Product Quality Engineer, Vehicle Systems
Waymo
$210,000 - $259,000 / year
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Description
Waymo is an autonomous driving technology company with the mission to be the world's most trusted driver. Since its start as the Google Self-Driving Car Project in 2009, Waymo has focused on building the Waymo Driver—The World's Most Experienced Driver™—to improve access to mobility while saving thousands of lives now lost to traffic crashes. The Waymo Driver powers Waymo’s fully autonomous ride-hail service and can also be applied to a range of vehicle platforms and product use cases. The Waymo Driver has provided over ten million rider-only trips, enabled by its experience autonomously driving over 100 million miles on public roads and tens of billions in simulation across 15+ U.S. states.
Hardware Engineering is an innovative and collaborative group of electrical, mechanical, reliability, software and vehicle engineers. We design, build, and perfect the products which are the eyes and ears of Waymo's autonomous driving technology, and integrate those products into vehicle platforms. We're seeking curious and talented teammates to keep us moving in the right direction.
This is an on-location role and you will report to the Product Quality Manager.
You will:
- Quality Planning: Lead Advanced Product Quality Planning (APQP) and oversee the Production Part Approval Process (PPAP) for new vehicle launches. Verify & ensure full compliance with the specification matrix to confirm adherence to the Engineering Requirement Specification (ERS). Provide end-to-end lifecycle quality support for Base Vehicle Hardware/Firmware and SDS vehicle components throughout the vehicle Product Development Plan (PDP).
- Ensure that the product design process, including activities like DFMEA, design reviews, DFM (Design for Manufacturing), and DFx, meets quality standards and results in a high-quality vehicle.
- Collaborate with OEM and cross-functional teams such as OEMs, HW engineering, Vehicle Integration, Supply chain, and other teams during product development to verify compliance with internal and external quality standards and requirements and improve product quality.
- Root Cause Analysis: Lead investigations into vehicle quality issues and manufacturing defects using problem-solving methodologies like 8D, 5-Why, and Ishikawa diagrams.
- Continuous Improvement: Analyze field warranty data and assembly line defect rates to identify trends and drive corrective actions that improve overall vehicle reliability.
- Baseline Requirements & Safe Launch: Establish initial quality processes, FMEAs, and dynamic inspection/testing protocols. Finalize and lock Control Plans, PFMEAs, and inspection SOPs to facilitate hardware freeze. Launch Safe Launch protocols and pinpoint critical systems that need heightened lifecycle monitoring.
You have:
- Bachelor's degree in Electrical, Computer, Mechanical Engineering or a related field
- 10+ years of automotive industry experience in design engineering for vehicle product development, focusing on Vehicle Quality.
- Proficiency in evaluating and interpreting complex vehicle specifications to confirm complete compliance during both validation and manufacturing processes.
- Proficiency in core quality tools and methodologies: APQP, PPAP, FMEA, MSA (Measurement System Analysis), SPC (Statistical Process Control), DOE and 8D problem-solving.
- Experience with data analysis, statistical tools, and quality control systems
- Excellent communication, leadership, and problem-solving skills
We prefer:
- Master's degree in Electrical, Computer, Mechanical Engineering, or a related field
- Exceptional attention to detail and ability to leverage data forensics for resolving complex manufacturing assembly quality issues
- Demonstrated experience in one or more of the following areas: New Product Introduction, Design Engineering, or Manufacturing Operations in consumer electronics
- Strong understanding of electronic assembly processes. & Solid grasp of statistical analysis and production control processes
- Proficient in data analysis and interpretation
- Experience collaborating with international contract manufacturers in mass production, including travel to manufacturing sites
- Highly motivated self-starter with innovative thinking, integrity, and meticulous attention to detail
Travel requirements:
- 20% travel as needed
The expected base salary range for this full-time position across US locations is listed below. Actual starting pay will be based on job-related factors, including exact work location, experience, relevant training and education, and skill level. Your recruiter can share more about the specific salary range for the role location or, if the role can be performed remote, the specific salary range for your preferred location, during the hiring process.
Waymo employees are also eligible to participate in Waymo’s discretionary annual bonus program, equity incentive plan, and generous Company benefits program, subject to eligibility requirements.
Benefits
- stock options
- bonus
About this role
# About This Role
Waymo is seeking a Vehicle Product Engineer to lead quality assurance and compliance for autonomous vehicle hardware and components throughout product development and manufacturing. You'll own the end-to-end quality lifecycle, from Advanced Product Quality Planning and Production Part Approval processes through to safe launch protocols. This means driving cross-functional collaboration with OEM partners, hardware engineers, and supply chain teams to ensure designs meet rigorous specifications and quality standards. You'll also investigate vehicle defects and manufacturing issues using structured problem-solving methodologies, then translate findings into corrective actions and continuous improvements based on warranty and assembly line data.
This role requires deep automotive expertise—specifically 10+ years in vehicle product development with a strong quality engineering focus. You need fluency in core quality tools like APQP, PPAP, FMEA, and statistical process control, plus the ability to interpret complex specifications and evaluate manufacturing compliance. The position is based in Mountain View and requires 20% travel, likely to manufacturing and testing sites. It's well-suited for someone with a background in design or manufacturing engineering who thrives on data-driven problem-solving and can lead technical discussions across multiple disciplines to ship reliable hardware at scale.
How this employer is doing
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In the news
Waymo’s Expansion Is Putting Uber and Lyft Drivers on Notice, Autoblog
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Pay for this role
$210,000 to $259,000 per year
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