Annual Salary
£20,000 to £45,000
Average UK salary in 2019 was £30,378
(source Office for National Statistics)
Swap to Maintenance or Manufacturing or go back to all job sectors
Swap to Maintenance or Manufacturing or go back to all job sectors
Automotive engineers design, develop, test and build cars and motorbikes.
Average UK salary in 2019 was £30,378
(source Office for National Statistics)
You could work: evenings; on shifts
There will be
3% more Automotive engineer jobs in 2026.
In your local area
You might work in design, development or production on:
You could:
You could work in an office, at a research facility or at a manufacturing plant.
You can get into this job through:
You could do a foundation degree, higher national diploma or degree, before joining a company graduate training scheme.
Relevant subjects include:
A course with a work placement or an internship will be especially useful.
Some car manufacturing companies offer undergraduate year in industry placements that give you the chance to develop industry skills and earn a salary.
You'll usually need:
You could do a degree apprenticeship and combine learning in the workplace with doing an engineering degree at an approved university.
Relevant degree apprenticeships include:
If you already have a degree in a science, technology, engineering or maths (STEM) subject, you may be able to do a Level 7 postgraduate engineer apprenticeship.
Applications with automotive engineering companies are competitive and usually open at set times of the year.
Check company websites regularly for application deadline information.
You'll usually need:
You can find out more about careers in the automotive industry through:Autocity; Your Future in Automotive; The IMI (Institute of the Motor Industry)
With experience, you could progress to senior engineer roles, project team management, general management, automotive insurance damage assessment or consultancy.
You'll need: