Last updated on September 19, 2024
There isn’t a drop of oil anywhere. There isn’t one tool out of place. Dallas College alum Christopher Manning keeps his work area at the Mercedes-Benz of Plano service center as pristine as the cars in the showroom. He’s driven to end the old “dirty mechanic” stereotype as he has become a leading voice in the industry.
“There’s a certain stigma that society has for technicians and I’m the person that wants to change that,” Manning said. “The amount of training that I’ve been through is probably the equivalent of a doctorate. When I introduce myself to somebody who doesn’t know me and they’re like, ‘Oh, you work on cars. You must be a dirty mechanic.’ I’m like, ‘No.’”
Instead, Manning has built a career that anyone would envy in their respective profession. He grew up in a single-income family as the oldest of nine children, working on cars with his dad as they changed their own oil and brakes, to becoming a Mercedes-Benz Master Certified AMG Expert where he works on cars worth more than $100,000 on a daily basis.
And, as something many Gen Zers aspire to become, Manning is a well-known social media influencer who has carved out a niche as “Doctor AMG” with more than 172,000 followers on Instagram.
Manning’s rise in his profession has rewarded him with once-in-a-lifetime opportunities such as meeting Formula One icon Lewis Hamilton during a race at Austin’s Circuit of the Americas and getting a behind-the-scenes tour at the Mercedes-Benz Museum in Germany.
Dallas College helped make it all possible, laying the foundation as Manning went through the Automotive Technology program at the Brookhaven Campus.
“Dallas College was really integral for me,” Manning said. “You could learn how to work on cars without going to formal training, but that would take you about four times longer than going to Dallas College.
“There are just things that you learn in school that you wouldn’t really experience working in the shop, so it’s that foundational information that helps you down the line. If you understand how something works, then you can fix it.”
Landing at Dallas College
Manning always knew he wanted a career where he could work with his hands. As a 3-year-old, he recalled a story his parents told of him taking apart a vacuum cleaner. Of course, he didn’t know how to put it back together at the time.
But that has been the type of career he wanted to pursue, and he explored various options coming out of high school. Dallas College stood out over the rest, given the affordability and instruction compared to similar institutions in the area.
It remains one of the best decisions Manning has made.
“Every instructor I had was incredibly knowledgeable, almost in an intimidating way because they’ve been doing it for so long,” said Manning, who graduated in 2009.
“As someone who is brand new to the industry, you’re like, ‘Oh, wow.’ They really know what they’re talking about.”
One instructor who made a lasting impact on Manning was Susie Coffman, who has since retired from Dallas College. Manning said Coffman became “like a second mom” during his educational journey.
That’s the type of environment that continues to separate Dallas College from other higher education institutions.
“It was a very welcoming environment,” Manning said. “And, it’s just like anything else, you get out of it what you put into it.”
Most importantly, Manning graduated debt free compared to a few of his friends who went to four-year universities and accumulated $50,000-$100,000 in debt.
“Getting out of college with zero debt versus starting from negative $100,000,” he said, smiling. “And the classes were very well taught, even the non-automotive classes were very enjoyable.”
Becoming Doctor AMG
Manning is one of the top technicians at Mercedes-Benz of Plano, leading a team of 10 members who work in an area with 14 different lifts and bays. For Manning, his day job never gets old working on some of the top cars in the world.
What makes a Mercedes-Benz automobile so special?
“I can go on and on, but what drew me in first was the slogan — the best or nothing,” he said. “Then, I’m a researcher and enjoy car history, and we invented the first automobile in the late 1800s. We were the first to come out with the airbag technology, and we sell those patents for $1. If it’s safety-related, Mercedes-Benz shares it with anyone for $1, which is really cool to me.
“So, it’s just lots of little things like that.”
Beyond that, Manning has developed a passion for Mercedes-Benz’s performance brand, AMG. He’s dubbed himself “Doctor AMG,” garnering a huge social media following that loves his videos showcasing the ins and outs of the cars under the AMG umbrella.
Initially, Manning was going to create a handle that played off his beard but opted for something more medically related. Again, he keeps his work area pristine much like an operating room.
“I was like, ‘AMG Doctor,’ but then my co-team lead was like, ‘Why would you be ‘AMG Doctor’ like one of many AMG doctors when you could be ‘Doctor AMG?’ So, I liked it, and it was quick to the point.”
Manning started posting videos without knowing how popular they might become. Looking back, he calls a few of his early videos “terrible” but saw his following rapidly grow. Manning became such a popular follow that it landed him VIP status to the Formula One race where he met Hamilton, and then he had a memorable tour of the Mercedes-Benz Museum in Germany as the curator of the museum was one of his followers.
“I just started posting what I love doing,” he said. “People resonated with the videos because I think it was something that not a lot of people were doing at the time.”
Final Word
Manning would encourage anyone to pursue their passion. When a door opens, take full advantage of it. And, always stay humble.
“Just get your foot in the door somewhere and have a hunger to do more,” he said. “I started out washing cars. I’m not washing cars anymore, but if the wash line gets really backed up, I’ll go help them.
“We’re a team. You can’t be above doing anything.”
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