Three technicians from Cox Fleet and Manheim came out on top after putting their diagnostic knowledge, repair skills, and technical knowledge to the test during Cox Automotive’s 2026 Top Tech competition.

Jonathan Kelly, lead mobile diesel technician at Cox Fleet, won the Heavy-Duty category. AJ Snyder, lead auto technician at Manheim, took the Light/Medium-Duty title, and Dillon Grimes, lead mobile diesel technician at Cox Fleet, won the Trailer category.

The competition started with almost 900 technicians taking a qualifying exam, and after five regional competitions, the 30 top performers advanced to the finals in Nashville, Tennessee. There, techs faced 30 written and hands-on stations covering everything from diagnostics and electrical systems to service information, brakes, wheel ends, aftertreatment, and emerging vehicle technologies.

For the three winners, many of those skills are part of the everyday job.

According to a 2026 Noregon study, accurate and effective troubleshooting of electrical and other systems has routinely been a top challenge for commercial fleets and shops. But Kelly, who has 16 years in the industry, cited electrical diagnostics and repair as his strongest skill. 

This wasn't always the case.

"It was my weakest point starting out and the most challenging to conquer," Kelly said. "But I requested every electrical diagnosis that came through the shop until I was comfortable working through them."

Kelly also credits a mentor from tech school with helping him develop as a technician. One piece of advice has stuck with him: Do it right the first time, no matter how long it takes.

"Because it's always faster to fix it right than to fix it twice," Kelly said.

[For specific tips, take a look at our in-depth electrical repair story where we interviewed Terry Rivers, senior manager of vehicle services training at Cox.] 

For Grimes, who also won the company's trailer track in 2024, the key skill is analysis. He's been in the industry for 11 years in the industry and five at Cox, and has developed a succesful approach by working with trailers from both the parts and shop sides of the business before applying the same thinking to trucks.

"[Analyzing] how something is supposed to function, how the design accomplishes that, and how parts interact is key to preventing catastrophic failures in the first place," Grimes explained.

That also means knowing when to rely on service information.

"Read the Book," he said, recalling advice from his mentors. "You can be better than the service information 1/100 times, but what about the other 99/100?"

Grimes sees access to that info as one of the biggest challenges facing techs today. Service information can be difficult to access or sit behind expensive paywalls, he said.

"If OEMs could offer more repair procedure transparency, we could severely increase repair quality," Grimes added.

Grimes also offered Fleet Maintenance skill-building tips in our 2024 feature on the subject.

Snyder has been working professionally for 20 years and has spent his entire career with Cox. Kelly also pointed to diagnostics as his strongest skill.

For Snyder, that starts with understanding how a vehicle or system is supposed to work.

"Knowing HOW something works makes it easier to understand WHY something isn't working right or what is missing," he explained.

Snyder also pointed to the rapid evolution of vehicle technology and tools as a challenge for technicians. New diagnostic platforms, software updates, and specialized repair procedures mean technicians have to be constantly learning and adapting. 

"The industry can support by ensuring technicians have the resources they need to stay current with these constant updates," he said.

The three will put their skills to the test again, representing Cox later in September at the American Trucking Associations' Technology & Maintenance Council SuperTech competition in Pittsburgh.