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Date: 01/18/2026

Automotive Engineering Technicians

Assist engineers in determining the practicality of proposed product design changes and plan and carry out tests on experimental test devices or equipment for performance, durability, or efficiency.

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    Work Activities

    Work Activities

    • Order new test equipment, supplies, or replacement parts.
    • Test performance of vehicles that use alternative fuels, such as alcohol blends, natural gas, liquefied petroleum gas, biodiesel, nano diesel, or alternative power methods, such as solar energy or hydrogen fuel cells.
    • Build instrumentation or laboratory test equipment for special purposes.
    • Improve fuel efficiency by testing vehicles or components that use lighter materials, such as aluminum, magnesium alloy, or plastic.
    • Fabricate new or modify existing prototype components or fixtures.
    • Analyze test data for automotive systems, subsystems, or component parts.
    • Analyze performance of vehicles or components that have been redesigned to increase fuel efficiency, such as camless or dual-clutch engines or alternative types of air-conditioning systems.
    • Maintain test equipment in operational condition by performing routine maintenance or making minor repairs or adjustments as needed.
    • Recommend product or component design improvements, based on test data or observations.
    • Document test results, using cameras, spreadsheets, documents, or other tools.
    • Monitor computer-controlled test equipment, according to written or verbal instructions.
    • Install equipment, such as instrumentation, test equipment, engines, or aftermarket products, to ensure proper interfaces.
    • Participate in research or testing of computerized automotive applications, such as telemetrics, intelligent transportation systems, artificial intelligence, or automatic control.
    • Inspect or test parts to determine nature or cause of defects or malfunctions.
    • Participate in research or testing of computerized automotive applications, such as telemetrics, intelligent transportation systems, artificial intelligence, or automatic control.
    • Inspect or test parts to determine nature or cause of defects or malfunctions.
    • Perform or execute manual or automated tests of automotive system or component performance, efficiency, or durability.
    • Recommend tests or testing conditions in accordance with designs, customer requirements, or industry standards to ensure test validity.
    • Read and interpret blueprints, schematics, work specifications, drawings, or charts.
    • Set up mechanical, hydraulic, or electric test equipment in accordance with engineering specifications, standards, or test procedures.

    Skills

    • Technology Design

      Making equipment and technology useful for customers.

    • Service Orientation

      Looking for ways to help people.

    • Operation and Control

      Using equipment or systems.

    • Judgment and Decision Making

      Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.

    • Systems Analysis

      Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.

    • Installation

      Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.

    • Coordination

      Changing what is done based on other people's actions.

    • Negotiation

      Bringing people together to solve differences.

    • Learning Strategies

      Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.

    • Instructing

      Teaching people how to do something.

    • Operations Analysis

      Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.

    • Operations Monitoring

      Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.

    • Management of Personnel Resources

      Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.

    • Equipment Selection

      Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.

    • Time Management

      Managing your time and the time of other people.

    • Complex Problem Solving

      Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.

    • Equipment Maintenance

      Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.

    • Writing

      Writing things for co-workers or customers.

    • Monitoring

      Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.

    • Active Listening

      Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.

    • Mathematics

      Using math to solve problems.

    • Speaking

      Talking to others.

    • Social Perceptiveness

      Understanding people's reactions.

    • Critical Thinking

      Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.

    • Reading Comprehension

      Reading work-related information.

    • Programming

      Writing computer programs.

    • Quality Control Analysis

      Testing how well a product or service works.

    • Management of Financial Resources

      Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.

    • Troubleshooting

      Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.

    • Repairing

      Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.

    • Systems Evaluation

      Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.

    • Management of Material Resources

      Managing equipment and materials.

    • Science

      Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.

    • Persuasion

      Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.

    • Active Learning

      Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.

    WorkKeys®

    Applied Math
    6
    Workplace Documents
    5
    Graphic Literacy
    5

    Abilities

    • Far Vision

      Seeing details that are far away.

    • Fluency of Ideas

      Coming up with lots of ideas.

    • Memorization

      Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.

    • Oral Expression

      Communicating by speaking.

    • Speed of Limb Movement

      Quickly moving your arms and legs.

    • Arm-Hand Steadiness

      Keeping your arm or hand steady.

    • Wrist-Finger Speed

      Making fast, simple, repeated movements of your fingers, hands, and wrists.

    • Extent Flexibility

      Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching with your body, arms, and/or legs.

    • Dynamic Flexibility

      Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.

    • Near Vision

      Seeing details up close.

    • Deductive Reasoning

      Using rules to solve problems.

    • Reaction Time

      Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.

    • Rate Control

      Changing when and how fast you move based on how something else is moving.

    • Written Comprehension

      Reading and understanding what is written.

    • Hearing Sensitivity

      Telling the difference between sounds.

    • Auditory Attention

      Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.

    • Depth Perception

      Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.

    • Gross Body Equilibrium

      Keeping your balance or staying upright.

    • Written Expression

      Communicating by writing.

    • Perceptual Speed

      Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.

    • Category Flexibility

      Grouping things in different ways.

    • Control Precision

      Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.

    • Time Sharing

      Doing two or more things at the same time.

    • Selective Attention

      Paying attention to something without being distracted.

    • Oral Comprehension

      Listening and understanding what people say.

    • Explosive Strength

      Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.

    • Gross Body Coordination

      Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.

    • Night Vision

      Seeing at night or under low light.

    • Inductive Reasoning

      Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.

    • Multilimb Coordination

      Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.

    • Finger Dexterity

      Putting together small parts with your fingers.

    • Static Strength

      Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.

    • Dynamic Strength

      Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.

    • Trunk Strength

      Using your lower back and stomach.

    • Stamina

      Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.

    • Peripheral Vision

      Seeing something to your side when your are looking ahead.

    • Number Facility

      Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.

    • Problem Sensitivity

      Noticing when problems happen.

    • Flexibility of Closure

      Seeing hidden patterns.

    • Response Orientation

      Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.

    • Speech Recognition

      Recognizing spoken words.

    • Glare Sensitivity

      Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.

    • Sound Localization

      Noticing the direction that a sound came from.

    • Visual Color Discrimination

      Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.

    • Mathematical Reasoning

      Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.

    • Originality

      Creating new and original ideas.

    • Speed of Closure

      Quickly knowing what you are looking at.

    • Information Ordering

      Ordering or arranging things.

    • Spatial Orientation

      Knowing where things are around you.

    • Visualization

      Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.

    • Speech Clarity

      Speaking clearly.

    • Manual Dexterity

      Holding or moving items with your hands.

    Knowledge

    • Engineering and Technology

      Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.

    • Economics and Accounting

      Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.

    • Sales and Marketing

      Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.

    • Education and Training

      Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.

    • Chemistry

      Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.

    • Production and Processing

      Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.

    • Physics

      Knowledge and prediction of physical principles, laws, their interrelationships, and applications to understanding fluid, material, and atmospheric dynamics, and mechanical, electrical, atomic and sub-atomic structures and processes.

    • History and Archeology

      Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.

    • Public Safety and Security

      Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.

    • Law and Government

      Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.

    • Telecommunications

      Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.

    • Communications and Media

      Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.

    • Administrative

      Knowledge of administrative and office procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and workplace terminology.

    • Psychology

      Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.

    • Administration and Management

      Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.

    • Computers and Electronics

      Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.

    • Biology

      Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.

    • Design

      Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.

    • Sociology and Anthropology

      Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.

    • Building and Construction

      Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.

    • Geography

      Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.

    • Customer and Personal Service

      Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.

    • Mechanical

      Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.

    • Therapy and Counseling

      Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.

    • Personnel and Human Resources

      Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.

    • Philosophy and Theology

      Knowledge of different philosophical systems and religions. This includes their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices, and their impact on human culture.

    • Transportation

      Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.

    • Fine Arts

      Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.

    • Food Production

      Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.

    • Medicine and Dentistry

      Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.

    • English Language

      Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, and rules of composition and grammar.

    • Foreign Language

      Knowledge of the structure and content of a foreign (non-English) language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition and grammar, and pronunciation.

    • Mathematics

      Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.

    Career Video

    Additional videos and more information available on CareerOneStop

    Pay

    • Ohio Annual Salary 67510/yr
    • Typical Salary
    • Ohio Hourly Wage 32.46/hr
    • Typical Hourly Wage

    Ohio Employment Trends

    • Currently Employed 2,270
    • Yearly Projected Openings 210

    Typical Education

    Personality

    Realistic: People interested in this work like activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions.They do well at jobs that need:
    • Attention to Detail
    • Dependability
    • Cautiousness
    • Intellectual Curiosity
    • Innovation
    • Integrity

    Tools

    • Calipers
    • Chemical absorption gas analyzers
    • Compression testers
    • Digital testers
    • Dynamometers
    • Flowmeters
    • Force or torque sensors
    • Frequency counters or timer or dividers
    • Horizontal turning center
    • Leak testing equipment
    • Metal inert gas welding machine
    • Multimeters
    • Oscilloscopes
    • Pin gauge
    • Plasma arc welding machine
    • Refrigerated and heated walk in environmental or growth chambers
    • Signal generators
    • Speed sensors
    • Tension testers
    • Traveling column milling machine
    • Tungsten inert gas welding machine
    • Turning machines
    • Vibration testers

    Technology

    • Analytical or scientific software
    • Computer aided design CAD software
    • Computer aided manufacturing CAM software
    • Development environment software
    • Electronic mail software
    • Enterprise resource planning ERP software
    • Office suite software
    • Spreadsheet software
    • Word processing software

    Tags

    • Apprenticeships are available for this occupation. These programs can help you get hands-on experience and build your skills.

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