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He Joined the National Guard to Work on Vehicles | Lucky Lopez

Lucky Lopez, Army National Guard Veteran, mechanic, car business YouTuber, tells their story to Vegas Veteran Voices, a Veteran-led nonprofit in Las Vegas.

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In this story: Lucky Lopez, Army National Guard Veteran, mechanic, car business YouTuber
Service branch: Army National Guard
Published: March 20, 2026
Running time: 1 hour 1 minute (1:01:34)
Production: Filmed by Vegas Veteran Voices, a Veteran-led nonprofit in Las Vegas

“I think the big thing is just to open up your mind to different possibilities.”

Lucky LopezHear it at 49:33

About this story

Most people know Lucky Lopez as the car guy on YouTube.

Breaking down the used car market, auto loans, dealerships, Turo, and how money really moves in the car business.

What they don’t know is…

before all of that…

he was a 63B mechanic in the Army National Guard.

And the story is not what you think.

In this episode of Vegas Veteran Voices, Lucky Lopez sits down with Ronnie Long and gets real about what military life actually looked like, the boredom, the chaos, the motor pool stories no one talks about, and how that experience shaped everything he does today.

From fixing cars in Las Vegas to building dealerships next to the strip…
to flipping cars, running rental businesses, and calling out the auto industry online…

this is the side of Lucky Lopez most people have never seen.

This is not a “car interview.”

This is about what happens after the uniform comes off.

We get into:
• The truth about being a mechanic in the military (not what you think)
• How the car business really works behind the scenes
• Dealerships, auto loans, and how banks actually make money
• Turo, car flipping, and why most people fail trying to do it
• How Veterans can use their skills to build real businesses
• The mindset shift from military structure to entrepreneurship

If you are a Veteran trying to figure out your next move…
or someone interested in cars, business, and how the system actually works…

this one hits.

Vegas Veteran Voices exists for one reason:
to break isolation and show Veterans they are not alone.

If this episode resonates, send it to someone who needs it.

In their words

“Once you start moving, it gets easier. And you stay moving, then it becomes super simple.”

Lucky LopezHear it at 1:01:09

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