Provo High team wins Ford/AAA vehicle repair competition

Kim Raff | The Salt Lake Tribune
Provo High School student Jimmy Hicken works under the hood of a vehicle during the Ford/AAA Student Auto Skills competition on the Miller Campus of Salt Lake Community College in Sandy on May 2, 2013. Automotive technology students from twenty of Utah's high schools compete with each other in debugging cars in a timed competition. The winner will travel to Ford's Headquarters in Dearborn, MI for the national finals.

Kim Raff | The Salt Lake Tribune
Davis High School student Zachary Delbo works under the hood of a vehicle during the Ford/AAA Student Auto Skills competition on the Miller Campus of Salt Lake Community College in Sandy on May 2, 2013. Automotive technology students from 20 of Utah's high schools compete with each other in debugging cars in a timed competition. The winner will travel to Ford's Headquarters in Dearborn, Mich., for the national finals.

Kim Raff | The Salt Lake Tribune
Timpview High School students (left) Letalanoama Storey and (right) Jacob Lamb work to debug a car during the Ford/AAA Student Auto Skills competition on the Miller Campus of Salt Lake Community College in Sandy on May 2, 2013. Automotive technology students from twenty of Utah's high schools compete with each other in debugging cars in a timed competition. The winner will travel to Ford's Headquarters in Dearborn, MI for the national finals.

Kim Raff | The Salt Lake Tribune
Hillcrest High School student David Blanski works in the engine of a vehicle during the Ford/AAA Student Auto Skills competition on the Miller Campus of Salt Lake Community College in Sandy on May 2, 2013. Automotive technology students from twenty of Utah's high schools compete with each other in debugging cars in a timed competition. The winner will travel to Ford's Headquarters in Dearborn, MI for the national finals.

Kim Raff | The Salt Lake Tribune
Woods Cross High School student Steven Allcott works on a computer to try and debug a car during the Ford/AAA Student Auto Skills competition on the Miller Campus of Salt Lake Community College in Sandy on May 2, 2013. Automotive technology students from twenty of Utah's high schools compete with each other in debugging cars in a timed competition. The winner will travel to Ford's Headquarters in Dearborn, MI for the national finals.

Kim Raff | The Salt Lake Tribune
College of Eastern Utah Carbon High School student Phillip Raich looks in a vehicle manual while trying to debug a car during the Ford/AAA Student Auto Skills competition on the Miller Campus of Salt Lake Community College in Sandy on May 2, 2013. Automotive technology students from twenty of Utah's high schools compete with each other in debugging cars in a timed competition. The winner will travel to Ford's Headquarters in Dearborn, MI for the national finals.

Kim Raff | The Salt Lake Tribune
College of Eastern Utah Carbon High School students (left) Devin Huff and Phillip Raich work on debugging a car during the Ford/AAA Student Auto Skills competition on the Miller Campus of Salt Lake Community College in Sandy on May 2, 2013. Automotive technology students from twenty of Utah's high schools compete with each other in debugging cars in a timed competition. The winner will travel to Ford's Headquarters in Dearborn, MI for the national finals.

Kim Raff | The Salt Lake Tribune
Woods Cross student Taylor Wise's feet stick out of the cab of a car as he works to find the source of a bug during the Ford/AAA Student Auto Skills competition on the Miller Campus of Salt Lake Community College in Sandy on May 2, 2013. Automotive technology students from twenty of Utah's high schools compete with each other in debugging cars in a timed competition. The winner will travel to Ford's Headquarters in Dearborn, MI for the national finals.

Kim Raff | The Salt Lake Tribune
Provo High School students (left) Parker Thomas and Jimmy Hicken are reflected in a side view mirror as they work under the hood of a vehicle during the Ford/AAA Student Auto Skills competition on the Miller Campus of Salt Lake Community College in Sandy on May 2, 2013. Automotive technology students from twenty of Utah's high schools compete with each other in debugging cars in a timed competition. The winner will travel to Ford's Headquarters in Dearborn, MI for the national finals.

Kim Raff | The Salt Lake Tribune
(middle) Woods Cross High School student Steven Allcott works under the hood of a car during the Ford/AAA Student Auto Skills competition on the Miller Campus of Salt Lake Community College in Sandy on May 2, 2013. Automotive technology students from twenty of Utah's high schools compete with each other in debugging cars in a timed competition. The winner will travel to Ford's Headquarters in Dearborn, MI for the national finals.

Kim Raff | The Salt Lake Tribune
Riverton High School students (left) Hayden Haslam and Caden Knight try to solve a bug in a vehicle during the Ford/AAA Student Auto Skills competition on the Miller Campus of Salt Lake Community College in Sandy on May 2, 2013. Automotive technology students from twenty of Utah's high schools compete with each other in debugging cars in a timed competition. The winner will travel to Ford's Headquarters in Dearborn, MI for the national finals.

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Kim Raff | The Salt Lake Tribune Provo High School student Jimmy Hicken works under the hood of a vehicle during the Ford/AAA Student Auto Skills competition on the Miller Campus of Salt Lake Community College in Sandy on May 2, 2013. Automotive technology students from twenty of Utah's high schools compete with each other in debugging cars in a timed competition. The winner will travel to Ford's Headquarters in Dearborn, MI for the national finals. Kim Raff | The Salt Lake Tribune Davis High School student Zachary Delbo works under the hood of a vehicle during the Ford/AAA Student Auto Skills competition on the Miller Campus of Salt Lake Community College in Sandy on May 2, 2013. Automotive technology students from 20 of Utah's high schools compete with each other in debugging cars in a timed competition. The winner will travel to Ford's Headquarters in Dearborn, Mich., for the national finals. Kim Raff | The Salt Lake Tribune Timpview High School students (left) Letalanoama Storey and (right) Jacob Lamb work to debug a car during the Ford/AAA Student Auto Skills competition on the Miller Campus of Salt Lake Community College in Sandy on May 2, 2013. Automotive technology students from twenty of Utah's high schools compete with each other in debugging cars in a timed competition. The winner will travel to Ford's Headquarters in Dearborn, MI for the national finals. Kim Raff | The Salt Lake Tribune Hillcrest High School student David Blanski works in the engine of a vehicle during the Ford/AAA Student Auto Skills competition on the Miller Campus of Salt Lake Community College in Sandy on May 2, 2013. Automotive technology students from twenty of Utah's high schools compete with each other in debugging cars in a timed competition. The winner will travel to Ford's Headquarters in Dearborn, MI for the national finals. Kim Raff | The Salt Lake Tribune Woods Cross High School student Steven Allcott works on a computer to try and debug a car during the Ford/AAA Student Auto Skills competition on the Miller Campus of Salt Lake Community College in Sandy on May 2, 2013. Automotive technology students from twenty of Utah's high schools compete with each other in debugging cars in a timed competition. The winner will travel to Ford's Headquarters in Dearborn, MI for the national finals. Kim Raff | The Salt Lake Tribune College of Eastern Utah Carbon High School student Phillip Raich looks in a vehicle manual while trying to debug a car during the Ford/AAA Student Auto Skills competition on the Miller Campus of Salt Lake Community College in Sandy on May 2, 2013. Automotive technology students from twenty of Utah's high schools compete with each other in debugging cars in a timed competition. The winner will travel to Ford's Headquarters in Dearborn, MI for the national finals. Kim Raff | The Salt Lake Tribune College of Eastern Utah Carbon High School students (left) Devin Huff and Phillip Raich work on debugging a car during the Ford/AAA Student Auto Skills competition on the Miller Campus of Salt Lake Community College in Sandy on May 2, 2013. Automotive technology students from twenty of Utah's high schools compete with each other in debugging cars in a timed competition. The winner will travel to Ford's Headquarters in Dearborn, MI for the national finals. Kim Raff | The Salt Lake Tribune Woods Cross student Taylor Wise's feet stick out of the cab of a car as he works to find the source of a bug during the Ford/AAA Student Auto Skills competition on the Miller Campus of Salt Lake Community College in Sandy on May 2, 2013. Automotive technology students from twenty of Utah's high schools compete with each other in debugging cars in a timed competition. The winner will travel to Ford's Headquarters in Dearborn, MI for the national finals. Kim Raff | The Salt Lake Tribune Provo High School students (left) Parker Thomas and Jimmy Hicken are reflected in a side view mirror as they work under the hood of a vehicle during the Ford/AAA Student Auto Skills competition on the Miller Campus of Salt Lake Community College in Sandy on May 2, 2013. Automotive technology students from twenty of Utah's high schools compete with each other in debugging cars in a timed competition. The winner will travel to Ford's Headquarters in Dearborn, MI for the national finals. Kim Raff | The Salt Lake Tribune (middle) Woods Cross High School student Steven Allcott works under the hood of a car during the Ford/AAA Student Auto Skills competition on the Miller Campus of Salt Lake Community College in Sandy on May 2, 2013. Automotive technology students from twenty of Utah's high schools compete with each other in debugging cars in a timed competition. The winner will travel to Ford's Headquarters in Dearborn, MI for the national finals. Kim Raff | The Salt Lake Tribune Riverton High School students (left) Hayden Haslam and Caden Knight try to solve a bug in a vehicle during the Ford/AAA Student Auto Skills competition on the Miller Campus of Salt Lake Community College in Sandy on May 2, 2013. Automotive technology students from twenty of Utah's high schools compete with each other in debugging cars in a timed competition. The winner will travel to Ford's Headquarters in Dearborn, MI for the national finals.

The Salt Lake Tribune

· May 3, 2013 5:59 pm

This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2013, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

Two Provo High School students on Thursday won an automobile diagnosis and repair contest, and will move on to a national competition in Michigan in June.

Parker Thomas and Jimmy Hicken defeated two-person student teams from nine other Utah high schools to take first place in the annual Ford/AAA Auto Skills Contest, which offers millions of dollars in scholarships nationwide. Thomas and Hicken, and instructor Seth Mcvea, will travel to Ford Motor Co.'s headquarters in Dearborn, Mich., to compete against students from 49 other states June 9-11.

To qualify for the Utah competition, 397 students took a written examination earlier this year. Thomas and Hicken placed in the top 20.

The Utah competition was held at Salt Lake Community College's Miller campus in Sandy. Teams diagnosed and repaired deliberately bugged identical Ford vehicles. Thomas and Hicken's time and accuracy in diagnosing and repairing their vehicle, as well as their written test scores, put them in first place.

Other schools that fielded teams were Clearfield High School, Davis High School, Timpview High School, College of Eastern Utah Carbon High, Fremont High School, Northridge High School, Riverton High School, and Woods Cross High School.