Faye Hadley [Harvard to Television mechanic]: Wiki/Bio, age, net worth, husband, and kids.

Faye’s love for books is only mirrored by her love for cars. A Harvard graduate, people claim that Faye doesn’t look the part of a Harvard graduate. Heavily tattoed, with a few piercings, and ever-handy with a wrench in her hand, Faye is an automotive technician, teacher, and entrepreneur. Faye tells a classic story of following your passion. After all, she quit her wonderful paying job as a therapist and started working as an automotive technician. Even though the career shift was not easy for Faye, especially considering her background, she is now one of the best automotive technicians in the business. In this article, we take a closer look at the wiki-bio of Faye Hadley.

Faye Hadley is an American television personality, educator, entrepreneur, and automobile technician. She is a co-host of All Girls Garage, a TV show on MotorTrend that features women mechanics working on various car projects. She is also the owner of Pistons & Pixiedust, an ASE-certified general repair shop outside of San Antonio, Texas, that specializes in Toyotas. She has a net worth of USD $700,000 as of 2023.

Early Life & Education:

Faye Hadley was born on September 25, 1986, in New Hampshire, United States. She grew up in an old farmhouse surrounded by sheep and tractors. She always loved machines and tractors, as well as playing dress up and experimenting with makeup. She credits her parents for encouraging her creativity and curiosity.

“I grew up without television, so I had to make my own fun. My dad loves a project almost as much as he loves a bargain, so he would buy old machinery and fix it up. I loved riding around on the tractor with him, but I also wanted to drive it myself. My mom was very artistic and crafty, so she would help me make costumes and accessories out of anything we had around the house. She also taught me how to sew and knit.”

Faye was a bright student who excelled academically. Her father, who has a Ph. D. from MIT often encouraged Faye to pursue academic degrees. In compliance, after finishing high school, Faye enrolled at Harvard under a sponsorship deal. She applied to Harvard University and got accepted. She chose psychology as her major, thinking it would be a good fit for her interest in helping people. She graduated from Harvard in 2010 with a Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology.

Love for Volkswagen and learning to fix the car:

One of the few movies Faye saw as a child was The Love Bug, which starred a classic VW Beetle named Herbie. She fell in love with Herbie and his personality, and that sparked her interest in Volkswagen cars. She started collecting toy VW Beetles and buses and dreamed of owning one someday. By the time she was in college Faye had acquired her own Volkswagen GTI and after many rides and particularly after a road trip in 2007 her car blew up. Instead of taking it to a mechanic, she kept it for a while. Fortunately, during that time she secured an unpaid internship at a Volkswagen garage. So, after learning the tricks and tips of the trade, Faye worked to fix her Volkswagen on her own.

 

Career:

After graduating in 2010, Faye then worked as a therapist for a year at a mental health clinic. She enjoyed helping her clients, but she also felt overwhelmed by the intensity of the job. She realized that therapy was not her true calling.

“I love helping people, but as a therapist you just jump into people’s lives, it was too intense for me. I want to help people; with a car, I can just jump in right away— I can change an alternator and make a check-engine light go away!”

Faye decided to quit her job as a therapist and pursue her passion for cars and mechanics. She packed up her belongings and moved across the country to Portland, Oregon, where she enrolled in an automotive program at Portland Community College. Faye graduated from the program with honors and started working as a mechanic at various shops in Portland. Faye faced some challenges and discrimination as a woman in a male-dominated field, but she also found support and encouragement from many people along the way. She also started her own YouTube channel, Pistons & Pixiedust, where she shared DIY tutorials, tips and tricks, and general automotive maintenance videos. 

Youtube:

Faye launched her YouTube channel in 2013 posting occasional DIYs to document and share little-known repair solutions that she had learned on the job. The channel did not get gain attention until 2018 when her six-video series titled “020 Transmission Fun” — detailing the unique complexities of the Volkswagon transmission and clutch setup–garnered nearly a quarter of a million views. As of 2023, the channel has over 13 million views and 139K subscribers.

Piston and PixieDust:

In 2017, Faye moved to San Antonio, Texas, where she opened her own shop, Pistons & Pixiedust. She chose Texas because of the warmer weather and the lower cost of living. The company goes by the tagline, ‘by women, for women’ and aimed to bridge the gap between women and machines. In her company, Faye doubles down as a mechanic and prioritizes her customer to be included during the repair process in a bid to share the knowledge in case of DIYs. 

Getting Discovered by MotorTrend:

Faye says never planned or expected to be on TV. She was discovered by MotorTrend through her YouTube channel and Instagram account.

“One day, I got an email from MotorTrend asking me if I was interested in auditioning for All Girls Garage. I thought it was a scam at first. I had never watched the show before, but I looked it up and saw that it was legit. I decided to give it a shot.” 

Faye had to send in a video of herself working on a car and talking about it. While shooting for the demo she was nervous and awkward at first, but she tried to be herself and show her personality and skills. Faye was surprised when she got a call back from MotorTrend saying that they liked her video and wanted her to fly out to Florida for a screen test with the other co-hosts of All Girls Garage: Cristy Lee and Bogi Lateiner.

“I was shocked and excited. I had never met Cristy or Bogi before, but I had heard of them and admired their work. They are both amazing mechanics and role models for women in the industry.” 

Faye flew out to Florida and met Cristy and Bogi for the first time. They hit it off right away and had great chemistry on camera. Faye joined the show “All Girls Garage” in 2017 as a co-host with Bogi Lateiner and Cristy Lee. She replaced Rachel DeBarros, who left the show after two seasons. Faye Hadley has hosted over 54 episodes of All Girls Garage as of 2023. 

Other Television works:

Fay has been part of several television projects since her breakthrough in All Girls Garage. She appeared in Motor MythBusters (2021), a TV series where she is an actress and a co-host with Tory Belleci and Brian Louden. They test various myths and legends related to cars and motorsports. She also appeared as a host in Best of Top Gear (2020), a TV series where she is a self and a host. On the show, she presented some of the best moments and segments from the British motoring show Top Gear.

Personal Life:

Faye Hadley is married to Brandon Hadley, a wood artist and digital creator. They tied the knot on 25th September 2016, which was also Faye’s 30th birthday. They have been married for almost seven years now and do not have any children yet. They seem to be very happy and supportive of each other’s passions.

Physical traits:

Faye Hadley has a unique physical appearance and style that reflects her personality and passion. She is 5 feet 3 inches (160 cm) tall and weighs about 110 pounds (50 kg). She has black hair and hazel eyes. Furthermore, she has several tattoos on her arms, legs, and chest. Also, she has a piercing on her left nostril, both ears and her lip. She often wears casual and comfortable clothes, such as jeans, t-shirts, hoodies, and sneakers. She sometimes wears makeup and accessories, such as earrings, necklaces, and rings. 

Wiki/Bio Facts:

Name	Faye Hadley
Birthdate	September 25, 1986
Age	36 years old
Birthplace	New Hampshire, United States
Nationality	American
Ethnicity	White
Parents	N/A
College	Harvard University
Career	Television Personality, Automotive Technician, Entrepreneur, Youtuber, Teacher
Net Worth	$700, 000
Husband	Brandon Hadley (m. 2016)
Kids	None
Zodiac Sign	Libra
Hair Color	Black
Eye Color	Hazel
Height	5 feet 3 inches (160 cm)
Weight	About 110 lbs (50 Kg)
Social Media Handle	Instagram