Thermal Systems Engineer

SupportFinity™; Long Beach (CA); Hybrid; USD 110,000 - 170,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, dental, vision coverage

Paid time off and holidays

Tuition assistance

Employee resource groups

Job summary

Ford Motor Company seeks a Thermal Systems Engineer focusing on the coolant subsystem for electric vehicles. You will design and balance thermal management loops, specify components, and ensure safety, longevity, and efficiency of HV battery, drive unit, and power electronics systems.

You will model and analyze thermal performance, collaborate with design, controls, and test teams, and help translate system requirements into detailed component specs for production readiness.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent in mechanical engineering or related field.
• 3+ years in thermal system design or component engineering.
• Strong thermodynamics, heat transfer, and fluid dynamics knowledge.
• Experience with physical system modeling and simulation tools (e.g., MATLAB/Simulink, GT-SUITE).
• Python or similar language for model development.
• EV thermal management experience preferred.
• Familiarity with CAN/LIN vehicle protocols is a plus.

Responsibilities

• Lead design, development, and integration of fluid-based thermal management loops for EVs.
• Define thermal/hydraulic specs for components like pumps, valves, heat exchangers, fans, hoses.
• Collaborate with hardware, software, and test teams to meet performance and reliability targets.
• Develop and maintain high-fidelity plant models of subsystem behavior.
• Perform thermal analyses to validate targets under diverse operating conditions.
• Coordinate tests to calibrate and refine plant models.

Skills

Thermal system design

Modeling and simulation

Python

MATLAB/Simulink

CAN/LIN familiarity

Collaboration

Education

Bachelor's degree

Master's or PhD preferred

Tools

MATLAB/Simulink

GT-SUITE

Job description

Job Description: We are the movers of the world and the makers of the future. We get up every day, roll up our sleeves and build a better world -- together. At Ford, we’re all a part of something bigger than ourselves. Are you ready to change the way the world moves?

Ford’s Electric Vehicles, Digital and Design (EVDD) team is charged with delivering the company’s vision of a fully electric transportation future. EVDD is customer-obsessed, entrepreneurial, and data-driven and is dedicated to delivering industry-leading customer experience for electric vehicle buyers and owners. You’ll join an agile team of doers pioneering our EV future by working collaboratively, staying focused on only what matters, and delivering excellence day in and day out. Join us to make positive change by helping build a better world where every person is free to move and pursue their dreams.

In this position, you will be a Thermal Systems Engineer focused on the coolant subsystem, responsible for the “circulatory system” of our electric passenger vehicles. Your work is vital to vehicle safety, longevity, and efficiency, as you design the systems that regulate the temperature of the high‑voltage (HV) battery, drive units, power electronics, and other components. You will balance complex trade‑offs between system performance, energy consumption, and cost to ensure peak performance in all use cases.

Responsibilities

• Lead the design, development, and integration of fluid-based thermal management loops.
• Lead the architecture, design, and development of coolant subsystems that interact with HV battery, drive unit, power electronics, refrigeration, and HVAC components.
• Define detailed thermal and hydraulic performance specifications for individual components (e.g., pumps, valves, heat exchangers, fans, hoses, degas bottles, etc.) within the coolant subsystem.
• Work with application engineers to evaluate and select appropriate components based on performance requirements, cost, packaging constraints, and reliability targets.
• Develop, calibrate, and maintain high‑fidelity plant models that accurately simulate thermal and hydraulic behavior of the subsystem’s components.
• Conduct detailed thermal and fluidic analysis to ensure components meet specified performance targets under various operating conditions.
• Collaborate with test engineers to define and execute component and subsystem characterization tests to validate and refine plant models.
• Work closely with the Design Engineers to ensure component designs meet thermal and mechanical requirements, and with the Controls Engineer who will use the plant models for algorithm development.
• Ensure traceability between high‑level system requirements and detailed component specifications.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s or equivalent combination of relevant education and experience.
• 3+ years of experience in thermal system design or component engineering.
• Strong understanding of thermodynamics, heat transfer, and fluid dynamics principles.
• Experience with physical system modeling and simulation tools (e.g., MATLAB/Simulink, GT‑SUITE, etc.).
• Proficiency in Python or similar programming languages for model development.
• Master’s or Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering or related engineering discipline (preferred).
• Experience with EV thermal management systems (preferred).
• Familiarity with vehicle communication protocols (CAN, LIN) for controlling smart pumps and valves (preferred).
• Strong collaborative skills to work across hardware and software teams in a fast‑paced EV development environment.

Benefits include:

• 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.

For more information on salary and benefits, click here: https://fordcareers.co/GSRSP4

This position is a range of salary grades 6-8 .

Visa sponsorship is 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. #UEV