Cool Job Alert: Go Test Cars For A Living With Consumer Reports

I’m gonna let you in on a secret: The car journalism industry is pretty damn small. After a few years, you’ll meet the majority of the people in the club, whether through manufacturer-sponsored trips, reveal events, car shows, or working directly alongside them. Because the car-testing industry is so small, it’s pretty rare to see job listings looking for people with such a niche skillset.

Seeing any car-testing job pop up online is a special occasion. But seeing one this cool is especially rare. Consumer Reports is looking for an engineer to help test out cars at its Connecticut headquarters. And unlike most auto testing jobs, which usually have people sitting at a desk 95 percent of the time, this one sounds mostly hands-on.

Consumer Reports is a silent juggernaut in the consumer product space. Unlike most car-focused magazines and websites, CR operates as a non-profit organization and stays in business thanks to its members, who pay a yearly $39 fee. For that fee, members gain access to CR’s huge 85-year-old library of product tests, which it conducts in-house. And unlike virtually every other outlet, CR buys all of the cars it tests, ensuring fairness and integrity.

It’s not just cars that Consumer Reports buys. It also tests car insurance, bike racks, and other car-related stuff people spend money on. And automotive is only a fraction of its business. CR also tests stuff like TVs, mattresses, microwaves, curling irons, home security systems, pillows, toilets, bidets, dishwashers, and even crypto wallets. If it’s in the home, CR probably has an opinion on it.

Consumer Reports says it tests over 50 new models a year. In this case, “test” doesn’t just mean a week-long loan and a few hundred miles. The firm puts some serious seat time in on every car it buys and puts each through a litany of different trials to gather lots of data. From CR’s website:

[The] tests include acceleration, braking, emergency handling, and fuel economy, among others. We also evaluate usability, fit and finish, noise, ride, and safety systems. For electric vehicles, we consider factors such as speed and ease of charging, and range.

The job, then, is a bit different than your average automotive journalist. Not only would you be performing these tests, but you’ll also be refining them to better serve CR’s members. Plus, it sounds like you might even have to do some media work on the company’s behalf. From the job listing:

On a daily basis, you may:

• Coordinate and participate in the hands-on testing and reporting of findings for over 50 vehicles each year.

• Assist in developing and documenting test criteria, ensuring test protocols and procedures are followed, developing methodologies to meet testing objectives, writing and reviewing technical reports, and providing feedback on various aspects of the vehicle.

• Be a CR expert at industry events, in press interviews, on our podcast, and in front of clients.

The coolest part about working for Consumer Reports—at least, looking from the outside—is the company’s 327-acre private testing center in Colchester, Connecticut. It includes a full-size road course and a skidpad, allowing testers to push the limits of CR’s always-rotating fleet, and perform simulated emergency handling and braking maneuvers. While this role is technically a hybrid position, the listing says you’ll have to be on-site at the center up to four days a week, which makes sense. You can’t test cars from a desk at home.

If you want the job, Consumer Reports needs to see some credentials. While you don’t technically need an engineering degree, it’d probably be pretty helpful. from the listing:

As an Automotive Engineer at our 327-acre Auto Test Center, you will report to the Associate Director, Auto Test Development. You’ll work closely with Auto testers, Usability Testers and journalists across the organization to test, capture and record the data that contributes to how we evaluate over 50 vehicles per year.

You’ll Be Highly Rated If:

• You have earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Engineering, Applied Science, or related field and at least 5-years experience in a related vehicle-testing capacity in the automotive industry (may be substituted for equivalent combination of work experience and/or education).

• You have User Experience background. You have experience with User Testing, Vehicle User Interface Design or similar.

• You are a strong and confident communicator. Your experience includes communicating findings via written and oral reports.

• You are comfortable and proficient with both Microsoft and Google Suite. You have used Excel to capture data, PowerPoint for presentations and Google Docs for communication sharing.

The pay is pretty good, too; Consumer Reports lists a salary range of $100,000 to $105,000. You’ll also be working with some of the coolest people in the industry. We at The Autopian have met a bunch of the people running CR’s automotive division, and have even had the pleasure of working alongside a few of them in the past. Here’s publisher Matt Hardigree, visiting the track 10 years ago:

Working with cars is certainly a dream job (ask me how I know), but this position doesn’t seem like the type where you can kick back. You’ll probably be out on the track testing cars most days, which might get tiring if you’re doing it in 95-degree heat or a 15-degree blizzard. And it’s not like you’ll be driving sports cars all day—Consumer Reports tests every type of passenger car, including some of the most unexciting crossovers you can think of.

Still, any sort of job in this industry is way better than doing something “normal.” I can only think of three others that are likely better (race car driver, fighter jet pilot, astronaut). If you can’t be any of those, this gig ain’t bad. Getting it will likely be tough, as anyone who loves cars and thinks they’re qualified will send their resume in. Instead of going through several rounds of interviews, might I suggest a televised fight to the death between the top five candidates? Available only to paying Consumer Reports members, of course.

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Top photo: Consumer Reports / YouTube