Mechanic Leon makes the cut

Schoolboy is Honda’s youngest ever leading technician

- Ruth Hayes

THEY start them young at Honda, but few are as young as the company’s latest Master Technician – 10-year-old Essex schoolboy Leon Poots.

With a whole summer of lockdown ahead of him, Leon decided that he wanted to try his hand at something practical, so his dad Richard, who works for Honda, presented him with a 10-year old Honda lawnmower that was heading for the scrapyard.

The HRG 465 C2 PDE, known as the Izy, was in a poor, rusting state – but the engine still worked and Leon was determined to restore it to its former glory. Before starting work, he was drilled in the necessary health and safety by his dad and then he built himself a workshop bench out of two chairs and a pallet before starting work.

An example of a challenging spirit

Leon said: “As my dad repairs all types of lawnmowers, I wanted to know about how an engine works and the various components that make it up. Dad said that if I was really interested, he would bring home one that had been scrapped for me to work on.”

Starting with the steel deck, Richard welded up some holes, leaving Leon to then prime and prepare the area before repainting it. He then turned to the Honda’s engine. He stripped it down and ordered replacement parts before putting it back together and getting the trusty Izy going again.