Senior Mechanical Engineer - Closures

The role

You will own the closures architecture for Zoox's fully autonomous vehicles, acting as subject matter expert for doors, latches, hinges, actuators, seals and glazing. You will also personally design and take critical closure components from concept through sourcing, validation and launch.

What you will do

• Serve as technical owner and subject matter expert for the complete closures system.
• Set and defend the closures architecture across current and future vehicle programs.
• Own the closures requirements set and its rationale, and improve the testing flow from component to full-vehicle level.
• Create design processes and standards such as kinematic synthesis, system dynamic modeling, DFM and mechanism design.
• Personally own the design of critical closure components and mechanisms through launch, including production-quality CAD and drawings with GD&T.
• Size and check your own designs using calculations, FEA pre-processing, and Python/MATLAB modeling.
• Lead root cause analysis on complex hardware problems and drive fixes to closure.
• Influence executive-level decisions, mentor engineers, and act as technical contact for closures suppliers.

Required qualifications

• BS in Mechanical Engineering, Robotics, Mechatronics, or a related field.
• 10+ years of professional mechanical engineering experience (or 8+ years with an advanced degree), focused on automotive closures, complex mechanisms, or robotics.
• Demonstrated ownership of a closures system or equivalent complex integrated vehicle system at the architecture level.
• Proven record of taking closure systems or complex mechanisms through the full development cycle to mass production.
• Expert-level fluency in 3D CAD, preferably CATIA, with ability to release production-quality parts.
• Deep experience designing automated sliding or hinged doors, liftgates, trunks, decklids, or charge-port mechanisms.
• Demonstrated expertise in kinematic synthesis and mechanism load-path design.
• Strong knowledge of Design for Manufacturability, GD&T, dimensional engineering, and manufacturing processes (casting, stamping, injection molding, extrusion).
• Able to hold a credible technical conversation with EE, firmware, CAE, manufacturing, quality and service, and arbitrate between them.

Nice to have

• Experience with simulation tools such as MATLAB/Simulink for mechanical system modeling and closed-loop control.
• Solid electronics fundamentals, including ECUs, sensor selection, CAN bus and basic electrical debug.
• Experience with FEA and feasibility tools such as InspireForm, InspireCast or similar.
• Experience with transit, commercial or fleet applications with high cycle counts and demanding service conditions.
• Experience with seal design, water management, wind noise and/or door-closing effort.

Before you apply

• You do not need to match every listed expectation to apply.

About the company

Zoox is developing the first ground-up, fully autonomous vehicle fleet and the supporting ecosystem to bring it to market. It aims to provide next-generation mobility-as-a-service in urban environments.