Jobs / Architecture and engineering / 17-2141.02
Automotive Engineers
Develop new or improved designs for vehicle structural members, engines, transmissions, or other vehicle systems, using computer-assisted design technology. Direct building, modification, or testing of vehicle or components.
- US jobs
- 296,810 (SOC 17-2141 group, "Mechanical Engineers")
- Median wage
- $104,110 a year
- Job family
- Architecture and engineering
Can agents do the work of automotive engineers?
We read the evidence at the level of the job family, Architecture and engineering:
- Task levelUnexploredNo task-level benchmark in our collection tests architecture or engineering design work, such as CAD modeling or engineering calculations.
- Project levelNot yetWhole projects are mostly out of reach. The Remote Labor Index includes 3D, CAD, and architecture projects; across all its projects, the best agent completed 15.8% to a standard a client would accept. GDPval includes mechanical engineers, and its deliverables score higher, but those tasks are one-shot and fully specified.
Benchmarks for the job family
These cover work in architecture and engineering, not always this occupation's tasks.
- 1846 EloClaude Opus 5.5 (Adaptive Reasoning, Max Effort, Default Fallback) · 23 Sep 2026Unrated
Typical tasks
From O*NET 31.0. Core tasks first. Few of these tasks have a benchmark today.
- Conduct or direct system-level automotive testing.
- Provide technical direction to other engineers or engineering support personnel.
- Perform failure, variation, or root cause analyses.
- Calibrate vehicle systems, including control algorithms or other software systems.
- Design or analyze automobile systems in areas such as aerodynamics, alternate fuels, ergonomics, hybrid power, brakes, transmissions, steering, calibration, safety, or diagnostics.
- Prepare or present technical or project status reports.
- Conduct research studies to develop new concepts in the field of automotive engineering.
- Establish production or quality control standards.
- Alter or modify designs to obtain specified functional or operational performance.
- Research or implement green automotive technologies involving alternative fuels, electric or hybrid cars, or lighter or more fuel-efficient vehicles.
- Develop calibration methodologies, test methodologies, or tools.
- Create design alternatives for vehicle components, such as camless or dual-clutch engines or alternative air-conditioning systems, to increase fuel efficiency.
Other job titles for this occupation (29)
Dimensional Integration Engineer · Engineer · Product Engineer · Project Engineer · Research Engineer · Automotive Designer · Automotive Engineer · Automotive Power Electronics Engineer · Automotive Project Engineer · Automotive Quality Engineer · Automotive Systems Engineer · Chassis Engineer · Customer Quality Engineer · Design Release Engineer · Design Support Engineer · Engineering Designer · Fuel-Efficient Automobile Designer · Hybrid Powertrain Development Engineer · Low-Emission Automobile Designer · Powertrain Control Systems Engineer · Powertrain Engineer · Quality Assurance Engineer (QA Engineer) · Quality Engineer · Relay Engineer · Solutions Design Engineer · Systems Design Engineer · Transportation Design Engineer · Vehicle Controls Engineer · Wire Harness Design Engineer