ADAS Diagnostic Systems Engineer

Ford Motor Company; Dearborn (MI); Hybrid; USD 100,000 - 193,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical benefits

Parental leave

Tuition assistance

Employee discounts

PTO

Job summary

Ford Motor Company is seeking an ADAS Diagnostics Systems Engineer to own the diagnostic strategy for assigned ADAS features, collaborating with software and controls engineers to define fault detection thresholds and failure responses. You will lead root-cause analysis, author diagnostic specs, and ensure alignment with UDS/OBD standards throughout development.

The role emphasizes collaboration across engineering, manufacturing, and service teams, with responsibilities spanning architecture,

Qualifications

• 2+ years of experience in vehicle systems engineering including architecture development and failure mode analysis (DFMEA).
• 2+ years of experience with automotive diagnostics development (DTCs, DIDs, diagnostic strategy/architecture).
• Familiarity with diagnostic communication standards (UDS/ISO 14229, OBD).
• Experience translating stakeholder needs into technical requirements or design proposals.

Responsibilities

• Architect and own diagnostic strategy for assigned ADAS features/subsystems from concept through production.
• Author diagnostic specifications and behavioral models for software and hardware teams.
• Design diagnostic architecture in alignment with UDS, OBD, and corporate standards.
• Collaborate with software/controls engineers to define fault detection thresholds and failure mode responses before coding.
• Lead or support root-cause investigations for diagnostic anomalies identified during development.
• Develop troubleshooting guides and diagnostic documentation for engineering, manufacturing, and service teams.
• Define and execute validation criteria for diagnostic specifications to ensure intended behavior.
• Manage diagnostic issue triage and DTC lifecycle across the product lifecycle.

Skills

Vehicle systems engineering

DFMEA

Diagnostics development

UDS/OBD knowledge

Stakeholder communication

Cross-functional leadership

Education

Bachelor's degree in engineering

Tools

CAN/LIN/Ethernet

MBSE tools

Job description

The ADAS Diagnostics Systems Engineering team leads the development and implementation of diagnostic strategies for the ADAS System, leveraging manufacturing, service, and engineering data to ensure reliability, high performance, and customer satisfaction.

What You'll Do...

• Architect and own diagnostic strategy for assigned ADAS features/subsystems, as part of a broader diagnostics team responsible for the overall ADAS diagnostic architecture — defining diagnostic requirements, fault detection logic, DTC set structure, and failure response strategy for your area of responsibility from concept through production, using systems engineering principles, and ensuring alignment with the team's overall diagnostic strategy and architecture.
• Author diagnostic specifications and behavioral models (e.g., state diagrams, sequence diagrams, DTC maturation/healing logic) that translate system-level failure modes into implementable diagnostic requirements for software and hardware teams.
• Design diagnostic architecture in alignment with UDS (ISO 14229), OBD, and corporate diagnostic standards.
• Serve as the intake and technical owner for enhanced diagnostics requests from internal customers — eliciting and clarifying the underlying problem statement or customer need, assessing priority and feasibility against the overall diagnostics scope of work in partnership with the diagnostics team, developing design proposals, and incorporating approved changes into diagnostic specifications.
• Collaborate directly with software/controls engineers during feature development to define fault detection thresholds, enable conditions, and failure mode responses before code is written — not after issues surface in validation.
• Lead or support root-cause investigations for diagnostic anomalies identified during development — Working with internal engineering functions and suppliers, identify defect source, feed findings back into diagnostic architecture and DTC strategy updates (continuous improvement, not just issue closure).
• Develop troubleshooting guides and diagnostic documentation to enable engineering, manufacturing, and service teams to act on the diagnostics you designed.
• Define and execute validation criteria for diagnostic specifications you author, ensuring diagnostic behavior meets intent — validation as the final checkpoint of a strategy you built, not a standalone verification task.
• Manage diagnostic issue triage and DTC lifecycle management across the product lifecycle, with a focus on identifying architecture-level fixes rather than one-off patches.

You'll have…

• Bachelor's degree in Electrical, Mechanical, Computer, Software Engineering, Data Science, or a related field
• 2+ years of experience in vehicle systems engineering, including architecture development, requirements definition and authoring, and failure mode analysis (DFMEA)
• 2+ years of experience with automotive diagnostics development (DTCs, DIDs, diagnostic strategy/architecture)
• Familiarity with diagnostic communication standards (e.g., UDS/ISO 14229, OBD)
• Experience translating stakeholder needs or problem statements into technical requirements or design proposals
• Strong learning agility, adaptability, and systems thinking
• Excellent analytical, problem-solving, and troubleshooting skills
• Proven ability to lead and collaborate within cross-functional teams
• Effective verbal and written communication skills

Even better, you may have…

• Master's degree in Electrical, Controls, Computer, Mechanical, or Systems Engineering or a related field
• 5+ years of experience in vehicle systems engineering, including architecture development, requirements definition and authoring, and failure mode analysis (DFMEA)
• 5+ years of experience with automotive diagnostics development and architecture (DTCs, DIDs, diagnostic strategy)
• Experience authoring diagnostic specifications or behavioral models (e.g., state diagrams, sequence diagrams, DTC maturation/healing logic)
• Experience with electrical module design, in-vehicle communication protocols (CAN, LIN, Ethernet, UDS), and power distribution
• Experience with requirements management tools and model-based systems engineering
• Experience with systems engineering or electronic component release engineering during major vehicle build launch milestones
• Experience leading root-cause analysis (e.g., 8D, 5-Why) with cross-functional or supplier teams
• Experience with Agile methodologies

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
• Flexible family care days, 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
• A generous schedule of paid holidays, including the week between Christmas and New Year’s Day
• Paid time off and the option to purchase additional vacation time.

This position is a range of salary grades 7-8 and ranges from $99,600-$192,900.

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.

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.

This position is hybrid. Candidates who are in commuting distance to a Ford hub location may be required to be onsite four or more days per week.