Autonomous Vehicle Test Engineer

Description

The company is building advanced driver-assistance and autonomous vehicle features that need safe, repeatable, and scalable validation.

This role is the onsite technical lead for a focused closed-course testing operation at the GM Desert Proving Ground in Yuma, Arizona.

You will run day-to-day work for a small fleet of about two to three autonomous test vehicles, plan and carry out closed-course regression, feature, behavior, calibration, and other structured tests, direct a limited group of operations staff, and make sure vehicles, setups, track activity, data, and results are ready for engineering and program decisions.

Yuma has no permanent onsite technicians or additional engineers for routine support, so you must work independently, handle common vehicle and AV system problems, and know when to stop testing or escalate to remote engineering, Service Operations, Fleet Reliability Engineering, Vehicle Integration, or other partners.

The role matters most in winter, when Yuma offers a weather-resilient site to keep closed-course testing going when weather or schedules limit testing elsewhere. You will help turn the local fleet and facility into a dependable, repeatable testing capability rather than a temporary campaign site.

Responsibilities

• Act as the onsite technical lead for all assigned AV closed-course testing in Yuma, turning approved test requests and engineering goals into executable plans, procedures, schedules, and resource needs.
• Plan and run repeatable software regression, feature and behavior validation, structured scenario, calibration, fault-response, and targeted data collection tests.
• Sequence daily testing and track reservations, vehicle assignments, operating windows, safety reviews, and readiness with remote AV Test Engineering and other stakeholders.
• Assign tasks to and brief limited operations staff on vehicle preparation, track setup, lead or target vehicle support, run order, communications, and closeout, while keeping engineering and operations roles clearly separate.
• Decide during execution whether a test should proceed, be changed, be repeated, or be stopped and escalated, based on vehicle condition, system behavior, track conditions, weather, data quality, or safety risk.
• Support extended or non-standard schedules when release timing, track availability, seasonal priorities, or campaign needs require them, within site and safety rules.
• Be the primary technical owner of the two to three assigned test vehicles, tracking configuration, software and calibration state, physical condition, instrumentation, data-recording readiness, and availability.
• Perform or coordinate daily checkouts, pre-drive checks, post-drive inspections, charging or fueling, sensor and camera cleaning, data media handling, and other tasks that keep vehicles ready to test.
• Manage configuration and test preparation, including approved software or branch deployments, calibration updates, route and map selection, logging setup, test tools, and test assets.
• Keep accurate records of vehicle status, mileage or test hours, configuration, test history, open issues, and return-to-service decisions for the local fleet.
• Spot downtime risks early and build containment, recovery, and escalation plans to protect testing time.
• Coordinate parts, materials, shipping, facility resources, charging support, and remote technical help when onsite needs exceed local capability.
• Build and maintain a winter-readiness plan covering vehicle availability, spare equipment, data storage, charging or fueling, test assets, procedures, and contingencies.
• Perform first-line triage on AV software, vehicle compute, sensors, localization, calibration, connectivity, data recording, host vehicle systems, vehicle networks, power or charging, and test infrastructure.
• Use symptoms, operator observations, system status, logs, drive data, diagnostic tools, and repeatable experiments to find likely causes and choose the next step.
• Reproduce issues when safe and practical, record accurate timelines and evidence, and write actionable reports for remote engineering and support teams.
• Decide whether an issue can be contained or fixed onsite or needs removal from service, engineering review, formal change control, or further safety assessment.
• Work with Troubleforce, Service Operations, Fleet Reliability Engineering, Vehicle Integration, AV software and hardware teams, and remote experts to move issues to resolution.
• Support controlled fault-injection or non-nominal testing when requested, confirming test intent, expected system response, safety controls, and data labeling before execution.
• Write practical troubleshooting guides, recovery procedures, checklists, and escalation paths that reduce reliance on ad hoc help and make future Yuma work more repeatable.
• Run procedures consistently and record full run details, including vehicle, software, calibration, map, track, scenario, operator, weather, and timing.
• Judge AV behavior and system response against test objectives and acceptance criteria, separating objective evidence from anecdotes.
• Report pass, fail, blocked, incomplete, and inconclusive results with enough context for engineers to act without repeating avoidable setup.
• Make sure drive links, logs, data media, notes, screenshots, issue references, and other evidence are transferred or uploaded through approved channels.
• Check test data for gaps, corruption, missing signals, unexpected configuration changes, or other problems that limit its use.
• Publish concise test summaries and status updates to engineering and operations forums, and keep traceability in tools such as Jira, Confluence, Xray, Slack, and approved data or fleet systems.
• Give timely feedback to remote software, systems, simulation, safety, and program teams so results support release decisions, feature refinement, and issue priority.
• Help build and improve the permanent Yuma testing capability, including roles, standard work, readiness gates, communications, operating rhythms, and handoffs with AV Test Engineering and AV Operations.
• Maintain a repeatable path for local test requests from intake through clarification, prioritization, planning, execution, reporting, and follow-up.
• Write and maintain onsite documents on vehicle checkout, test preparation, track use, safety controls, data handling, troubleshooting, emergency response, and end-of-day closeout.
• Work with DPG Site Operations, Safety, Infrastructure, Mapping, security, and other facility partners so the site meets requirements and has what it needs to run safely.
• Track local measures such as vehicle availability, test hours, completed and blocked runs, downtime, repeat failures, data upload timing, issue age, and request cycle time.
• Find ways to add usable test hours, cut avoidable setup and reset time, improve vehicle use, and move repeatable work to trained operations staff.
• Turn lessons from winter testing and other campaigns into better plans, asset requirements, procedures, and recommendations for scaling.
• Follow all GM, DPG, AV Operations, AV Test Engineering, and applicable safety procedures and work controls.
• Confirm that people, training, vehicle qualifications, test equipment, track conditions, emergency support, communications, and approved procedures are ready before testing starts.
• Stop work and escalate when vehicle condition, system behavior, weather, track or facility conditions, personnel readiness, or test setup creates unacceptable risk.
• Keep testing staffed by appropriate onsite personnel, with no lone-person operations and no unapproved after-hours work.
• Support incident, near-miss, and abnormal-event reports with accurate facts, timelines, evidence, and follow-up actions.

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in mechanical, electrical, automotive, systems, computer, robotics, or aerospace engineering, computer science, or a related technical field.
• At least 3 years of relevant experience in autonomous vehicles, automotive engineering, robotics, aerospace, vehicle testing, systems integration, test engineering, or a related technical operations setting.
• Experience planning and running tests on vehicles, robots, or other complex electro-mechanical systems in a lab, proving ground, field, or similar operating environment.
• Experience troubleshooting software-enabled hardware using diagnostic data, logs, measurements, observations, and structured problem solving.
• Ability to read and follow test procedures, requirements, acceptance criteria, operating instructions, and safety controls.
• Proven ability to work alone, set priorities, take initiative, and own outcomes with limited onsite support.
• Ability to give clear technical direction to operators, coordinators, contractors, or other support staff during testing, without formal people management duties.
• Strong written and spoken communication, including concise technical reports, escalations, and remote work across time zones and functions.
• Ability to work outdoors at a proving ground in heat, cold, dust, wind, sun, noise, vehicle traffic, and changing conditions.
• Ability to do hands-on vehicle readiness and troubleshooting, including inspecting vehicles, connecting or handling test equipment and data media, and moving through vehicle and track areas as needed.
• Ability to work onsite at the GM Desert Proving Ground in Yuma, Arizona, and travel about 10% as needed.
• Valid driver's license and the ability to meet GM driver training, vehicle qualification, site access, and safety requirements for closed-course vehicle testing.
• Preferred: Direct experience testing autonomous vehicles, advanced driver-assistance systems, mobile robots, or other safety-critical autonomous systems.
• Preferred: Experience with closed-course testing, proving ground operations, scripted scenario testing, release regression, feature validation, calibration support, or structured data collection.
• Preferred: Experience owning a small test fleet or vehicle set, including readiness, configuration management, downtime recovery, maintenance coordination, and return-to-service decisions.
• Preferred: Working knowledge of software-defined vehicle concepts, SDV 2.0 architecture, vehicle compute, electronic control units, over-the-air or branch-based software deployment, vehicle configuration, and software and hardware change management.
• Preferred: Experience with automotive diagnostics, CAN or Ethernet vehicle networks, sensors, localization, calibration, time synchronization, data recording, connectivity, or AV health monitoring.
• Preferred: Familiarity with AV and vehicle tools such as Xray, INCA, Vehicle Spy, Notelogger, SC3 Debug App, Jumpstart, Launchpad, Starfleet, HAT, Drives, Webviz, Netradyne, Grafana, Looker, or comparable tools.
• Preferred: Experience using Linux, command-line tools, Python, SQL, spreadsheets, or other methods to inspect logs, automate repetitive analysis, or improve test and fleet reporting.
• Preferred: Experience leading small operations teams or contractors in a safety-critical, field, lab, proving ground, or shift-based setting.
• Preferred: Experience at the GM Desert Proving Ground, Yuma Proving Ground, Milford Proving Ground, or another proving ground with limited onsite technical support.
• Preferred: Familiarity with formal issue management, root cause analysis, change control, safety case, or corrective action processes.
• Preferred: Experience testing in variable, winter, or desert weather, or in environments where facility and vehicle readiness directly limit test capacity.

Conditions

Job level GM Level 6A, individual contributor track, aligned to the Test and Validation Engineering job family.

Primary location is the GM Desert Proving Ground in Yuma, Arizona.

The role is hybrid from Yuma, AZ, with at least three days a week on site.

Travel is about 10%, for training, team alignment, vehicle support, or other GM testing.

Base salary range is $105,550 to $140,000, with the offer depending on job-related factors.

The pay range is a good faith estimate under applicable state law and may not apply to roles outside New York, Colorado, California, or Washington.

This job may be eligible for relocation support.

The company is an equal opportunity employer, and candidates may need to complete a role assessment or pre-employment screening before starting.

Benefits

• Incentive pay program with payouts based on company performance, job level, and individual performance.
• Medical, dental, vision, Health Savings Account, and Flexible Spending Account options.
• Retirement savings plan, sickness and accident benefits, and life insurance.
• Paid vacation and holidays, tuition assistance, and an employee assistance program.
• GM vehicle discounts and other wellbeing programs.