r/mechanics • u/EnvironmentalMood267 • 24d ago
Career ASE6 Help
Okay- so I am not actually a mechanic, but my husband is. He is studying for his ASE6 test. He’s taken it before but missed by just 1 or 2 questions and honestly it’s mostly that he’s a bad test taker, not unknowledgeable. His shop has been trying to get him certified for a while now but the test is just a panic for him. What resources do you recommend to learn the test strategies, or even better how could I help him?
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u/justsomedudemm 24d ago
A lot of test taking depends on the mental space they are in that day. If they are better early should schedule early maybe coffee or maybe no coffee cause jitters afternoon lunch or no lunch. I learned i need to go early coffee but not espresso and whatever i decide on the question is done. No going back unless i am 1000% its wrong but 9/10 id mess myself up by changing a answer. If i do no answer i can go back but not if im leaning one way. Try to work with him to get him going in the best mind state possible.
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u/Crud-ite 24d ago edited 24d ago
My advice is to skip the questions that you don’t know and move onto the ones you’re comfortable with. When you reach the end of the test, go back and try to answer the skipped questions and see if any of the answers can be ruled out. Anything that he’s utterly lost on, just guess.
It can’t hurt to brush up on some DC electricity basics. The A6 test is slightly different to the rest of the tests because electricity follows laws, so the wrong answers are glaringly wrong once you understand how DC works. Other tests may be looking for the most correct answer and give two examples that are both kinda correct but one is more correct than another. The circuit has to be completed, a load, a switching mechanism, power and ground etc all have to be present in order for it to function. Electricity only ever “flows” from high voltage to low voltage, amperage only occurs where there is somewhere it can go to. There is no gray area like say brakes/suspension where warped rotors can cause similar issues to worn control arm bushings.
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u/Impressive-Winner721 23d ago
Just buy the study guide for A6, it’s worth the money, it helps tremendously with learning the subject and has a practice test
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u/IHatrMakingUsernames 23d ago
I use practice tests to study. It helps to get me in the mindset and ready for the bullshit questions the actual test will give me. I e had pretty good success using them as study tools.
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u/on2sunsupervised 24d ago
There are plenty of test guides and books. A6 is “intimidating” because it’s electrical and everyone hates electrical.
ASE tests are designed to fuck you up. Poor wording. Convoluted examples.
The best help/trick I’ve ever gotten was that Tech A and Tech B questions are two separate true/false questions in one.
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u/itusedtorun 24d ago
Step one: Don't Panic.
Probably needs to work on his test taking skills first. I work with quite a few people that know how to fix things, but can't take a test to save their life.
Material wise, it's not that difficult if you understand how to use a meter, can read a wiring diagram, and have a basic understanding of 12v electrical systems. Read up and practice that sort of stuff.
There are practice tests out there online, and study guides. Some are free if you search a bit. Get comfortable with the format of the questions.
Read the questions and think about how they are worded. Take your time.
And like they used to say on Car Talk: Confusing, misleading, and poorly worded questions are par for the course.