Mechanical engineering covers more than cars and stuff. They can be involved in pums, compressors, turbines (gas, steam or water), heat exhangers, power plants, manfacturing, all types of project work, power generation, systems design and operation, process plant maintenance or operation, construction, instrumentation and control, metallurgy and fluid dynamics to name a few.
Read the reference below.
A mechanical engineer can design mechanical devices for most any application. He/ she designs the mechanism, how to machine the parts, how it is assembled, what material is used and determines if it will withstand the stresses placed on the mechanism.
If you are really interested in designing cars then concentrate on automobile engineering, than mechanical
Nope.
To design the looks of cars(body, interior), study Industrial Design. It is offered in few schools. One in Philadelphia. One in California. One in New York. And a few in Michigan. The other schools that offer it are in Italy and Europe. Industrial Designers don't just design cars. If they worked for Apple, they would design computer shells or cases. If they worked for Nike, they would design shoes. If they worked for LazyBoy, they would design furniture. If they worked for Sony, they would design electronics.
To design the engine, transmission, suspension components, frame, electrical systems, etc, then study Automotive Engineering. Again, offered in very few schools. I only know of schools in Michigan and California that offer it.
Mechanical Engineers don't actually do much hands on work at all. In Construction field, they may work in HVAC and plumbing. Lots of AutoCAD and surveying work. Making calculations using thermodynamics and fluids and calculus formulas. They figure out how to send hot/cold air and water to each room in a building. Most of the time is spent in an office cubicle.
In manufacturing, they usually work in finding quality problems in products, or increasing reliability of machinery by preventative maintenance. Or they might work in process improvement to save on costs and time. They could design tooling fixtures to make the assemblers job easier. ME's could get jobs in automotive manufacturing where they might work in the manufacturing of headlights, or wheels, or the entire car itself.
In Design, ME's would design mechanical components that go into machines. This could possibly be a car suspension component, or a bolt for an engine, or a gear or ball bearing. You use your knowledge of torque, materials, stress, and strain to design these products in CAD. Then a low wage worker would fabricate or make your design and test it.
Product Development. There are very few jobs in thie field that are open. But basically ME's are in charge of the project. They have the end decision on the looks of the product. They don't actually design it themselves, but they work with designers and other engineers and business staff to run the project by looking at customer requirements, capitol cost, payback period, materials, designs, manufacturing, shipping, and more.
I know it is not a Mechanic for fixing cars, but it building and designing cars and stuff like that right?
