Automotive Engineering

As its name suggests, automotive engineering deals with the intricate design of automobiles (cars, bikes, trucks, buses, etc.). Given the obvious abundance of automobiles, in modern times, the rapid growth this field enjoys was inevitable. A wide variety of tasks are required of automotive engineers, and they are an invaluable resource to manufacturers.

Automobile manufacturers are in abundance. For this reason, they compete vigorously, in their respective markets, for business. To do this, they must design better cars, while keeping the costs within a range that consumers can afford. This is where automotive engineers find their work, and are in growing demand by these auto companies.

The most popular enhancement a car can have, from a consumer standpoint, is speed. Faster cars are just cooler. The speed that consumers want, however, does not come easily. It involves complex engineering feats that squeeze every ounce of power from fuel. Often, automotive engineers need to redesign the engine from scratch just to get the slightest increase in speed. This task is obviously quite complex and requires highly specialized training, as well as the ability to think outside the box to solve problems.

Another, almost equally popular, feature is acceleration - how fast a car can accrue speed (typically measured as the time it takes to go from 0 - 60 miles per hour). Automotive engineers are charged with finding new ways to power engines, which allow them to attain maximum speed, faster. This is often an immensely complicated task, requiring an exceptionally deep knowledge of advanced physics, and mathematics. Only the brightest, and most enthusiastic, automotive engineers will find themselves on such projects.

The final of the most critical features, for making a car marketable, is safety. With an ever increasing number of automobile accidents, each year, manufacturers are facing pressure to make their cars safer. This task, perhaps more complex than the first two, involves the design of new mechanisms to improve the safety of the vehicles. Whereas, once upon a time, front airbags were considered enough, experience has taught us better. These automotive engineers must find ways to implement new, innovative, and often intricate, safety measures - without sacrificing too much of the speed, and acceleration, that makes the cars sell - a tall order. Safety measures can even cross the engineering border into computer engineering - use of "intelligent" processors, built into the car, to calculate factors that may increase the likelihood of an accident, and subsequently warn the driver.

It is easy to see, given the great challenges they face, why automotive engineers are paid so well. Auto manufacturers make very large profits, simple because cars are inherently expensive, and are able to compensate these critical staff members very well. Automotive engineering is a very lucrative field for those proficient in the required subjects.