Mechatronics Engineer Jobs in Detroit, MI (NOW HIRING)

Global Core Team Engineer responsible for Overhead Consoles and Universal Garage Door Opener (UGDO) systems across Stellantis brands, platforms and regions. The role provides global technical leadership for the assigned component families, including reference architectures, performance specifications, design guidelines, modular strategies, benchmarking, supplier technical assessments, sourcing support, validation standards, cost optimization and continuous improvement activities. The CTE ensures robust integration of mechanical, electrical, lighting, RF and software requirements within the vehicle environment, with specific focus on headliner and roof packaging, interior perceived quality, optical performance, customer-facing functions, manufacturability, regulatory compliance and serviceability. The role acts as the technical reference for programs and release engineers from concept phase through launch and serial life, ensuring best-in-class Quality, Cost, Timing and Performance (QCTP) while driving standardization, innovation and cross-functional convergence with Product, Design, Interior, EE, SWX, Purchasing, Quality, Manufacturing and Supplier organizations.

• Define and maintain the global technical roadmap for Overhead Consoles and UGDO systems, ensuring alignment across platforms, brands and regions.
• Develop and maintain performance specifications, design guidelines, DVP&R, DFMEA, process standards, lessons learned and technical reference documents for the assigned component families.
• Lead component benchmarking, technology scouting and competitive analysis for lighting functions integrated into overhead consoles, overhead controls, roof-mounted modules and UGDO solutions.
• Ensure robust integration of mechanical, electrical, lighting, RF and software requirements within the vehicle environment, with particular focus on headliner, roof trim, wiring, EE architecture and packaging constraints.
• Drive convergence with Product, Design, Interior, EE, SWX, Safety, Homologation, Purchasing, Quality, Manufacturing and Supplier organizations from concept phase through launch and serial life.
• Support sourcing activities through supplier technical assessments, source package preparation, design reviews, manufacturability reviews, cost analysis and techno-economic optimization.
• Act as the design authority for the assigned component families, supporting technical arbitration, deviation assessment, reuse strategy and cross-program standardization.
• Assess and validate optical performance, lighting quality, color uniformity, light leakage, dimming behavior, switch feedback, customer usability and perceived quality attributes.
• Ensure UGDO technical robustness, including RF performance, antenna integration, pairing behavior, regional frequency compliance and compatibility with applicable access systems.
• Support Tooling Kick-Off, design freeze, validation readiness, launch readiness and sign-off activities, ensuring technical risks are identified and addressed in a timely manner.
• Lead technical issue resolution, deviation assessments, root cause analysis and recovery action plans during development, launch and serial life.
• Use warranty data, field feedback, customer complaints and lessons learned to drive design improvements and prevent recurrence across platforms.
• Ensure serviceability and repairability of overhead modules, including removal strategy, replacement procedures, retention robustness after service and diagnostic support.
• Support release engineers and program teams by providing technical guidance, mentoring, design review leadership and best-practice deployment through SOP and serial life.
• Drive standardization, modularity, cost optimization and continuous improvement while ensuring best-in-class Quality, Cost, Timing and Performance.

• Strong communication, leadership and stakeholder management skills.
• Ability to work in a global and multicultural environment.
• Negotiation skills with suppliers and internal stakeholders.
• Problem-solving methodologies (5 Why, Ishikawa, PDCA).
• Program management skills, including WBS management and strong QCTP orientation.
• Accountability and results-driven mindset.
• Strong technical curiosity and continuous improvement attitude.
• Ability to effectively use AI-based tools and AI Agents to streamline engineering activities, automate repetitive tasks and improve efficiency across product development and program management processes.

• Knowledge of lighting systems integrated within overhead consoles, including dome lamps, reading lamps, ambient lighting, tell-tale indicators and illuminated switches.
• Understanding of optical performance requirements, including light diffusion, light leakage, color uniformity, dimming behavior, night visibility, luminance, illuminance, color temperature and LED binning.
• Knowledge of LED technologies, light guides, lenses, reflectors, thermal management and electronic component integration within compact roof-mounted modules.
• Knowledge of UGDO systems, including RF communication principles, rolling code compatibility, garage door opener pairing procedures, antenna integration, range validation and interference management.
• Awareness of regional requirements for RF devices and interior components, including EU, North America, China and other applicable market-specific regulations.
• Awareness of cybersecurity, secure pairing and functional protection considerations for programmable or connected access features, where applicable.
• Knowledge of interior homologation requirements, including head impact, radius, protrusion, occupant safety constraints, flammability, VOC, REACH/RoHS and restricted substances compliance.
• Experience with headliner, roof trim, windshield header, wiring routing, attachment strategy, packaging constraints and vehicle-level integration of overhead components.
• Knowledge of visible interior surface requirements, including grain, gloss, color matching, gap and flush, cosmetic quality, perceived quality and customer-facing craftsmanship.
• Knowledge of fastening systems, clips, retention features, BSR/NVH prevention and assembly robustness for roof-mounted interior components.
• Knowledge of LIN/CAN communication networks, diagnostics, wake-up and sleep strategies, power consumption management, PWM dimming, tell-tale management and user interface behavior.
• Basic hardware and software knowledge, including PCBA, SMT, electronic sub-components, ASPICE, V-Model, AUTOSAR principles and software requirement definition for lighting and UGDO functions.
• Ability to review electrical schematics, communication matrices, diagnostic requirements, software specifications and validation plans.
• Plastic injection molding process knowledge, including materials characteristics, design constraints, Moldflow report analysis, dimensional control and cosmetic part feasibility.
• Knowledge of component assembly processes for overhead consoles, including lens assembly, light guide integration, PCBA assembly, ultrasonic welding, heat staking, manual, semi-automatic and automatic assembly operations.
• Understanding of end-of-line testing for lighting functions, switch functions, UGDO programming readiness, RF performance, electrical continuity and cosmetic inspection.
• APQP product development process experience, including DFMEA, PFMEA, DVP&R, PPAP, validation planning, quality methodologies and supplier manufacturing capability assessment.
• FEA/CAE report analysis capability and ability to assess structural robustness, retention performance, head impact behavior and environmental durability.
• Experience with Stellantis releasing systems, engineering processes, sourcing milestones, technical reviews, cost breakdowns and component lifecycle management.
• Ability to estimate engineering component costs, allocate development resources and understand the fundamental economics of part development, tooling, validation and supplier industrialization.

Basic Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering, Mechatronics Engineering, Mechanical Engineering or equivalent technical field
• Minimum 8 years of experience in automotive component development, with proven exposure to overhead consoles, lighting functions integrated into interior modules, electronic interior modules, roof-mounted components or mechatronic systems
• Experience in automotive product development from concept phase through validation, launch and serial life
• Ability to define, apply and review technical specifications, performance requirements, validation plans and design guidelines for automotive components
• Working knowledge of core automotive development tools and processes, including DFMEA, PFMEA, DVP&R, APQP, PPAP and supplier technical reviews
• Basic knowledge of mechanical, electrical, plastic component, lighting and vehicle packaging constraints for interior customer-facing components
• Strong organizational, cross-functional leadership, communication and technical decision-making skills in a global engineering environment
• Willingness to travel to suppliers, manufacturing plants and engineering centers as required to support sourcing, validation, launch and issue resolution activities

Preferred Qualifications:

• Specific experience with optical validation, photometric testing, LED-based lighting features integrated within interior modules, light guides, lenses or illuminated user interfaces
• Specific experience with RF products, wireless access systems, UGDO-like devices, antenna integration, pairing procedures or regional RF compliance requirements
• Experience with perceived quality, gap and flush management, color harmony, grain and gloss matching, cosmetic validation and BSR/NVH prevention for interior components
• Automotive assembly plant, supplier industrialization and/or vehicle launch experience
• Experience with supplier development, manufacturing feasibility reviews, sourcing support and cost optimization for cosmetic, electronic or mechatronic interior components
• Quality organization experience and basic knowledge of IATF 16949 requirements
• Additional language knowledge, preferably Italian, French, Portuguese or Spanish