It's crazy but I am actually looking for a good mechanic my air went out in my car.
IT depends where you live, in NOrth america you want an automotive technician, in th UK a car mechanic or a motor mechanic in Australia. 
So I would definitely want a auto technican I jnokthey make good money off of the labor work.
Make to have a quote price before they start repair anything
I ran across a mechanic one time that was suppose to only look at my car didn't give me a quote and started working on my car without my approval and had some ridiculous bill for parts and labor.
The job of a mechanic involves the replacement of a specific part in a car, not all the parts. 
How do the UK mechanic operate that you mentioned earlier?
They have the same job only a different title. Maybe there have more experience with English cars.