Car Designer

Car Designer Career

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Car Designers design the aesthetics of a car and ensure that its look will interface with its function. This doesn’t mean that a Car Designer will be designing the engine per say, but he or she will design the hood to such specifications as will house the engine (and look snazzy while doing so).

Under the title of Car Designer you can focus on three main areas: Exterior design, interior design, and color and trim design. In the first area you develop the shape, proportions, and surface of the automobile—i.e. you decide what a car looks like. In the second you deal with the ergonomics of the interior, which includes everything from researching seat shape and spacing to ensuring that the dashboard can interface with various gadgets and technologies. In both positions you sketch your designs, translate the sketches into digital models, then create 3D clay models of the best designs.

Color and trim design is a bit different. Here you decide all exterior and interior materials to be used. You research color combinations and wood grains, leather types and carpets to put together an appealing collection of shapes, look and feel. So this position is more about research than model building.

On the whole, a Car Designer draws on skills from interior design, architectural drafting, fashion research and product design. You study form and function, and your work go towards creating the newest vehicles on the market.

How do I become a Car Designer?

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Starting off in industrial design and going for a graduate degree in transportation engineering is probably the most well trodden path. However you can also work as an Industrial Designer for a few years after your bachelors and use your experience to substitute for a graduate degree.