Automotive Engineer
Also known as: Vehicle Engineer · Automobile Engineer · Product Development Engineer
Designs, tests and improves vehicles and their parts, from engines to chassis.
What you’d do
An automotive engineer designs, tests and improves vehicles and their parts, such as engines, transmissions, chassis, brakes and, increasingly, batteries and electric drives. Employers include vehicle makers, component suppliers and engineering services firms. A typical day involves CAD design work, running or analysing tests, and working with production and quality teams.
- Designs and reviews vehicle components
- Runs tests on parts and prototypes
- Analyses test data and fixes faults
- Works with plants and suppliers
How you get in
Freshers usually enter through campus placements as graduate engineer trainees in plants, design centres or testing labs. Student projects such as formula-style or electric vehicle competitions help when applying.
Salary in India
Fresher salary over the years
middle of the 0–1 yr range, ₹ lakh a year
Fewer than two years of fresher data so far — the trend shows once there are two.
Skills you’ll use
From our guide · a curated list is coming
- Engineering drawing and CAD
- Vehicle dynamics and powertrain basics
- Testing and analysing results
- Quality and manufacturing processes
- Basics of electric vehicles and batteries
About this field · for freshers
Job openings by year
Is demand growing?
Not added yet.
Competition3
How many graduates enter each year?
B.Tech / B.E. (all branches) graduates in 2023-24 at institutions that reported to AISHE — everyone finishing that degree, not only those entering this role.
Who hires
IT firms, banks, government, startups?
Not added yet.
Where the jobs are
Which cities?
Not added yet.
Women in the field3
Is it diverse?
Share of women among B.Tech / B.E. (all branches) graduates in 2023-24 — the entry degree, not people already working in this role.
At a glance
- Many first jobs are on the shop floor or in quality before moving to design.
- Electric vehicles are changing the skills in demand.
- Next roles: design engineer, testing or validation lead, product engineer.
Stay safe
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