Piston Scholar Connor Hecei Lends His Talent to Resto Mods, Custom Creations, and More

The Rising Apprentice

“The dealership was passed down to my grandfather, and over time it was no longer his dealership,” said Hecei. “I began working at Midtown Motors Ford around the age of 16. Other family members also work there.”

His first visit to the dealership was when he was about 5 years old. “It would be as simple as mom and dad going to get an oil change,” Hecei said. “Of course, we knew most of the people there, so I’d walk through and be like, “Oh, wow, look at those huge trucks and cars [being worked on]. I don’t know. It just kind of sparked something in my head. And, now, here I am doing that same thing.”

Hecei works at Midtown Motors full-time in the summer and again when he goes home for winter break. “Right now, I’m just a maintenance tech working as an apprentice under the master techs with certain engine jobs, transmission jobs, and any diagnosing that needs to be done.

“I can’t work the big warranty jobs like engine replacements because of my certifications, since I’m getting them through Penn College and not Ford. I’d like to improve [my skills] but at the moment, I can’t do anything about it until I graduate.”

Back to the Workforce with More Tools in his Arsenal

When he does graduate, most likely in 2027, “I’m probably just going to get right in the workforce so I can use the degree and experience I earned to show what I know and be able to build a backbone for myself. I’d love to be able to open a performance shop or a restoration shop just so I can make cool things for people and make dreams come true,” he said.

Studying automotive technology management generally prepares one to work for car dealerships. “When the school holds job fairs or career fairs with my degree and group in general they try to promote the dealer side and working with the manufacturers and the service side,” explained Hecei, “But I want to take it a different route and use the automotive management degree to show that I have the automotive skills to complete what I want to do and to be able to run my own business without any flaws and be self-sufficient and not worry about having to hire someone to do all the business for me.”

Figuring out the Impossible

Restoring Resto Mods is the direction he’d like to take. “I’ve seen many projects like outfitting older-body Mustangs from the ‘60s, ‘70s, ‘80s with brand-new Coyote drivetrains in them and finding a way to make the newer technology found in vehicles today work in the old bodies of yesterday,” he said.

“That’s just something cool that’s always sparked an interest in me. I like trying to figure out the impossible instead of copying an old idea.”

“With dreams anything is possible,” he added. “Why not have fun with your career and make money too? I just want to do what I love and make it worthwhile.”

Building Career Confidence with the Piston Scholarship

Receiving the Piston Scholarship two years in a row was a major step forward for Hecei. “Honestly, it’s a big milestone for me,” he said. “I never thought I’d be recognized for an award like this that I received for doing what I want to do and just having fun with my trade. I don’t come from a high-income family, so all the money that I can get I put right towards schooling and bettering my future. I’m kind of speechless. But it’s definitely heartwarming and I’m very appreciative of it all. I feel more confident in my career.”

“Piston is willing to help anyone no matter where you come from in a family financial background. As long as you have a dream to pursue and you put your mind towards it and you put all your effort towards it, I believe that Piston will help you.”

Finding Strength In Life’s Challenges

Dreams aside, challenges are expected. “My biggest challenge is not car restoration,” Hecei said. “I’m actually blind in my right eye [from birth] so that makes things a little more difficult in my day-to-day life. But I feel like I’ve done well with what’s been handed to me. I wrestled [and] shot shotguns for sport in high school, obviously I worked on cars, and I did some detailing just as a hobby. I don’t like calling it a disability, but that disability makes me feel more confident in myself, makes it feel less like a disability and I can do whatever I please.”

His parents, Chris (a welder/truck driver) and Charlette (not Charlotte) (a “jack of all trades”), are very supportive. So, what advice would Hecei give parents of other students with similar aspirations to his?

“Don’t hold them back,” he emphasized. “If they have a dream, let them chase it. I still live by this quote from high school: ‘If you have a Plan B, you won’t be able to chase your dreams. You’re always going to want to fall back on that Plan B.”

As for what the collector car industry should know about his generation? “It isn’t just one thing that we’re all interested in. The collector car industry is such a broad term that can range from either something simple as restoring a classic car or making a four-door hatchback one of the fastest cars around the Nurburgring. It’s more of a broad spectrum than I think it used to be.”

Custom Cars and a Future of Possibilities

He drives a 2010 Cadillac CTS right now, with no plans to work on his “daily driver” other than providing regular maintenance. He has “customized” a 2017 Subaru WRX STI and participated in the school-to-work co-op program at the dealership. He also participated in Skills USA, a national competition for high school students in the skilled trades. He competed in the Automotive Maintenance and Light Repair category, and placed first in the district competition and third in the state competition.

Hecei’s future might include moving out of small-town Warren to the Southwest U.S., preferably Arizona, where he would open up a performance/Resto Mod restoration shop. “Just a custom shop to make the unthinkable. I guess that’s the biggest way I can say it in the smallest [amount of] words,” he smiled.