For Jason Smith, owner of M&M Car Care Center Inc. in Merrillville, Indiana, the dismal economic climate has caused his business to go into high gear, with more car owners ditching new automobiles in favour of used vehicles. Smith comments that there's been a remarkable increase of people purchasing cars that are a number of years old due to the depreciation and money required by owning a new vehicle. He adds that people have now begun to realize that paying for repairs and maintenance work is a far cheaper, not to mention smarter, alternative to dealing with a car payment for the next 5 years or so.For prospective mechanics, this development opens up a vast number of employment opportunities. Most people are now catching on to this trend by attending a car mechanic school. Fortunately, it's not too late to jump on the bandwagon, and if you have the free time and extra resources, going car mechanic school is definitely an investment that will pay off over the long run.Smith himself used to work as an auto mechanic specializing in repairs. In 2007, he quite his stable job and opened his own shop. In the past 3 years alone, his business has grown by over 150%, allowing him to move from his old 1600-square-foot shop into his new 3000-square-foot facility in Merrillville.Indeed, it seems that the auto repair industry isn't showing any signs of decreased growth brought about by the economy. In fact, there's even a shortage of skilled auto mechanics in some parts of the country. If you're thinking of starting a new career in this secure industry, now's the perfect time to enroll in a car mechanic school and acquire all the skills you will need to find work.