Hella Supports Student Auto Technician Skills Competition

PLYMOUTH, Mich., Feb. 27, 2006 -- Hella's support of the national Student Auto Skills Competition will continue in 2006, according to Steve Hubble, president of Hella Electronics Corporation.

Since 1991, Hella has donated more than 10,000 automotive components worth more than $15,000 to the competition, which is co-sponsored by Ford Motor Company and the Automobile Association of America (AAA). Nearly 6,000 junior and senior high school students from 1,100 schools across the United States participate in the annual program.

"Vehicles have become so complex these days that you have to be a specialist to understand what's going on under the hood," Hubble notes. "As the older generation of auto mechanics retires, we need to demonstrate to students how important and financially rewarding careers in the automotive service industry can be."

There are three levels to the Auto Skills Competition: students must pass a written state qualifying examination; the two highest-scoring students from each school become a team and continue on to the state finals. Each state's championship team then advances to the national finals.

Schools may enter teams of two to eight juniors and seniors per full-time automotive instructor. The two students with the highest exam scores from each school move on to a "hands-on" state final held during April and May.

In the state finals, new Ford Motor Company vehicles are uniformly "bugged" with identical malfunctions to diagnose and repair. Repairs must be made with the highest quality workmanship in the quickest time. Each two- person state championship team is provided with an expense-paid trip to the national finals June 25-27 in Washington D.C.

At the national competition, contestants again take a written exam and participate in a "hands-on" competition. The team with the fewest quality-of- workmanship demerits and the best combined total score -- repair time plus written examination -- wins the competition.

Students, instructors and schools are eligible to win savings bonds, scholarships, trophies, jackets, certificates, shop manuals, trips, tools and automotive equipment. More than 4,000 contestants have gone on to work at Ford and Lincoln Mercury dealerships during the past decade.

Hella develops and manufactures components and systems for lighting and electronics for the global automotive industry. In addition, Hella joint- venture companies produce complete vehicle modules, air-conditioning systems and vehicle-electrical systems. Hella is one of the world's largest companies selling automotive parts and accessories, with its own sales companies and partners in more than 100 countries. Annual consolidated sales for the Hella Group total $3.7 billion.

Hella is one of the 100 largest industrial companies in Germany. A total of 24,000 people are employed in 65 production facilities, production subsidiaries and joint venture companies. More than 2,900 Hella engineers and technicians work in research and development across the Group. Customers include all leading automakers and system manufacturers, as well as the automotive aftermarket.

Additional information is available at http://www.hella.com/ .