Vehicle Systems Engineer

This role sits at the heart of Lightfoot's vehicle compatibility programme. The Vehicle Systems Engineer is responsible for acquiring, researching, and reverse engineering the latest EV and commercial vehicles to extract the key data that underpins Lightfoot's driver behaviour and efficiency platform, enabling full functionality of in-cab Lightfoot products. They will support these responsibilities through automating processes and tooling.

The role requires a methodical, proactive approach to building and maintaining a vehicle integration pipeline, delivering a growing portfolio of integrated vehicles. It also demands strong stakeholder relationships with vehicle OEMs, builders, and fleet operators.

This role is remote; however, we ideally seek candidates based in or around the Birmingham area who can travel to vehicle suppliers, OEM partners, and customer fleet sites.

Main Duties and Responsibilities

Vehicle Acquisition and Connectivity:

Source and acquire target vehicles for integration based on the vehicle integration roadmap
Identify and access vehicle data through interfaces such as OBDII, proprietary connectors, inductive sensors, and direct vehicle loom access
Capture and log raw vehicle data in a structured and contextualised format enabling analysis and simulation
Decode and map signals to derive meaningful parameters such as speed, battery state, torque, and fault codes
Document integrations for usage by Field Installation Engineers and customer self-installers
Automation and Tooling:

Optimise integration processes through automation and enhanced tooling
Own and continually improve vehicle data simulator(s) for process optimisation and integration testing
Delivery Pipeline and Roadmap:

Drive a high cadence of vehicle integrations, ensuring new vehicle support reaches production at pace
Contribute to the vehicle integration roadmap, prioritising own work accordingly
Track progress against integration targets and proactively flag risks or blockers
Stakeholder Relationships:

Maintain close relationships with vehicle OEMs and bodybuilders to obtain technical documentation and early access to new platforms
Coordinate field research and testing of new integrations with Field Installation Engineers
Act as the technical point of contact for vehicle compatibility queries from internal teams and Field Installation Engineers
Collaboration and Support:

Work closely with the Embedded & Vehicle Systems team to translate findings into firmware and application updates
Contribute to root cause analysis for vehicle compatibility issues raised in the field
Support pre-sales and account management with vehicle compatibility assessments where required
Creativity & Innovation

Proactively identify new approaches to vehicle data acquisition as OEM architectures evolve
Contribute ideas to improve integration tooling, documentation practices, and testing processes
Stay current with EV platform developments and emerging vehicle communication standards
Levels of Responsibility

Accountable for delivery cadence
Works with a high degree of autonomy, reporting progress to the Head of Embedded & Vehicle Systems
Represents Lightfoot externally with OEMs and fleet stakeholders
Working Conditions

37.5 hours a week, across Monday - Friday
Regular travel to vehicle suppliers, OEM partners, and customer fleet sites
Hands-on work with physical vehicles required
Key Skills

Supports and embodies Lightfoot's core values: To Care, To Deliver, To Innovate
Strong programming skillset, including Python and C/C++
Experience of vehicle systems, including diagnostics and electrical architecture
Deep technical knowledge of diagnostic standards (e.g. SAE J1939, SAE J1979)
Strong analytical mindset with excellent attention to detail
Proactive planner who can manage a broad workload and maintain momentum
Confident communicator with internal teams, OEMs, and fleet customers
Commercially aware and outcome-focused
Comfortable working with physical vehicles and diagnostic hardware
REF-(Apply online only)