A few comments:
Eric, you're out of your mind on the oil bath air cleaners. Dirty, inefficient, a PITA to clean. We used to have them on irrigation engines, and we would change the engine oil once a week during the season, and clean the oil bath air cleaners. They are made out of stamped steel, and invariably have razor sharp edges. You haven't lived until you're cleaning one of those SOBs with gasoline, and then cut your finger wide open.
On tires in general, it's rare when I have a flat these days, and I drive on dirt roads. At most, I get a slow leak, air it up, and drive it in to be fixed. When I was a kid, it was a weekly, if not daily occurrence, when you factored in all the farm equipment. Tires are exponentially better these days, as are roads.
I was maintaining and even overhauling our irrigation engines back in high school. It was a necessity back then. Things last so much longer now, it's not as needed. But I still tried to teach my kids how to take care of themselves and the equipment. We didn't live on the farm as they were growing up, but I still took them out as much as possible. A couple of stories...
My son (Bender) was at a Marine Corps equipment demonstration of their maintenance equipment, and was asking the Gunny questions about it. Gunny wanted to know how he knew so much. Son shrugs and says "farm kid". Gunny just nods.
I know of times in high school when he helped girls with flats and such. Didn't hurt his popularity. And I know of times when he fixed/repaired/patched his car to get far more miles out of it than most would.
I tried to treat our daughter the same as our son, when it came to farm work She got drug around by me a lot when she was 4-5. Mom started a full time job, she wasn't in school yet, brother was in school, I was farming. So she was always around me and equipment. Once in an auto parts store, she spotted a little 8mm wrench. She wanted me to buy it for her. You bet I did.
Our son and daughter both drove a manual trans '74 Nova in high school. Also drove the tractor, which was a power shift, but still had sort of a clutch (inching pedal) When she got to college, freshmen and sophomores couldn't have cars. When the upperclassmen needed a designated driver, it was tradition for them to ask a fish or soph to drive for them. In return, the fish or soph got use of the car when needed. Since very few male or female students could drive a manual, she was in high demand among those upperclassmen with manual transmissions. Which were usually Very Cool Cars. And she always had a surplus of cars she could borrow.
Later, when she was serving a tour as a FAIP, she got into Flight Check, which was a job rarely entrusted to a FAIP. She was one of the few instructors who was trusted to get into a T-6 after it had been through maintenance. She would thoroughly preflight it, then take it up and wring it out. She would then approve/disapprove returning it to the flight line. I credit that job to her being exposed to mechanical things growing up.
A friend has a 2018 high school grad son. He worked on the farm his whole life, and is smart as everything. I think he aced the ACT. He has been accepted into a mechanical/electrical engineering program at A&M, one with very few slots. The prof in charge was downright giddy to have him. The prof told his parents that he was always thrilled to get farm kids into his program. They weren't afraid to work and get dirty, and they often already knew how to use hand tools, welders, etc.