CATIA project ideas for mechanical engineering students
22 CATIA V5 projects that Skill-Lync learners have actually built: automotive plastic parts, engineering features and master sections, wiring harnesses and BIW welding fixtures. Each one comes with real reports you can read before you choose, the workbenches you need, and one way to extend it into a final-year project.
As of 16 Nov 2026: 20,237 of 1,41,067 public learner reports match one of these ideas · Counts are reports, not unique students
How to pick one
- Pick the industry first. Plastic trim parts lead to interior and exterior design roles at car makers and their suppliers. Wiring harness work leads to electrical design roles, which are growing with EVs. Fixture design leads to tooling and body shop engineering.
- Read two reports first. You will see the real inputs (most projects start from a Class-A surface or a 2D layout), the workbenches used and where people got stuck.
- Add one engineering decision. Modelling a part is not a final-year project. Choosing between two rib layouts, two locator schemes or two routing paths, and showing why, is. Each idea below suggests one.
Wiring harness design project ideas
Connectors and catalogues, routing to packaging rules, interconnected harnesses and the flattened drawing.
Define connectors, clips and protective covers electrically
Download real connector CAD (for example TE Deutsch DT06 connectors) and turn each mechanical part into an electrical part: connection points, cavities, back shells, P-clamps and corrugated tubes, saved into a component catalogue. Every harness you route later pulls parts from this catalogue.
Make it a final-year project: Build a catalogue for one real vehicle subsystem (for example the rear lamp circuit) and document the naming and property rules you followed.
Learn it in Automotive Wiring Harness using CATIA V5
Route a harness from a layout and add protective covering
Place the connectors from a 2D layout in 3D, route the bundles between them, set bundle diameters, and add protective covering (corrugated tube or tape) on the branches that need it.
Make it a final-year project: Route the same circuit twice, once along the shortest path and once following packaging rules (bend radius, clip spacing, distance from hot or moving parts), and compare length and clip count.
Learn it in Automotive Wiring Harness using CATIA V5
Two harnesses, interconnected, with bundle continuity checks
Route two harnesses with eight connector types at ten locations, connect them electrically, then run bundle continuity checks and clear every bundle warning. Add annotations so a drawing reader knows what each branch carries.
Make it a final-year project: Add a wire list (from-to table with gauge and colour) for every branch and check that bundle diameters match the wires inside.
Learn it in Automotive Wiring Harness using CATIA V5
Harness flattening and the manufacturing drawing
Flatten the routed 3D harness onto a board view, arrange the branches, and produce the 2D drawing a harness maker builds from, with protective coverings shown clearly.
Make it a final-year project: Add the bill of materials and connector tables to the drawing, the way a supplier drawing is released.
Learn it in Automotive Wiring Harness using CATIA V5
Automotive plastic part project ideas
From a Class-A surface to a mouldable part: tooling axis, B-side and closing surfaces, draft, core and cavity.
Tooling axis and draft analysis on a fan cover
Before a plastic part can be moulded, every face needs draft along the direction the mould opens (the tooling axis). Find that axis for a fan cover and run a draft analysis to show which faces pass and which would stick in the mould.
Make it a final-year project: Fix the failing faces and report how much the part changed, or compare two candidate tooling axes.
Learn it in Automotive Plastic Design using CATIA V5
Base bracket from a Class-A surface
The Class-A surface is the visible styled skin a designer gets from the studio. From it you set the tooling axis, build the inner (B-side) and closing surfaces, join them into a solid part and check the draft.
Make it a final-year project: Add ribs or bosses where the bracket is mounted and check wall thickness stays uniform around them.
- CREATION OF A BASE BRACKET 2023
- Base Bracket Design 2023
- Base Bracket 2023
Learn it in Automotive Plastic Design using CATIA V5
Switch bezel plastic part
A switch bezel is the trim frame around dashboard or door switches. You take its Class-A surface to a solid, mouldable part with the right tooling direction and draft on every face.
Make it a final-year project: Design the clip or snap that holds the bezel in its panel and check it can be moulded without a side action.
Learn it in Automotive Plastic Design using CATIA V5
Coin holder plastic part
A small interior part with a deep pocket, which makes draft and wall thickness harder than they look. Build it from the Class-A surface and prove it releases from the mould.
Make it a final-year project: Check the pocket for sink marks risk (thick sections) and redesign to keep the wall even.
Learn it in Automotive Plastic Design using CATIA V5
Bumper plastic part
A large exterior part with long, gently curved faces. Set the tooling axis, build B-side and closing surfaces, and run draft analysis across a part that is much bigger than the trim parts.
Make it a final-year project: Add the mounting flanges and clip towers that attach the bumper to the body and check their draft.
Learn it in Automotive Plastic Design using CATIA V5
Door arm rest plastic part
Build the arm rest of a door trim from its Class-A surface: tooling axis, B and closing surfaces, solid part, draft check.
Make it a final-year project: Add the attachment features that hold the arm rest to the door trim and explain your choice of screws or clips.
Learn it in Automotive Plastic Design using CATIA V5
Core and cavity for a plastic part
Split the finished part into the two halves of the mould: define the parting line and pull direction, and build the core and cavity blocks.
Make it a final-year project: Find an undercut on your part and design the slider or lifter that would release it.
Learn it in Automotive Plastic Design using CATIA V5
Engineering features and master section project ideas
Ribs, bosses, dog houses, heat stakes, locators and the master sections that decide how parts meet.
Ribs and screw bosses on a drill handle
Ribs stiffen a plastic part and screw bosses take the fasteners that hold two halves together. Add both to a drill handle following plastic design rules on thickness, height and draft, so the part does not warp or show sink marks.
Make it a final-year project: Compare two rib layouts for stiffness with a quick FEA check and pick the lighter one that meets the target.
Learn it in Automotive Plastic Design using CATIA V5
Dog house on a door trim
A dog house is the small boxed pocket on the back of a trim panel that holds a clip. Design it on a door trim with the right wall thickness and draft, so the clip seats and the visible side shows no sink mark.
Make it a final-year project: Design two dog house variants for different clips and explain which one an assembly line would prefer.
Learn it in Automotive Plastic Design using CATIA V5
Door trim lower with heat stakes and locators
Build the lower door trim from its Class-A surface at 2.5 mm thickness, then add heat stakes (plastic pins melted over to join parts) and locators that position it on the door.
Make it a final-year project: Plan the locator scheme so the part is fully located without over-constraint, and explain it with a sketch.
Learn it in Automotive Plastic Design using CATIA V5
Door applique with engineering features
An applique is the decorative trim strip on a door. Take it from Class-A surface to a solid and add heat stakes and locators that follow the design rules.
Make it a final-year project: Add the tolerance stack between applique and door trim and show the worst-case gap.
Learn it in Automotive Plastic Design using CATIA V5
A-pillar trim with a master section
A master section is a cross-section that fixes how neighbouring parts meet: gaps, clip positions and thickness. Develop one for the A-pillar trim beside the windshield and build the part around it.
Make it a final-year project: Add a second master section at the other end of the pillar and show how the attachment changes along its length.
Learn it in Automotive Plastic Design using CATIA V5
B-pillar trim through master section development
The B-pillar sits behind the front door, and its trim must clear the seat belt, both doors and the body structure. Develop the master section first, then the trim part with its attachment features.
Make it a final-year project: Include the seat belt height adjuster in the section and check the clearances it needs.
Learn it in Automotive Plastic Design using CATIA V5
Full door trim panel (final project)
The capstone of plastic design: a complete door trim panel from Class-A surface and master section, with mounting features, heat stakes, dog houses and draft analysis, in a clean, fully constrained tree.
Make it a final-year project: Split the panel into the separate moulded parts a real car uses and show how they join.
Learn it in Automotive Plastic Design using CATIA V5
BIW welding fixture project ideas
Pin, rest, clamp and base units for the fixtures that hold car body panels during welding.
Fixed and retractable pin units for a welding fixture
In a body-in-white (BIW) welding fixture, pins locate the sheet metal panels exactly before welding. Design two fixed pin units and two retractable ones (pin, riser, blade, block and cylinder) for a given car panel.
Make it a final-year project: Check the pin positions against the 3-2-1 locating principle and the panel's datum scheme.
Learn it in Automotive BIW Fixture Design using CATIA V5
Rest, clamp and pin-clamp units
Rest units support the panel and clamp units hold it down during welding. Design swivel clamp units with different risers, blades and clamp arms for a 100 mm cylinder stroke, plus a combined pin-clamp unit.
Make it a final-year project: Check the clamp arm's opening arc so the panel can be loaded and unloaded without hitting the unit.
Learn it in Automotive BIW Fixture Design using CATIA V5
Base unit and the complete fixture assembly
Design the base that every unit mounts on, with its weldments, then assemble the whole fixture so all five panels are fully constrained by the 3-2-1 principle.
Make it a final-year project: Add the weld-gun access check: show that every weld spot can be reached without hitting a unit.
Learn it in Automotive BIW Fixture Design using CATIA V5
CATIA basics project ideas
The first assembly and drafting project most learners build.
CV joint and quick return mechanism assemblies
Model every part of a constant-velocity joint and a quick return mechanism from 2D drawings, assemble them with constraints, and produce 2D drawings like the reference sheets. The standard first CATIA project.
Make it a final-year project: Animate the quick return mechanism and measure the time ratio of the forward and return strokes.
Learn it in Basics of CATIA V5
Before you start
These are skill-building projects from Skill-Lync courses, not ready-made final-year submissions. Most start from course-provided data (Class-A surfaces, layouts, panels), so for a final-year project you need your own part or a clear engineering question, which is what the extension ideas are for.
The reports are learner submissions. Quality varies, and some contain mistakes, so treat them as a view of the work, not as answers. Many learners did the same course challenge, so several examples share a title. Copying one will not get past a viva.
Body panels (hood, fender, roof, tailgate) are not on this page: most public reports for those were built in NX CAD, not CATIA. You can find them on the mechanical project ideas page.
Questions students ask
Which CATIA project is best for a mechanical engineering student?
The one closest to the job you want. For automotive interior or exterior design, a plastic part taken from a Class-A surface to a mouldable part with ribs, bosses and draft analysis, ideally with a master section (A-pillar, B-pillar or door trim). For electrical design roles, a routed and flattened wiring harness with its drawing. For tooling roles, a BIW welding fixture with pin, clamp and base units. Start with a simple assembly like a CV joint if you are new to CATIA.
What is a Class-A surface in CATIA?
The visible, styled outer skin of a part, released by the styling studio. A designer is not allowed to change it. Plastic design projects start from it: you set the tooling axis (the direction the mould opens), build the inner and closing surfaces, join them into a solid and check that every face has draft.
Is CATIA free for students?
No. As of 15 Nov 2026, Dassault Systèmes sells 3DEXPERIENCE CATIA for Students at $60 (€60) for one year, for enrolled students only, on Windows. That is the 3DEXPERIENCE version, not V5. Many engineering colleges have CATIA V5 in their CAD lab, so ask your department before you buy.
CATIA or SolidWorks for a final-year project?
CATIA if you want automotive or aerospace design jobs: car makers and their suppliers use it for surfaces, plastic parts, sheet metal, harnesses and fixtures. SolidWorks if your project is a machine, a mechanism or a small product. Either works for a project; pick the one your target employers list in job ads.