Industrial Placement - R+D - Vehicle Motion

Salary: £24,327

Duration: 12 month contract                                                                                                  

Start Date: 17th August 2026
Location: Based in Crewe, Cheshire, CW1 3PL.

Work Arrangement: Hybrid and international travel within the EU

Entry Requirements: See ‘What we’re looking for’ section

Our Industrial Placement Programme:

As part of Bentley’s annual Early Careers intake, you’ll join a community of around 250 trainees including Industrial Placements, Graduates, and Apprentices.

During your placement, you’ll be based at our Bentley Campus "Dream Factory". Click here to visit our virtual tour. Alongside hands-on work experience, you’ll also benefit from:

• CSR and outreach activities
• Opportunities to participate in charity events, community projects, and social committees
• Masterclasses, development workshops, and social events
• Inclusivity networks and peer support groups
• Placements and rotations across different areas of the business that interest you

About the role:

As an Industrial Placement Student at Bentley, you will play a key part in Bentley’s journey to creating extraordinary vehicles for our customers. Based out of our state-of-the-art headquarters in Crewe, you will:

• Gain invaluable experience working on cutting-edge projects that drive the development of advanced automotive technologies,
• Have the opportunity to develop key skills in software validation, system calibration, and the delivery of complex engineering solutions,
• Collaborate closely with cross-functional teams and industry experts, enhancing their ability to manage projects, solve technical challenges, and contribute to innovation in automotive motion systems,
• Gain exposure to continuous improvement processes,
• Have the opportunity to influence the future of high performance vehicle systems at Bentley Motors.

Your main responsibilities include:

• Supporting the development of the digital prototyping strategy for vehicle motion,
• Maintaining the internal technology roadmap and conducting competitor benchmarking for automotive technologies,
• Completing calibration and software releases for all Bentley projects,
• Collaborating with the VW Group engineers to understand future platform developments,
• Supporting and delivering continuous improvement projects within the department.

About the Department:

This role plays an integral part within the R&D Engineering Vehicle Motion department focusing on systems validation and release of the motion systems which include:

• Chassis Dynamics,
• Driveline, Brakes, Stability Systems,
• ICE & PHEV Systems,
• ADAS.

The primary objective of this role is to support the development of a digital prototyping strategy for powertrain, drive systems and Driver assistance systems. This will involve close collaboration with key stakeholders within the Vehicle Motion department as well as our development partners within the group.

Additionally, the role will be responsible for supporting the release of Bentley calibrations and contributing to the development of new tools and processes to support ongoing Bentley projects.

What we are looking for:

The successful candidates will be on track to achieve a 2:1 in the following degrees: Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Motorsports Engineering, Software Engineering, Mathematics, Physics and Mechatronics. Skills required for the role:

• Involvement in formula student,
• Demonstratable experience in vehicle dynamics simulation,
• Experience with MATLAB, SIMULINK & Programming such as Python.

What we offer:

As an Industrial Placement you will have access to the following benefits:

• A starting salary of £24,327
• Support from our Early Careers team and 121 manager mentorship
• 35 days’ holiday inclusive of bank holidays
• 10% pension contribution with life assurance benefits
• Learning and development opportunities

Right To Work:

To be eligible for an Early Careers programme you must have a legal right to work in the UK for the duration of the placement or graduate scheme. We welcome students who have Settled Status, a Tier 4 Visa, or a Graduate Visa. We are unable to offer sponsorship for our Early Careers positions. 

#BelongingAtBentley
Motivated to be the most diverse, inclusive luxury car company, we are committed to fostering an inclusive environment where all individuals are respected, valued, and empowered. 

We firmly believe in equal opportunities for all, helping all colleagues thrive as their authentic selves and reach their highest potential. We believe that everyone, regardless of their background or beliefs, belongs at Bentley. Everyone is entitled to respect and dignity and we positively celebrate the differences between people.

Working at Bentley

To learn more about what life is like working at Bentley, and our assessment process view our Candidate Pack here.

Closing date: 14th November 2025.

We aim to progress to online assessments in December and offer by the end of the month.

Click here to view our FAQs.