Fault Response Engineer, Drive Systems

Fault Response Engineer, Drive Systems Tesla Motors, Inc. 128,000 - 192,000 USD paid holidays, flex time, 401(k) United States, California, Palo Alto Apr 10, 2026
What to Expect The Drive System Engineering team (Drvie Unit + Inverter) is looking for a world class Fault Response Engineer. You will apply system-level thinking to develop new fault response strategies and improve the real-world performance of all Tesla Drive System products, including Cybercab and Tesla Semi. Your primary goal is to increase the resiliency of Tesla's vehicles against single point faults and latent faults. You will manage large-scale data analysis to track failures in Tesla's fleet, then lead efforts to reduce these failures by introducing root cause preventive measures or new fault response design features. You will lead design changes and conduct testing across hardware component subsystems, SIL, PIL and HIL to ensure comprehensive coverage of our fault handling systems. What You'll Do
Track fleet performance of fault responses, recreate the field incidents in the test lab, and drive countermeasures
Build and maintain automated data pipelines to track fault propagation and fleet performance across our global fleet
Generate test plans to both validate requirements and characterize power electronics fault response of early prototypes, mass production units and future products
Write SIL and PIL tests in Pytest
Conduct physical hardware testing on High Voltage systems, often on dynos and using instrumentation such as oscilloscopes, differential probes and current clamps
Develop and implement new fault response strategies across the integrated mechanical, electrical and firmware domains. Automate physical hardware test sequences to increase throughput and repeatability
Perform component teardowns after destructive tests to analyze and understand failure mechanisms, and help recreate field failures for investigation
Lead planning and execution of abuse and fault response validation tests for power electronics such as HV short circuit tests, overvoltage, conductive fluid exposure, over temp, LV brownouts, Loss of HV, and more
Adhere to and enforce strict safety protocols for handling hazardous materials and high-voltage systems, and meticulously document test setups and results What You'll Bring
Bachelor's degree in Electrical, Mechatronics Engineering, or equivalent experience
Experience handling High Voltage systems
Experience troubleshooting LV faults on PCBAs
Experience with instrumentation and data acquisition systems (e.g. Oscilloscopes, DAQs, Diff Probes, Current Clamps)
Strong experience in simulation, data analysis, Python/Pytest and MATLAB/Simulink required; working knowledge of C/C++ a plus
Experience creating and executing design validation plans and test methods to validate performance requirements
Experience conducting DFMEA and FTA
Experience with SQL and large-scale data analysis preferred
Experience with environment management (git, Docker, virtual environments) preferred
Working knowledge of power electronics, motors and gearboxes a plus; working knowledge of traction inverters a strong plus Compensation and Benefits
Benefits Along with competitive pay, as a full-time Tesla employee, you are eligible for the following benefits at day 1 of hire: Medical plans > plan options with $0 payroll deduction
Family-building, fertility, adoption and surrogacy benefits
Dental (including orthodontic coverage) and vision plans, both have options with a $0 paycheck contribution
Company Paid (Health Savings Accounts) HSA Contribution when enrolled in the High-Deductible medical plan with HSA
Healthcare and Dependent Care Flexible Spending Accounts (FSA)
401(k) with employer match, Employee Stock Purchase Plans, and other financial benefits
Company paid Basic Life, AD&D
Short-term and long-term disability insurance (90 day waiting period)
Employee Assistance Program
Sick and Vacation time (Flex time for salary positions, Accrued hours for Hourly positions), and Paid Holidays
Back-up childcare and parenting support resources
Voluntary benefits to include: critical illness, hospital indemnity, accident insurance, theft & legal services, and pet insurance
Weight Loss and Tobacco Cessation Programs
Tesla Babies program
Commuter benefits
Employee discounts and perks program
Expected Compensation
$128,000 - $192,000/annual salary + cash and stock awards + benefits Pay offered may vary depending on multiple individualized factors, including market location, job-related knowledge, skills, and experience. The total compensation package for this position may also include other elements dependent on the position offered. Details of participation in these benefit plans will be provided if an employee receives an offer of employment.