HIL System Engineer

Product Development uses design thinking & user experience methods to deliver breakthrough products and services that delight our customers. We bring innovative, exciting, and sustainable ideas to life. We have opportunities around the world for you to contribute to advancements in autonomy, electrification, smart mobility technologies, and more!

If good is just never good enough for you, Ford Quality shares your passion for striving for perfection. We’re responsible for driving the continuous improvement efforts that enable Ford to deliver the highest quality products and services. Help us drive operational excellence through such innovative, proprietary initiatives as our Global Product Development System, Quality Operating System and New Model Launch. Work cross-functionally and closely with integrated teams in Manufacturing, Product Development, Purchasing, Marketing, Sales and Service.

In this position...

We are seeking a hands-on HIL System Engineer to support the development, integration, and validation of vehicle systems and features. In this role, you will help create and maintain Hardware-in-the-Loop (HIL) test environments that simulate vehicle conditions and enable teams to validate products efficiently before on-vehicle testing.

You will work across domains such as ADAS, High Voltage/EV, Powertrain, and Over-the-Air (OTA) updates. The ideal candidate brings strong system-level validation experience, practical knowledge of vehicle electrical and mechanical systems, test automation capability, and experience with dSPACE HIL tools.

This is a highly collaborative role requiring close partnership with feature owners, systems engineering, D&R, software, validation, and program teams to define requirements, develop test solutions, automate testing, analyze results, and improve vehicle quality.

What you'll do...

• Design, develop, configure, validate, and maintain HIL test benches and supporting hardware/software solutions.
• Define feature boundaries, interface requirements, solution requirements, and modeling requirements for HIL test environments.
• Partner with core engineering teams to develop HIL strategies and build test benches that accurately represent vehicle behavior.
• Create, maintain, and execute system-level test plans, test cases, automated test scripts, and test reports.
• Develop and manage reusable test automation libraries and packages for System HIL environments.
• Expand test coverage and identify new test methods to improve feature quality and product robustness.
• Analyze ECUs, vehicle features, interfaces, and system behavior to identify validation needs and develop effective test solutions.
• Configure and integrate simulation tools, automation tools, and functional solutions on HIL benches.

Evaluate, select, procure, and maintain tools, test hardware, and software needed to support validation activities.

• Implement new hardware solutions on dSPACE HIL simulators as needed.
• Support configuration-management architecture and tools used to manage test assets, bench configurations, and project data.
• Document and review automation-solution requirements and test results.
• Track work, test status, issues, and deliverables using tools such as Jira and TestRail.
• Participate in Agile ceremonies, including Scrum activities, and ensure timely completion of assigned work.

You'll have...

• Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering, Electronics Engineering, Mechatronics Engineering, Computer Science, or a related field.
• 2+ years of experience in one or more automotive domains, including:
• Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS)
• High Voltage / Electrification
• Powertrain
• Over-the-Air (OTA) systems
• 2+ years of system-level validation, integration, software testing, or quality-assurance experience.
• 2+ years of hands-on experience commissioning, configuring, supporting, or validating dSPACE HIL simulators.
• 2+ years of experience using dSPACE ControlDesk, AutomationDesk, or comparable HIL control and automation tools.
• Experience developing, implementing, and maintaining automated test cases, test scripts, and/or automation libraries.
• Experience with software scripting or programming languages such as Python and C++.
• Experience with software configuration management and management of test assets or project data.
• Knowledge of vehicle electrical systems, ECUs, electrical architectures, and embedded systems.
• Ability to troubleshoot complex system, interface, hardware, software, and test-environment issues.
• Strong communication skills and the ability to collaborate effectively across engineering and program teams.

Even better, you may have...

• Master’s degree in an engineering discipline, computer science, or related business/technical
• .Experience with Ford diagnostic engineering tools and software-download processes.
• Experience developing and executing functional test procedures in a software, automotive, or vehicle-testing organization.
• Experience building bench-test solutions for distributed electrical systems.
• Experience reading and interpreting electrical schematics, vehicle-component diagrams, and distributed electrical architectures.
• Experience with development and verification of embedded software using HIL equipment and tools, such as dSPACE or National Instruments.
• Experience with advanced HIL test solutions involving GNSS, cameras, radar, charging systems, battery simulators, or high-voltage standards.
• Familiarity with ADAS sensors, EV charging, battery systems, vehicle networks, and diagnostic communication.
• Experience working in Agile development environments and using Jira, TestRail, or similar work-management and test-management tools.

What Will Make You Successful....

• You enjoy solving complex problems at the intersection of vehicle systems, embedded software, test hardware, and automation.
• You can move from high-level feature requirements to a practical, repeatable test strategy.
• You are comfortable working directly with cross-functional engineering partners to resolve issues and improve test coverage.
• You take ownership of test quality, documentation, configuration discipline, and continuous improvement.
• you are equally comfortable performing hands-on lab work and communicating technical findings clearly to different stakeholders.

As an established global company, we offer the benefit of choice. You can choose what your Ford future will look like: will your story span the globe, or keep you close to home? Will your career be a deep dive into what you love, or a series of new teams and new skills? Will you be a leader, a changemaker, a technical expert, a culture builder…or all of the above? No matter what you choose, we offer a work life that works for you, including:

• Immediate medical, dental, vision, and prescription drug coverage
• Paid parental leave, new parent ramp-up programs, subsidized back-up child care and more
• Family building benefits including adoption and surrogacy expense reimbursement, fertility treatments and more
• Vehicle discount program for employees and family members and management leases
• Tuition assistance
• Established and active employee resource groups
• Paid time off for individual and team community service
• Generous vacation time, sick/personal time, and paid holidays, including between Christmas Eve and New Year’s Day

This position is a salary grade 6 and ranges from $74,300-$114,500. Final determination of salary grade will be based on candidate's skills and experience, and base salary will be set within the applicable range according to job scope, responsibility and competitive market value.

Internal applicants: moving into this role may result in an adjustment to your current compensation based on the posted pay range for this role, taking into consideration your qualifications and other relevant factors.

For more information on salary and benefits, click here: https://fordcareers.co/GSR

Visa sponsorship is not available for this position.

Candidates for positions with Ford Motor Company must be legally authorized to work in the United States. Verification of employment eligibility will be required at the time of hire.

We are an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, religion, color, age, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability status or protected veteran status. In the United States, if you need a reasonable accommodation for the online application process due to a disability, please call 1-888-336-0660.

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