When Ty Smith was in high school, he experimented with working on cars in a program at Warrensville Heights High School. For his senior project, he was allowed to obtain a work-study anywhere he wanted. Being close to Tim Lally Chevrolet, he decided to ask the dealership if they would take him on. The dealership said yes, and Smith has been there ever since.
After graduating in 2016, Smith was hired full-time at Tim Lally. Not having a car, he rode his bike to work every day. That didn’t stop him from showing up on time and doing his job.
“I knew that I always wanted to be an auto technician, so I appreciated the fact that they gave me a chance,” Smith said. “I basically did whatever the job needed and learned as much as I could.”
Smith’s cheerful outlook and work ethic didn’t go unnoticed. His co-workers and management all knew they had something special on their hands when Smith asked the right questions and paid due diligence.
With experience gained, more opportunities came. When the dealership hired a new manager who wanted to expand the business to building police cars for purchase by local municipalities, no one wanted the assignment.
“No one wanted the job to build custom police cars, so I decided to take on the challenge of learning something new. I had to start from nothing to learn how to build police cars and after a while, I had it down,” he explained.
Smith taking on that challenge for the dealership turned into a new division for the company and a department that now produces over five hundred custom police cars annually. And Smith is the only one doing the work.
“We couldn’t be happier to have Ty work for us,” said Jeff Novak, General Manager of Tim Lally. “His work ethic is amazing and we’re lucky to have him.”
The process is pretty basic. The dealership gets a regular Chevrolet vehicle and then Smith converts it into a police car based on the customer’s needs. While working to perfect his craft, Smith has learned a thing or two about ways he can add value to each opportunity.
Smith developed a method for the police car to respond to temperature changes if it gets too hot for K-9 units.
“I was able to develop a process where the horn will beep, and the windows will automatically roll down if the car gets too hot for the dog,” Smith said. “This allows the officer to know if the dog is in trouble with the car being too hot.”
In Smith’s spare time, he likes to go to car shows and hopes to one day build his own car. The tech mechanic is engaged to be married soon and has one child that he adores.
Smith is a true inspiration for his work family at Tim Lally and the Black community in general.
