starting with these mean machines one day.

manson.

[Stratos]

I actually want to become an Automobile Designer, especially related to exterior car styling and aerodynamics. I decided to take engineering to gain complete knowledge in the technical section of automobiles and then I may try for designing. Just want to make good shapes and vehicles of all body styles including heavy vehicles.

[adya33]

I wish that everyones dream comes true one day
however
I don't want to work in automobile field.
I am passionate about cars but I don't want it to become my profession, meaning i don't want my passion to interfer with my profession
just my opinion

[sajo]

Used car salesman in the US (that way, I get to see different brands). Or an automotive columnist in India. I agree with v1p3r. I dream about cars and how best to describe them all day long. C seems so boring compared to cars.

GTO, will your dealership have a used car section ?

[ajmat]

Originally Posted by Conan

Was watching a program on lambougini. In that the test driver of the company said "I have the best job in the world". I wont mind being in his shoes :-).

Conan

And this is the attitude of a Ferrari test driver - what a pillock


http://news.ft.com/cms/s/43df64a6-52...0779e2340.html


When true happiness is spurning a Ferrari for a glass of cordial
By Sathnam Sanghera
Published: November 11 2005 02:00 | Last updated: November 11 2005 02:00

In an attempt to understand what it is that gives people job satisfaction, I have spent time over the past month with someone who I thought would have a great deal of it - Dario Benuzzi, the 59-year-old chief test driver at Ferrari - and someone I thought who wouldn't have very much at all - Isobel Hoare, a 55-year-old soft drinks tester for Ribena, the blackcurrant cordial manufactured by GlaxoSmithKline.


For obvious reasons, I was looking forward to meeting the former more than the latter. Like Cameron Diaz's masseur or Bill Gates' bank manager, chief test driver at Ferrari sounds like one of those occupations that is just too good to be true - a dream job if ever there was one.

Unfortunately, as soon as I arrived at the carmaker's headquarters in the northern Italian town of Maranello, after a terrifying three-hour drive along the Italian autostrada in a VW Polo, I realised disappointment could be on the cards. For some reason, I had expected the city that is home to the company that produces the most beautiful cars in the world to be, well . . . beautiful. But Maranello has the feel of a giant industrial estate.

And when Dario arrived, he looked surly and bored. When asked if he could take me for a drive he replied that he didn't have the time. I pretended not to be disappointed. He rolled his eyes when he discovered that I couldn't speak Italian and there followed a strange, strained interview in which I posed questions in English ("how many hours do you work?"), he replied in Italian at length, and the Ferrari PR proffered an inexplicably brief translation ("Dario say zis eees something that varies").

The disappointment continued back in London when I read a full translation of the interview. While he said that he loved his job, he didn't seem quite as happy as I thought he would be. Asked whether he had the best job in the world, he replied: "People say so." And he wasn't exactly ecstatic about his pay and conditions. "I get paid the same as an engineer," he revealed at one point, adding that he himself drove not a Ferrari but an Alfa Romeo. "Butthen money is never enough."

Conversely, my visit to meet Isobel at the Ribena factory in the Forest of Dean turned out to be a delight. Isobel seemed to adore every aspect of her job as one of a team of sensory testers, whose advice helps ensure that Ribena is manufactured with a consistent taste.

My morning at the factory began with a taste testing session. This involved being taken to a booth, being given a sample of squash and then being asked to describe it as fully as possible. After sniffing, slurping and thinking about the first sample for five minutes, Isobel shared her description with her colleagues.

"The sample is pale red, still, clear, bright, light reflective," she began. "There are a few bubbles on the edge of the cup which are gradually dispersing; when swilled no residue remains on the side of the cup and the sample appears to be of a similar thickness to water; it has a moderate impact aroma of confectionary blackcurrant which reminds me of red wine gums; there's also a hint of artificial sweetener; it has a moderate impact flavour - moderately acidic and sour, moderate blackcurrant; the texture is a similar thickness to water, slight to moderately drying-in-the-mouth; moderately astringent and acidic aftertaste, slight-to-moderately throat-catching and burning."

While Dario surprised me by using so many words to say so little, Isobel surprised me by using so many words to describe so little. My description for the sample read: "Looks like dentists' mouthwash, smells like bubblegum, texture of water." This poor attempt served only to demonstrate that I was among the 90 per cent of the population lacking the right skills to be a Ribena taster. But Isobel's enthusiasm was so infectious that I left the factory feeling that, given the choice, I would rather test Ribena for a living than Ferraris.

Indeed, the two meetings revealed something about the nature of job satisfaction that the experts do not seem to recognise. According to the happiness industry, job satisfaction is a fixed characteristic in certain jobs. You either have it or you don't,

and almost every week reports claim to identify who is among the former (recent reports have suggested hairdressers) and the latter (lawyers and architects, apparently).

A recent academic study went asfar as ranking the criteria thatmake people happy at work

- good pay, decent hours,

promotion prospects and so on.

But, as Dario and Isobel demonstrate, this is not how job satisfaction works at all. It is quite possible to have a dream job and be unhappy, and to be in a crappy job and be ecstatic. There is no science to job satisfaction: different people need different things at different times.

Doubtless there was an occasion when Dario, who joined Ferrari in 1971, was unequivocally delighted with his work. But what he wanted from his job when he was 40 may differ from what he wants as he approaches retirement.

Indeed, the only certainty about professional contentment is that we will feel differently about what we do at different times, depending on infinitely varying criteria such as our mood, how much we are paid, whether we like the person who sits next to us, and how far we are from a holiday, which in my case is not very far at all.

[F50]

A test-driver. Nothing comes close to drive a car.

[Mpower]

I'd like to have my own after market tuning shop like Saleen, Alpina, Lorinser etc and modify cars in all areas....engine, susp, body ext and interior.

[islero]

I am doing my 12th now and I can only ever see myself in an Automotive career.

I am going to pursue becoming an automobile journalist, a road tester. That is my goal.

[aadix]

always wanted to open up an honest and proper used car dealership with an proper workshop , whose repuation would be completely based on it's honesty.

which would slowly lead up to opening up of few new car dealerships in premium segment (bmw/audi) and mass market (toyota/honda). and a tuning/performance/accesories shop stacking mostly pete's stuff (that is if he wasnt tied up with the current market leader in hyd ;-) )


hopefully this dream should come true for me in five year's time and i am sure few team-bhpians would be beside me then!! .

[Samurai]

Ok, I'll be frank about this. Although I love cars, never really dreamed of automotive career. Probably because father never had a car, and I didn't get to drive one until 23. I got my first car at 24. My initial career dreams are irrelevant to this thread. However, I love what I do for living, got into software before there was any money in it, therefore no complaints there.

BTW, I have a friend who designs car designing software that is used by major companies like GM. However, he is not much into cars.

[speedsatya]

i had dreams of driving in the himalayan rally and the dakar....:(((((((((((...but sadly could not do anything ...thats why i let go that driver in me on teh nh48 ,nh17 and the nh63 )))))...when i school,had once thought about becoming a mumbai-mangalore bus driver so that i could drive daily on the then narrow nh4.

[Minardi]

I want to become an F1 driver. And I am only 39