Click Here for our New Web Site
Find a Hybrid Repair Shop (updated list)
December 2011
A letter from the CEO,
Happy Holidays,
It is the time of year to take stock in our priorities while we prepare for Christmas or just enjoy the Holiday Season. Deb and I just returned from Canada and have finished our stand up classes in the Canary Islands, Las Vegas, the West Coast of the USA and our usual combination of work and fun. Winter is here and the company Prius II is waiting in SF for my return. The VOLT just got out of the body shop after a deer committed suicide on the right rear door and it did not burst into flames! 2012 was a busy year for us. As the world sees the benefits of changing our fleet from oil burning to wind powered mobility everyone is winning. We will still need liquid fuel for decades to come but why burn it when many trips can be made in a Volt or a Leaf? Hybrids cars will also be here as long as we use any liquid that costs over 3 dollars a gallon as the hybrid system saves you money. If your job requires you to know how hybrids or EVs work ACDC can help in that area.
New ACDC Web site .. soft launch
This is what a student had to say recently;
Last Saturday (May 14, 2011) in Huntington Beach, California: I got clarity. I got a comprehensive overview of Hybrid and EV vehicles. The book which came with the class will keep me busy reading and learning for some time to come.
And I enjoyed spending time with Craig. I felt like the kid waiting to visit with Santa Claus: when he's finally sitting on Santa's lap -- he had so much to ask - he didn't know where to start! That won't happen to me when I attend Up your Voltage!
Greg Czopek
Take some time to look over our web site.
Craig, CEO
The company VOLT is one great car. Craig is now teaching VOLT classes.
Up Your Voltage! XXIV is going on right now. There are so many more hybrids on the roads ACDC is here to make sure the industry is ready to service them! Thanks to all those dedicated students who made it to class and who will join us in the future. 2011 will be a big year for hybrids and EV.
Marines are buying hybrids. I drove our 2004 Prius to the Marine base at Cherry Point N. C. and conducted a hands-on class for our military motor pool. They now have Malibu and Fusion hybrids along with 3 Eaton hybrid trucks and busses. This base is the air support for the U S Marines and I had a most interesting time learning more about how we run our military bases and they learned more about hybrid systems. After that I drove to Florida to the NACAT 2010 event at Seminole Community College. ACDC was once again a Bronze Sponsor, taught a few classes and was able to make the time to take my first GM VOLT class with Alan Nagle. Two weeks later I ordered one. The list price is $41,000 and the dealership in Connecticut I was dealing with plans on a $5,000 mark up, but we found one for only $43,300 and now we can save up for a Leaf and later a Mitsubishi i.
We now have a full catalogue of Online Hybrid Training!
Online Hybrid 101! Live Internet classes are here. ACDC has a series set up for automotive technicians that want to start hybrid training but are having a hard time getting out of the shop to take classes. There's no replacement for good hands on training but this will get you a long way towards understanding the hybrid systems on the roads today! Check out our Courses Page for more details! You can still sign up and watch the classes you missed on line. Video of the classes are included online with a workbook.
ACDC has added more hybrid component classes as well as manufacturer specific training, Many Fleets may have only one type, such as only Ford Escape HEV so ACDC is ready for whatever your hybrid education needs are.
The hybrid part of ACDC is now well over ten years old with our first class taught in March of 2000. In 10 years ACDC has brought me all over the world teaching classes.
We are now accepting enrollments for Up Your Voltage! in North Carolina in Feb 2012
Call Deb at 508 400 4656 to sign up. Don't wait and miss out.
Hybrids are popping up everywhere and ACDC is now helping other trainers learn from us so that everyone can get on board. There are 2,000,000 is the USA. 3.8 million world wide .Over 390,000 hybrids in Europe as of October 2011.
Did you know that the same parts that make a hybrid work are found on EV cars as well. C02 regulations are going to happen, 35.5 mpg average is now law by 2016 so most OEMs are seeing the wisdom of hybrid systems. ACDC is here to help you get into the Hybrid and EV repair business.
Our thanks to all those of you that support ACDC. ACDC also provides OBDII, Electrical, Honda / Acura classes, AMI management classes and more
Below are some notes received from ACDC students:
"Craig
I wanted to let you know that Up Your Voltage was top-notch training. I attend a lot of training and I can honestly say that your class is the best I have ever attended. The thing that impressed me the most was the organization of it all. Everything I needed was at that hotel. I didn’t have to go anywhere for meals or travel anywhere for the training sessions. I didn’t even spend any money while I was there! Craig delivered invaluable, intense, hands-on training which was a welcome relief from some of the watered-down training that is so popular in our industry today. So I thank you for a great learning experience. Thank you for all the hard work in keeping us all content with food, shelter and everyday needs. Thank you for the dedication you both have to not only the automotive industry but to the people you take in at your classes. Sincerely, Dave Hauck"
Hal Lewis September 2, 2010 at 7:23am
"Craig. We now service over 30 Hybrids on a regular basis thanks to YOU giving us the courage to do it, we haven't encountered major problems with any BUT normal maintenance still pays off. You should check out the Solar LED Innovations company I am VP of Sales/product development. I will retire out of the Auto repair biz within the next 2 years, other interests are taking over."
Floris van Acquoy (A 19 year old student!) September 24, 2010
Craig,
First of all I would like to thank you for this evening.
I would love to have more information about the hybrid reading (Class) we had last evening.
I tried to talk to you after the reading but there were so many people, that I thought it would be better to email you.
First I didn't really care about the hybrid cars, but after the reading it totally changed. And I want to learn much more about it, and I loved to be in touch with you.
This reading and all kind of teaching is what I want to do after I graduate for my technical specialist. And I really want to teach people more about hybrids and new kind of technology.
I hope to hear from you
Greetings,
Floris van Acquoy
Craig's note: Floris speaks two languages (Dutch and English). He is in a 4 year graduate program in the Netherlands (What we mistakenly call Holland). The Dutch educational system for Automotive Technology is one America could use. At 19 he is fully trained in scopes and electronics. He is the rule, not the exception in his class.
Don’t forget to remember how fortunate you are if you have a home and a family. Check out FAAT CATS. 560,000 US foster kids are not with their families because it is not safe to be there. November is National Adoption month and ACDC is sponsored a motorcycle ride. Maybe you can join us this year. "The Last Ride Home"
Hope to see you in class soon,
12/22/11