The top automotive students from high schools around the Valley will test their skills and compete for prizes at the second annual East Valley Automotive Skills Challenge on Saturday, April 1 at the East Valley Institute of Technology, 1601 W. Main St., Mesa. Admission is free.

The event also will include a Pinewood Derby, where students race model cars that they have built, a remote control car race track and the Ultimate Impressions car show. Auto manufacturers, repair shops and car dealerships from across the Valley will be at the challenge with exhibits to encourage more students to train for careers in the automotive industry.

Students start competing in skill test stations at 9:30 a.m. The Pinewood Derby will start between 10 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. The car show is from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

EVIT provides career training in 40 different occupational programs, including Automotive Technologies, for East Valley high school students and Phoenix-area adults at two central campuses in Mesa and a branch campus at Apache Junction High School.

The Automotive Skills Challenge allows students from EVIT and area high schools to see how their skills stack up against other students who are training for careers in the automotive industry. Competition exercises include: Job Interview, Brakes, Electrical, Electrical Circuits, Steering and Suspension/Alignment, Electronic Service Information, HVAC, Engine Measurement/Camshaft, Engine Performance, Precision Measurement, Driveline Angles and Diagnosis, Engine Component Assembly, and Service Writer.

For information about the EVIT Automotive Technologies program, visit: www.evit.com/auto.

More information about EVIT: www.evit.com.