Driving toward automotive excellence

CHINA DAILY

He Langwei's passion for cars has led him from vocational school to university, where he prepares to pursue his childhood dream of building his own car.

He Langwei has harbored a dream of building his own car since childhood."Cars were my obsession," he said."According to my parents, I would gaze at passing cars when I was just a few months old, and disassembling and reassembling car toys was my childhood hobby."

Originally from Enshi Tujia and Miao autonomous prefecture in Central China's Hubei province, the 22-year-old has been steadfastly pursuing his dream since high school, when he made the surprising decision in his freshman year to transfer from a traditional high school to a vocational one.

Despite prevailing prejudices against vocational high schools, including skepticism from his parents who believed traditional high schools offered better prospects, He managed to convince them by explaining why this path would be most beneficial for him.

"It's true that most vocational students may not perform as well academically, but our abilities often shine in other, more practical applications," he said. "But having a clear goal and a future plan, while maintaining a resilient mindset, is crucial."

Thriving in the vocational school environment, He felt at home. "I vividly remember my first time in the training room, surrounded by countless car parts and tools, where I could systematically learn how to disassemble, assemble, and repair. I felt one step closer to my dream."

He came to appreciate the significance of hands-on experience in the field of auto mechanics.

"When I encountered the term 'dynamometer' in the textbook, I struggled to grasp its essence. Even after doing more research, I still couldn't quite understand it," He said. "It wasn't until I used the device in the training center to measure the car engine's power that I truly comprehended its function."

Realizing that what he learned in vocational school was far from enough, He decided to take the technical college entrance exam three years later, scoring 604 out of 700 and ranking 40th in the province. This achievement secured his admission to the School of Mechanical and Electrical Engineering at Wuhan Business University in Wuhan, Hubei.