LDP

(US, automotive) Initialism of limited driving privilege.


DOD

(automotive) Initialism of displacement-on-demand (a type of engine that can shut down cylinders when not needed).


AA

en:Alcoholics Anonymous
en:Anna's Archive
en:The AA

As we have said before, never accept an AA increase – if you phone up and threaten to leave they will, in our experience, drop it back to the previous price. Or better still, just keep switching provider each year. LV’s cover is a good alternative.

2020 January 1, Miles Brignall, “Sit back, do nothing and the AA will double your bill”, in The Guardian:

(UK, automotive) Initialism of The Automobile Association: a British motoring association founded in 1905.


point

en-noun

point (countable and uncountable, plural points)

→ Cantonese: point

→ Indonesian: poin

→ Japanese: ポイント (pointo)

→ Korean: 포인트 (pointeu)

From Middle English poynt, from Old French point m (“dot; minute amount”), from Latin pūnctum (“a hole punched in; a point, puncture”), substantive use of pūnctus m, perfect passive participle of pungō (“I prick, punch”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *pewǵ- (“prick, punch”)); alternatively, from Old French pointe f (“sharp tip”), from Latin pūncta f (past participle). Displaced native Middle English ord (“point”), from Old English ord (“point”). Doublet of pointe, punctum, punt, and punto.

kärki

position at the front or vanguard of an advancing force

decimal point

not used when reading decimal fractions aloud

A small discrete division or individual feature of something.

(automotive, chiefly in the plural) Either of the two metal surfaces in a distributor which close or open to allow or prevent the flow of current through the ignition coil. There is usually a moving point, pushed by the distributor cam, and a fixed point, and they are built together as a unit.


head

en-noun

head (countable and uncountable, plural heads or head)

→ Japanese: ヘッド (heddo)

Sranan Tongo: ede

Aukan: ede

Saramaccan: hédi

Etymology tree
Proto-Indo-European *kap-
Proto-Indo-European *káput-
Proto-Germanic *haubudą
Old English hēafod
Middle English heed
English head
From Middle English hed, heed, heved, heaved, from Old English hēafd-, hēafod (“head; top; source, origin; chief, leader; capital”), from Proto-West Germanic *haubud, from Proto-Germanic *haubudą (“head”), from Proto-Indo-European *káput. The modern word comes from Old English oblique stem hēafd-, the expected Modern English outcome for hēafod would be *heaved (similar to the Middle English word). Doublet of cape, capo, caput, chef, chief, and Howth.
Cognate with Scots heid, hede, hevid, heved (“head”), Old English hafola (“head”), North Frisian hood (“head”), Dutch hoofd (“head”), German Haupt (“head”), Swedish huvud (“head”), Danish hoved (“head”), Icelandic höfuð (“head”), Latin caput (“head”), Sanskrit कपाल (kapāla, “skull”), Hindi कपाल (kapāl, “skull”).

頭

つぶり, tsuburi, つぃぶる, tsiburu, つぃぶるぃ, tsiburi

pää

have one's head screwed on the right way

know one's head from a hole in the ground

run around like a chicken with its head cut off

would lose one's head if it wasn't attached

would lose one's head if it wasn't bolted on

would lose one's head if it wasn't glued on

would lose one's head if it wasn't screwed on

would lose one's head if it wasn't stuck on

would lose one's head if it wasn't tied on

would lose one's head if it weren't attached

you can't put an old head on young shoulders

you can't put a wise head on young shoulders

internal combustion engine
internal combustion engine

(countable) The topmost, foremost, or leading part.

(countable) The principal operative part of a machine or tool.

(automotive) The cylinder head, a platform above the cylinders in an internal combustion engine, containing the valves and spark plugs.


toe

en-noun

toe (countable and uncountable, plural toes)

heel

antonym(s) of “each of the five digits on the end of the foot”

From Middle English to, from Old English tā, (Mercian) tāhe, from Proto-Germanic *taihwǭ (compare Dutch teen, German Zehe, Danish tå, Swedish tå), from *tīhwaną (“to show, announce”) (compare Old English teōn (“to accuse”), German zeihen (“to accuse, blame”)), from Proto-Indo-European *deyḱ- (“to show”) (compare Hittite [script needed] (tekkuššāi), Latin dīcere (“to say”), digitus (“finger”), Ancient Greek δείκνυμι (deíknumi, “to point out, show”), Sanskrit दिदेष्टि (dídeṣṭi), दिशति (diśáti)).

cog

(automotive) An alignment of the wheels of a road vehicle, either positive (toe in), meaning the wheels are closer together at the front than at the back, or negative (toe out), the other way round.


square

en-adj

square (comparative squarer, superlative squarest)

squarer (comparative)
squarest (superlative)

From Middle English square, sqware, squyre; from Old French esquarre, esquerre, (modern French équerre), from Vulgar Latin *exquadra, from Latin ex- + quadro, from quadrus (compare English quad and quadra). Doublet of squad and squadra.
Displaced fēowerecge (fēower nominative + ecg accusative, as in "four-edged").

(automotive) Of an internal combustion engine design, in which the diameter of the piston is similar, roughly, approximately, equal to its stroke distance.


PI

en-noun

PI (countable and uncountable, plural PIs)

(automotive) Initialism of port injection. (fuel injection)


diesel

en-verb

diesel (third-person singular simple present diesels, present participle dieseling or dieselling, simple past and past participle dieseled or dieselled)

diesels (present singular third-person)
dieseling (participle present)
dieselling (participle present)
dieseled (participle past)
dieseled (past)
dieselled (participle past)
dieselled (past)

From German Diesel, named after inventor Rudolf Diesel, who developed a heavy-duty engine in Germany (1892–1897) and perfected it throughout his life.

The only reason the VW bug has a solenoid is to prevent it from dieseling.

(automotive) For a spark-ignition internal combustion engine to continue running after the electrical current to the spark plugs has been turned off. This occurs when there's enough heat in the combustion chamber to ignite the air and fuel mixture without a spark, the same way that heat and pressure cause ignition in a diesel engine.


GR

(automotive, marketing, motor racing) Initialism of Gazoo Racing.: A performance brand, automotive label, and, racing division, of Toyota.


BS

(automotive) Abbreviation of Bridgestone, a tire company.


jump

Brill Publishers
hydraulic jump
jump cut
jump discontinuity
jump instruction

From Middle English jumpen (“to walk quickly, run, jump”), probably of Middle Low German or North Germanic origin, ultimately from Proto-Germanic *gumpōną ~ *gumbōną (“to hop, skip, jump”), an iterative verb. The OED suggests an imitative origin. Others have connected it to Ancient Greek ἀθεμβούσα (athemboúsa, “uninhibited”), which is unlikely. Related to jumble. In the sense “to propel oneself” it displaced leap partially and spring largely.
Cognates
Cognate with Middle Dutch gumpen (“to jump”), Low German jumpen (“to jump”), Middle High German gumpen, gampen (“to jump, hop”) (dialectal German gampen, Alemannic German gumpe, Walser dialect kumpu), Old Norse goppa (“to jump”) Danish gumpe (“to jolt”), Swedish gumpa (“to jump”), Danish gimpe (“to move up and down”), Middle English jumpren, jumbren (“to mix, jumble”).

onomatopoeic

imitative

قَفْزَة

instance of propelling oneself into the air — see also leap

My car won't start. Could you give me a jump?

(US, informal, automotive) Short for jump-start.


blown

From Middle English blawen, from Old English blāƿen, blāwen, past participle of Old English blāwan.
Morphologically blow + -n.

Coordinate term: turbocharged


dwell

From Middle English dwellen (“delay, live, remain, persist”), from Old English dwellan (“to mislead, deceive; be led into error, stray”), from Proto-Germanic *dwaljaną (“to hold up, delay; hesitate”), from Proto-Indo-European *dʰwelH- (“to whirl, swirl, blur, obfuscate”), which is cognate with Old Norse dvelja and related to Proto-Germanic *dwelaną (“to go astray”), which underwent semantic change in its descendants. Cognates include Danish dvæle (“to linger, dwell”) and Swedish dväljas (“to dwell, reside”).

cog

(automotive) In a petrol engine, the period of time the ignition points are closed to let current flow through the ignition coil in between each spark. This is measured as an angle in degrees around the camshaft in the distributor which controls the points, for example in a 4-cylinder engine it might be 55° (spark at 90° intervals, points closed for 55° between each).


spat

Shortening of spatterdash, from spatter + dash. 1779.

(automotive, UK, Australia) A piece of bodywork that covers the upper portions of the rear tyres of a car.


boot

Solombala English: бучь (bučʹ)

→ Russian: бутса (butsa)

→ Serbo-Croatian:

Cyrillic script: бу́це

Latin script: búce

→ Swahili: buti

From Middle English boote, bote (“shoe”), from Old French bote (“a high, thick shoe”). Of obscure origin, but probably related to Old French bot (“club-foot”), bot (“fat, short, blunt”), from Old Frankish *butt, from Proto-Germanic *buttaz, *butaz (“cut off, short, numb, blunt”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰewt-, *bʰewd- (“to strike, push, shock”); if so, a doublet of butt. Compare Old Norse butt (“stump”), Low German butt (“blunt, plump”), Old English bytt (“small piece of land”), buttuc (“end”). More at buttock and debut.

couldn't pour water out of a boot with the instructions on the heel

He heaved the bag and its contents over the lip of the boot and on to the flagstones. When it was out, no longer in that boot but on the ground, and the bag was still intact, he knew the worst was over.

1998, Ruth Rendell, A Sight For Sore Eyes, published 2010, page 260:

The body is constructed of welded steel panels, with the bonnet, doors and boot lid in aluminium on steel frames.

2003, Keith Bluemel, Original Ferrari V-12 1965-1973: The Restorer's Guide, unnumbered page:

Peers leant against the outside of the car a lit up her filter tip and watched as Bauer and Putin placed their compact suitcases in the boot of the BMW and slammed the boot lid down.

2008, MB Chattelle, Richmond, London: The Peter Hacket Chronicles, page 104:

(Australia, British, New Zealand, South Africa, automotive) The luggage storage compartment of a sedan or saloon car.


upset

en-noun

upset (countable and uncountable, plural upsets)

From Middle English upset (“the act of setting up; establishment”), from Middle English upsetten, corresponding to up- + set. Cognate with Middle Low German upset (“setup; arrangement”).

cog

"collision and upset": impact with another object or an overturn for whatever reason.


rim

From Middle English rim, rym, rime, from Old English rima (“rim, edge, border, bank, coast”), from Proto-Germanic *rimô, *rembô (“edge, border”), from Proto-Indo-European *rem-, *remə- (“to rest, support, be based”). Cognate with Saterland Frisian Rim (“plank, wooden cross, trellis”), Old Saxon rimi (“edge; border; trim”), Icelandic rimi (“a strip of land”).

cog

About an hour later, she noticed an all black Phantom with tints and chrome rims riding slowly through the car lot.

2010, Rochelle Magee, No Witnesses: A Perilous Journey, page 36:


float

From Middle English floten, from Old English flotian (“to float”), from Proto-West Germanic *flotōn, from Proto-Germanic *flutōną (“to float”), from Proto-Indo-European *plewd-, *plew- (“to float, swim, fly”).
Cognate with Saterland Frisian flotje (“to float”), West Frisian flotsje (“to float”), Dutch vlotten (“to float”), Middle Low German vloten, vlotten (“to float, swim”), German flötzen, flößen (“to float”), Swedish flotta (“to float”), Icelandic fljóta, Old English flēotan (“to float, swim”), Ancient Greek πλέω (pléō), Lithuanian plaukti, Russian пла́вать (plávatʹ). Compare flow, fleet.

(automotive) A car carrier or car transporter truck or truck-and-trailer combination.


carburettor

Both affect the performance of the machine, especially the carburettors, and both are important to the final appearance of the model.

2005, Mick Walker, How to Restore Your BMW Twin 1955-1985, page 92:

In a carburettor the pressure drop (or viewed another way, suction) is used to draw fuel out of a reservoir, usually via a jet, and into the venturi to mix with the air flowing through it.

2008, Daniel Stapleton, David Vizard, John Sprinzel, The MG Midget & Austin Healey Sprite High Performance Manual, page 36:

For a large part of the twentieth century the majority of light vehicles used petrol engines that were equipped with a carburettor.

2011, Allan Bonnick, A Practical Approach to Motor Vehicle Engineering and Maintenance, page 81:

(automotive, Australia, New Zealand, UK) Alternative spelling of carburetor (“device in an internal combustion engine”)


flat

From Middle English flat, a borrowing from Old Norse flatr (compare Norwegian and Swedish flat, Danish flad), from Proto-Germanic *flataz, from Proto-Indo-European *pleth₂- (“flat”); akin to Saterland Frisian flot (“smooth”), German Flöz (“a geological layer”), Ancient Greek πλατύς (platús), Latvian plats, Sanskrit प्रथस् (prathas, “extension”). Doublet of plat and pleyt.
The noun is from Middle English flat (“level piece of ground, flat edge of a weapon”), from the adjective.
The algebraic sense was coined by Serre in a 1956 paper, originally as French plat.

inh

The next one surrendered his bike, only for that, too, to give him a second flat as he started the descent.

2012 July 15, Richard Williams, Tour de France 2012: Carpet tacks cannot force Bradley Wiggins off track, Guardian Unlimited:

(informal, automotive) A flat tyre/flat tire.


muffler

→ Japanese: マフラー

→ Spanish: mofle

→ Welsh: myffler

Holonym: exhaust system

Comeronyms: catalytic converter, exhaust pipe, tailpipe, sidepipe, manifold, header

(US, automotive) A part of the exhaust pipe of a car that dampens the noise the engine produces.


shock

en-noun

shock (countable and uncountable, plural shocks)

→ Bulgarian: шок (šok)

→ Chinese: 休克 (xiūkè)

→ Czech: šok

→ Italian: shock

→ Japanese: ショック (shokku)

→ Korean: 쇼크 (syokeu)

→ Macedonian: шок (šok)

→ Polish: szok

→ Russian: шок (šok)

→ Serbo-Croatian:

Cyrillic: шо̏к

Latin: šȍk

→ Slovak: šok

→ Spanish: shock

From Middle Dutch schokken (“to push, jolt, shake, jerk”) or Middle French choquer (“to collide with, clash”), from Old Dutch *skokkan (“to shake up and down, shog”), from Proto-Germanic *skukkaną (“to move, shake, tremble”). Of uncertain origin. Perhaps related to Proto-Germanic *skakaną (“to shake, stir”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)kek-, *(s)keg- (“to shake, stir”); see shake.
Cognate with Middle Low German schocken (“collide with, deliver a blow to, move back and forth”), Old High German scoc (“a jolt, swing”), Middle High German schocken (“to swing”) (German schaukeln), Old Norse skykkr (“vibration, surging motion”), Icelandic skykkjun (“tremulously”), Middle English schiggen (“to shake”). Doublet of shog.

cog

shark (non-rhotic, father-bother merger)

If your truck's been riding rough, it might need new shocks.

We're bonin' on the dark blocks / Wearin' out the shocks, wettin' up the dashboard clock

1993, “Back Seat (of My Jeep)”, in 14 Shots to the Dome, performed by LL Cool J:

At the rear, you'll find a single, centrally mounted shock, the now-familiar single-sided swingarm and BMW's Paralever shaft-drive system, which does away with most of a shafty's chassis-jacking bugaboos.

1994, Cycle World Magazine, volume 33, number 1, page 49:

mechanical engineering
mechanical engineering

(automotive, mechanical engineering) A shock absorber (typically in the suspension of a vehicle).


cylinder

→ Japanese: シリンダー (shirindā)

→ Korean: 실린더 (sillindeo)

From Middle French chilindre, cylindre, from Latin cylindrus, from Ancient Greek κύλινδρος (kúlindros), from κυλίνδω (kulíndō) "I roll or wallow" (intransitive). Doublet of calander and calender.

reciprocating engine
reciprocating engine

(automotive) The space in which a piston travels inside a reciprocating engine or pump.


platform

From Middle French plateforme (“a flat form”), from plate (“flat”) (from Old French plat, from Ancient Greek πλατύς (platús, “flat”)) + forme (“form”) (from Latin fōrma (“shape; figure; form”)); compare flatscape.

der

A car platform consists of the underbody, suspension, and axles, plus components such as the steering mechanism, engine, and powertrain. Using such a platform, a car company can design several distinct car models to suit different customer groups[…]

2017, Vinod K. Jain, Global Strategy: Competing in the Connected Economy, Routledge, →ISBN, page 131:

(automotive) Ellipsis of car platform: a set of components shared by several vehicle models.

pohjalevy

automotive: set of components shared by several vehicle models


box

en-noun

box (plural boxes or (nonstandard, computing, humorous) boxen)

boxes (plural)
boxen (humorous nonstandard plural)

Tok Pisin: bokis

→ Afrikaans: boks

→ Bengali: বাক্স (bakśo)

→ Bulgarian: бокс (boks)

→ Crimean Tatar: boks

→ Danish: boks

→ Dutch: box m

→ Faroese: boks

→ French: box m

→ German: Box f

→ Hindustani:

Hindi: बकस m (bakas), बक्सा m (baksā)

Urdu: بکس m (baks, bakas)

→ Icelandic: box n

→ Indonesian: boks

→ Irish: bosca m

→ Italian: box m

→ Japanese: ボックス (bokkusu)

→ Korean: 박스 (bakseu)

→ Maori: pāka

→ Marwari: बकस (baks, bakas)

→ Nepali: बाकस (bākas)

→ Norman: bosc m

→ Norwegian: boks m

→ Pashto: بکس (baks)

→ Persian: باکس (bâks)

→ Polish: boks m

→ Portuguese: box m

→ Russian: бокс m (boks)

→ Scottish Gaelic: bogsa m, bocsa

→ Spanish: box m

→ Swedish: box c

→ Welsh: bocs

Etymology tree
Ancient Greek πῠ́ξος (púxos)
Ancient Greek -ις (-is)
Ancient Greek πυξίς (puxís)bor.
Late Latin buxisbor.
Proto-West Germanic *buhsā
Old English box
Middle English box
English box
From Middle English box (“container, box, cup”), from Old English box (“box, case”), from Proto-West Germanic *buhsā (“box”) from Late Latin buxis (“box”), Latin pyxis (“small box for medicines or toiletries”), of uncertain origin; compare Ancient Greek πύξος (púxos, “box or tablet made of boxwood; box; cylinder”) and Ancient Greek πυξίς (puxís, “box or tablet made of boxwood; box; cylinder”). Doublet of piseog, pyx, and pyxis.
Cognate with Middle Dutch bosse, busse (“jar; tin; round box”) (modern Dutch bos (“wood, forest”), bus (“container, box; bushing of a wheel”)), Old High German buhsa (Middle High German buhse, bühse, modern German Büchse (“box; can”)), Swedish hjulbössa (“wheel-box”).
The humorous plural form boxen is from box + -en, by analogy with oxen.

rasia

compartment or receptacle for receiving items

ramme

rectangular border around an image, text, etc.

ruutu

small area on a document for a tick mark

tofu

empty box displayed by some computer systems in place of a character not supported by available fonts

They were capable of climbing most hills in second low but for this exercise we decided to go for the bottom of the box, just to be sure.

2000, Bob Foster, Birdum or Bust!, Henley Beach, SA: Seaview Press, page 181:

Senses relating to a three-dimensional object or space.

Thinkin' like Roddy, got a stick in the box (Roddy)
Hide in another car, we just blickin' the opps (Bah)

2023 May 24, “Bounce”, PGF Nuk (lyrics):


ABC

en-noun

ABC (countable and uncountable, plural ABCs)

active body control
active body control#English

(automotive) Initialism of active body control.


ABC

(electronics, electric vehicles, automotive) Initialism of always be charging; a recommendation to remember to charge or be left without use by a low battery at an inopportune time.


coke

en-verb

coke (third-person singular simple present cokes, present participle coking, simple past and past participle coked)

cokes (present singular third-person)
coking (participle present)
coked (participle past)
coked (past)

Perhaps from Middle English coke, colk (“core”), from Old English *colc (“hole, well”), from Proto-West Germanic *kolk, from Proto-Germanic *kulukaz (“a hollow, depression”), from Proto-Indo-European *g(ʷ)el- (“to swallow, devour; gullet”). Cognate with Saterland Frisian Kolk (“maelstrom, depression, whirlpool”), West Frisian kolk (“maelstrom, whirlpool”), Dutch kolk (“maelstrom, vortex, whirlpool”), German Kolk (“pothole”).

cog

In kerolox engines, some of the fuel flow cokes in the engine's cooling passages over time, requiring thorough cleaning prior to reuse.

(especially automotive, astronautics) To add deleterious carbon deposits as a byproduct of combustion.


FF

(automotive) The Ferrari FF (Ferrari Four), an all-wheel drive grand tourer by Ferrari.


AAA

Ahead of one of the busiest travel periods of the year, the American Automobile Association (AAA) said more than 112 million people planned to travel 50 miles (80 km) or more from home between 23 December and 2 January.

2022 December 23, Jon Henley, Edward Helmore, Maya Yang, “Gigantic US winter storm leaves millions without power and cancels holiday plans”, in The Guardian:

American Automobile Association
w:American Automobile Association

(US, automotive) Initialism of American Automobile Association.

(Australia, automotive) Initialism of Australian Automobile Association.


daily

From Middle English dayly, from Old English dæġlīċ, from Proto-West Germanic *dagalīk, from Proto-Germanic *dagalīkaz (“daily”), equivalent to day + -ly. Cognate with Scots dayly, daly (“daily”), German Low German dagelk, dagelik (“daily”), Dutch dagelijks (“daily”), German täglich (“daily”), Danish daglig (“daily”), Swedish daglig (“daily”), Icelandic daglegur (“daily”).

Something that is produced, consumed, used, or done every day.

(US, automotive, colloquial) A daily driver.


daily

en-verb

daily (third-person singular simple present dailies, present participle dailying, simple past and past participle dailied)

dailies (present singular third-person)
dailying (participle present)
dailied (participle past)
dailied (past)

(US, automotive, colloquial) To drive an automobile frequently, on a daily basis, for regular and mundane tasks.


XL

en-noun

XL (countable and uncountable, plural XLs)

(automotive) A designation for a trim level within a model of trucks; it denotes midrange features.


line

→ Scottish Gaelic: loidhne

From Middle English line, lyne, from Old English līne (“line, cable, rope, hawser, series, row, rule, direction”), from Proto-West Germanic *līnā, from Proto-Germanic *līnǭ (“line, rope, flaxen cord, thread”), from Proto-Germanic *līną (“flax, linen”), from Proto-Indo-European *līno- (“flax”).
Influenced in Middle English by Middle French ligne (“line”), from Latin linea. More at linen.
The oldest sense of the word is “rope, cord, thread”; from this the senses “path”, “continuous mark” were derived.

lyn

path through two or more points, threadlike mark

lyn

single horizontal row of text on a screen, printed paper, etc.

linja

measure of length, the main division of an inch or its local equivalent

"I guess it's like race cars - if you get the right line you can come out at top speed."

2021 February 20, The Road Ahead, Brisbane, page 10, column 3:

A path through two or more points (compare ‘segment’); a continuous mark, including as made by a pen; any path, curved or straight.

(automotive) A particular path taken by a vehicle when driving a bend or corner in the road.


bus

→ Arabic: بَاص (bāṣ)

⇒ Burmese: ဘတ်စ်ကား (bhatcka:)

→ Cantonese: 巴士

→ Mandarin: 巴士 (bāshì)

→ German: Bus m

→ Hindi: बस (bas)

→ Irish: bus

desctree

→ Japanese: バス (basu)
→ Hakka: 巴士 (pa-sṳ́)
→ Hokkien: 巴士 (bá-suh)
→ Kavalan: basu
→ Sakizaya: basu

→ Korean: 버스 (beoseu)

→ Kurtöp: བས (bas)

→ Malay: bas

→ Pashto: بس

⇒ Sanskrit: बसयान (basayāna)

→ Scottish Gaelic: bus

→ Thai: บัส (bát)

→ Tibetan: འབའ་སེ ('ba' se)

→ Urdu: بس

→ Welsh: bws

Clipping of omnibus. Formerly often spelt 'bus. The electrical sense is derived from figurative application of the automotive sense.

(automotive) A motor vehicle for transporting large numbers of people along roads; by extension, the driver of said vehicle.

(chiefly US, Canada) A coach, a bus used for long travels.


bus

en-verb

bus (third-person singular simple present busses or buses, present participle bussing or busing, simple past and past participle bussed or bused)

busses (present singular third-person)
buses (present singular third-person)
bussing (participle present)
busing (participle present)
bussed (participle past)
bussed (past)
bused (participle past)
bused (past)

Machine guns are the most effective form of ‘election campaigning’, but the occupiers appear to also be bussing in ‘voters’ from the Russian Federation, and ‘registering total strangers in the homes of people forced to flee after the Russian invasion.

2024 March 13, Halya Coynash, “Russians with machine guns ensure occupied Ukraine ‘votes’ for Putin”, in Human Rights in Ukraine. The Information Portal of the Kharkiv Human Rights Protection Group:

The ANC has accused the IFP of bussing in voters from other wards to vote during the recent Newcastle Municipality by-election won by the IFP.

2024 March 14, Clive Ndou, “ANC set to open case against ‘ghost IFP voters’”, in The Witness:

(transitive, automotive, transport) To transport via a motor bus.

But if you ask me to bus my children / I hope the cops take down your name

1966, Phil Ochs, “Love Me, I'm a Liberal”, in Phils Ochs in Concert:

...to strike down Detroit's federal court order to bus students across school district lines for the purpose of desegregation and therefore nullify many busing programs throughout the country.

2008, Ashley R. Holm, Racial Differences in Student Engagement and Attainment: A Study of Topeka High School, 1939--1984, ProQuest, →ISBN, page 23:

(transitive, automotive, transport, chiefly US) To transport students to school, often to a more distant school for the purposes of achieving racial integration.

(intransitive, automotive, transport) To travel by bus.


gear

en-noun

gear (countable and uncountable, plural gears)

From Middle English gere, a borrowing from Old Norse gervi, from Proto-Germanic *garwijaną (“to prepare”). See also adjective yare, yar from the same root via Old English.

der

(countable, automotive, cycling) A particular combination or choice of interlocking gears, such that a particular gear ratio is achieved.

зъбна предавка

a particular combination or choice of interlocking gears

(countable, automotive) A configuration of the transmission of a motor car so as to achieve a particular ratio of engine to axle torque.


cylinder head

(automotive) A part of an internal combustion engine, usually made as a removable piece, that closes one end of the engine's cylinders.


knock

en-noun

knock (countable and uncountable, plural knocks)

From Middle English knokken, from Old English cnocian, ġecnocian, cnucian (“to knock, pound on, beat”), from Proto-West Germanic *knokōn, from Proto-Germanic *knukōną (“to knock”), a suffixed form of *knu-, *knew- (“to pound on, beat”), from Proto-Indo-European *gnew-, *gen- (“to squeeze, pinch, kink, ball up, concentrate”). The English word is cognate with Middle High German knochen (“to hit”), Old English cnuian, cnuwian (“to pound, knock”), Old Norse knoka (compare Danish knuge (“to squeeze”), Swedish knocka (“to hug”)).

(automotive, uncountable) Preignition, a type of abnormal combustion occurring in spark ignition engines caused by self-ignition; also, the characteristic knocking sound associated with it.


sunroof

→ Japanese: サンルーフ (sanrūfu)

→ Korean: 선루프 (seollupeu)

(automotive) A fixed or operable opening in a vehicle roof (car or truck) which allows fresh air and/or light to enter the passenger compartment. A sunroof may include a transparent or opaque panel and may be manually operated or power driven.


manual

manual (countable and uncountable, plural manuals)

From Middle English manuel, from Anglo-Norman manuel, Old French manual, from Latin manuālis, from manus (“hand”).

Tom's transmission shop can fix both manuals and automatics.

(countable) A device that is operated using the hands, or by a human rather than a machine.

(automotive) A manual transmission; a gearbox, especially of a motorized vehicle, shifted by the operator.


wheel

we'll (one pronunciation along with the wine–whine merger)

From Middle English whel, from Old English hwēol, from Proto-West Germanic *hwehwl, from Proto-Germanic *hwehwlą, *hweulō, from Proto-Indo-European *kʷekʷlóm, *kʷékʷlos, *kʷékʷléh₂, reduplication of *kʷel- (“to turn”) and a suffix (literally "(the thing that) turns and turns"). See also West Frisian tsjil, Dutch wiel, Danish hjul; also Tocharian B kokale (“cart, wagon”), Ancient Greek κύκλος (kúklos, “cycle, wheel”), Avestan 𐬗𐬀𐬑𐬭𐬀 (caxra), Sanskrit चक्र (cakrá); and Latin colō (“to till, cultivate”), Tocharian A and Tocharian B käl- (“to bear; bring”), Ancient Greek πέλω (pélō, “to come into existence, become”), Old Church Slavonic коло (kolo, “wheel”), Albanian sjell (“to bring, carry, turn around”), Avestan 𐬗𐬀𐬭𐬀𐬌𐬙𐬌 (caraⁱti, “it circulates”), Sanskrit चरति (cárati, “it moves, wanders”). Doublet of chakra, chakram, charkha, chukker, cycle, and cyclus.

агьежь

a circular device facilitating movement or transportation

peix gros

person with a great deal of power or influence


station wagon

From train station; station wagons were originally designed for transporting people and luggage between stations and country estates.

1952 November, Should You Buy A Station Wagon?, Kiplinger′s Personal Finance, page 45,
Trade-in values for station wagons have shown a marked improvement since the introduction of the all-steel body. In fact, a station wagon buyer need not worry about his investment′s depreciating any more than he would have to if he bought a four-door sedan.

The Negro was lying in a ditch on the left side of the road, face down, headed west, and the body more or less parallel to the road and about a car length behind the station wagon and a car length in front of Price′s car.

1983, Willie Morris, The Courting of Marcus Dupree, published 1992, page 164:

The prosperity of the postwar years, the baby boom, and the birth of suburbia sent the demand for station wagons soaring. As a result, by 1952 almost every manufacturer offered a station wagon model.

2005, Jim Hinckley, The Big Book of Car Culture: The Armchair Guide to Automotive Americana, page 184:

They rushed him to nearby Coledale Hospital in the back of a station wagon where doctors were standing by.

2007, Wendy Lewis, See Australia and Die: Tales of Misadventure Down Under, unnumbered page:

Two Johns (John Hoban and John Groutsch) came to Essendon airport in their Holden station wagon to take me back to Tocumwal for an interview.

2011, Balaji Rao, From India to Australia, unnumbered page:

(US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, automotive) A body style for cars in which the roof is extended rearward to produce an enclosed area in the position and serving the function of the boot (trunk) of a sedan / saloon.


carrier

но́сьбіт

person or object that carries someone or something else

(engineering) That which drives or carries.

(especially automotive) Part of a differential gear assembly that holds gears and their bearings.


trunk

From Middle English tronke, trunke, from Old French tronc (“alms box, tree trunk, headless body”), from Latin truncus (“a stock, lopped tree trunk”), from truncus (“cut off, maimed, mutilated”). For the verb, compare French tronquer, and see truncate. Doublet of truncus and tronk.

der

the apple does not fall far from the trunk

I'm a stunt; ride in the car with some bump in the trunk.

2005, “Stay Fly”, in Jordan Houston, Darnell Carlton, Paul Beauregard, Premro Smith, Marlon Goodwin, David Brown, Willie Hutchinson (lyrics), Most Known Unknown, performed by Three 6 Mafia (featuring Young Buck, 8 Ball, and MJG), Sony BMG:

(Canada, US, automotive) The luggage storage compartment of a sedan/saloon-style car.

bak

luggage storage compartment of a sedan/saloon style car

(automotive) A storage compartment fitted behind the seat of a motorcycle.


estate

From Middle English estat, from Anglo-Norman estat and Old French estat (French: état), from Latin status. Doublet of state and status.

(UK, automotive) A station wagon; a car with a tailgate (or liftgate) and storage space to the rear of the seating which is coterminous with the passenger compartment (and often extensible into that compartment via folding or removable seating).


auto

From Ancient Greek αὐτός (autós, “self”), metanalyzed from auto- in words such as automatic, autopilot, and automobile.

It's an auto sedan which we picked up from a wholesaler locally.

(automotive) Clipping of automatic. (of a gearbox/transmission)


auto

en-noun

auto (countable and uncountable, plural autos)

A body-coloured centre pillar signalled the arrival of an electronic four-speed auto, slight suspension revisions and minor trim changes.

(automotive) An automatic gearbox/transmission.

It wasn't too bad but we did hire an auto (couldn't imagine changing gears with my right hand).

(automotive) A car with an automatic gearbox/transmission.


horn

horn (countable and uncountable, plural horns)

From Middle English horn, horne, from Old English horn, from Proto-West Germanic *horn, from Proto-Germanic *hurną. Compare West Frisian hoarn, Dutch hoorn, Low German Hoorn, horn, German Horn, Danish and Swedish horn, Gothic 𐌷𐌰𐌿𐍂𐌽 (haurn).
Ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *ḱr̥h₂-nó-m, from *ḱerh₂- (“head, horn”). Compare Breton kern (“horn”), Latin cornū, Ancient Greek κέρας (kéras), Proto-Slavic *sьrna, Old Church Slavonic сьрна (sĭrna, “roedeer”), Hittite [script needed] (surna, “horn”), Persian سر (sar), Sanskrit शृङ्ग (śṛṅga, “horn”).
(telephone): From the horn-shaped earpieces of old communication systems that used air tubes.

cog

(countable, automotive) A loud alarm, especially one on a motor vehicle.

toeter

loud alarm, especially on a motor vehicle


rad

(automotive, plumbing, slang) Abbreviation of radiator.


luxury

en-adj

luxury (comparative more luxury, superlative most luxury)

more luxury (comparative)
most luxury (superlative)

From Middle English luxurie, from Old French luxurie, from Latin luxuria (“rankness, luxury”), from luxus (“extravagance, luxury”).

(automotive) Pertaining to the top-end market segment for mass production mass market vehicles, above the premium market segment.


chip

en-verb

chip (third-person singular simple present chips, present participle chipping, simple past and past participle chipped)

chips (present singular third-person)
chipping (participle present)
chipped (participle past)
chipped (past)

Noun from Middle English chip, chippe, from Old English ċipp (“chip; small piece of wood, shaving”), from Old English *ċippian (“to cut; hew”) – attested in Old English forċippian (“to cut off”) –, from Proto-West Germanic *kippōn (“to cut; carve; hack; chop”), from Proto-Germanic *kippōną (“to chip, chop”), from Proto-Indo-European *ǵeyb- (“to split; divide; germinate; sprout”). Related to Dutch kip, keep (“notch; nick; score”), Dutch kippen (“to hatch”), German Low German kippen (“to cut; clip; trim; shorten”), German kipfen (“to chop off the tip; snip”), Old Swedish kippa (“to chop”). Compare also chop.
The formally similar Old English ċipp, ċypp, ċyp (“a beam; log; stock; post”), from Proto-Germanic *kippaz (“log; beam”) (whence Old Saxon kip (“post”), Old High German kipfa, chipfa (“axle, stave”), Old Norse keppr (“cudgel, club”)) is a different, unrelated word either borrowed from Latin cippus (“stake; pale; post”) or borrowed from the same source language as the Latin.
Verb from Middle English chippen, from Old English *ċippian (“to cut; hew”) – attested in Old English forċippian (“to cut off”) – see above.

stiften

to play a shot hitting the ball predominantly upwards

engine management system
engine management system

(transitive, automotive) To upgrade an engine management system, usually to increase power.


flip a bitch

en-verb

flip a bitch (third-person singular simple present flips a bitch, present participle flipping a bitch, simple past and past participle flipped a bitch)

flips a bitch (present singular third-person)
flipping a bitch (participle present)
flipped a bitch (participle past)
flipped a bitch (past)

That's a cop up there! Flip a bitch and see if we can lose 'em.

I shut the door and concentrated on the checklist so that I could turn the aircrafts^([sic]) electrical system on and check the gauges for fuel or anything out of the ordinary. Every few seconds I felt the aircraft tug, as John towed the aircraft and I to the pumps. After checking the gauges, I was happy to find that both wing tanks were full, so I opened up the door, jumped out and ran ahead to tell John to flip a bitch and pull the bird back to the tower. At the tower I used the aircraft checklist to do a walk around inspection.

2010, J. L. Bourne, Day By Day Armageddon, Simon and Schuster, →ISBN:

“Can you flip a bitch and swing by the airport to pick me up?” It took me a minute to register what she was saying. “You're in Georgia?” Twisting around from the front seat, Griffin echoed my question.

2013, S.C. Stephens, Reckless, Simon and Schuster, →ISBN:

(US, slang, vulgar, automotive) To make a rapid and illegal U-turn.


toaster

→ French: toasteur

→ German: Toaster

→ Hebrew: טוסטר

ja-r

トースター (tōsutā)

→ Japanese: トースター (tōsutā)

→ Korean: 토스터 (toseuteo)

→ Polish: toster

→ Russian: то́стер (tóstɛr)

From toast + -er (agent noun suffix) or -er (patient suffix).

(automotive, informal, derogatory) Any of several small, box-like automobiles exemplified by the Scion xB and Honda Element.


submarine

en-verb

submarine (third-person singular simple present submarines, present participle submarining, simple past and past participle submarined)

submarines (present singular third-person)
submarining (participle present)
submarined (participle past)
submarined (past)

The seatback should always be up while driving so that the occupant doesn't submarine and potentially suffer severe internal injury.

(intransitive, automotive) To slide forwards underneath one's seat belt (during a crash or sudden stop).


slushbox

From slush + box, in reference to the fluid-coupling action of the torque converter. A popular notion portrays this action as "slushing around" that involves greater power losses than with manual transmissions, although the notion is a comic exaggeration.

The slushbox did nothing to improve an already sluggish response.

Slushboxes are taking over the scrub. Once scorned in the bush, the automatic gearbox today is more widely accepted in traditional four-wheel drive wagons. "Bush bashers go auto." The Sunday Telegraph. 2002 July 21. Pg. A05.

automatic transmission
automatic transmission#English

(slang, automotive) Synonym of automatic transmission.


regen

en-noun

regen (countable and uncountable, plural regens)

regenerative braking
regenerative braking#English

(uncountable, rail transport, automotive) Short for regenerative braking.


coupe

Borrowed from French coupe. Doublet of cup, hive, and keeve.

(US, Canada, automotive) A car with two doors (variant of coupé).


mag

brand new tires and factory-original mags

(colloquial, automotive) Ellipsis of mag wheel.


tranny

tranny (countable and uncountable, plural trannies)

All are shortened forms of the indicated terms + -y.

Other incidents where the tranny suddenly locks up in high gear and requires that the car be restarted to return to normal.

2012, Phil Edmonston, Lemon-Aid Used Cars and Trucks 2012–2013:

(colloquial, automotive) A vehicle's transmission.


4x2 4-wheel vehicle with 2-wheel-drive(2WD)

(automotive) A four-wheel-drive vehicle with a four-speed transmission.

(automotive) A four-wheel vehicle with four-wheel drive.

(automotive, by extension) Any vehicle with four-wheel drive.


wishbone

(automotive) A suspension component similar in shape to a chicken wishbone.


scuttle

Borrowed from Middle French escoutille (compare French écoutille), from Old Norse skaut (“corner of a cloth, of a sail”), or alternatively from Spanish escotilla, ultimately from Gothic 𐍃𐌺𐌰𐌿𐍄𐍃 (skauts, “projecting edge, fringe”), from Proto-Germanic *skautaz (“corner; wedge; lap”). Compare German Schoß, Old English sċēat. More at sheet.

der

(automotive) A drained trough between the windscreen and bonnet of a motor vehicle, forming the intake to the heating/air-conditioning system, often also containing the windscreen wiper motor.

(automotive) By extension, the bulkhead at the front of the passenger compartment.


four-wheel drive
four-wheel drive#English

(automotive) Initialism of four-wheel drive.


LT

en-noun

LT (countable and uncountable, plural LTs)

(automotive) A designation for a trim level within a model of trucks; it denotes low-end (base model) features.


shield

From Middle English scheld, shelde, from Old English scield (“shield”), from Proto-West Germanic *skeldu, from Proto-Germanic *skelduz (“shield”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)kelH- (“cut, split”). Cognate with West Frisian skyld, Dutch schild (“shield”), German Schild (“shield”), Danish skjold (“shield”), Icelandic skjöldur (“shield”) and Faroese skjøldur (“shield”).
Compare Latin scūtum (“shield”), Irish sciath (“shield”), Latgalian škīda (“shield”), Lithuanian skydas (“shield”), Russian щит (ščit, “shield”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)kewH- (“to cover, protect”), *skey- (“to cut, split”).

noncog

(automotive, British English) Parts at the front and back of a vehicle which are meant to absorb the impact of a collision


phaeton

(automotive) a large open touring motorcar with a folding top


rebore

However, any increase in capacity is useful and, if an engine is worn and needs a rebore, it's worth considering boring to a near maximum size rather than simply having it bored to the next oversize.

2005, Daniel Stapleton, How to Plan and Build a Fast Road Car, page 14:

(automotive) The process of modifying the bore of an engine.


camber

From Old French cambre (“bent”), from Latin camurum, from camur (“arched”).

(automotive) The alignment on the roll axis of the wheels of a road vehicle, where positive camber signifies that the wheels are closer together at the bottom than the top.


gaiter

Borrowed from French guêtre, from Middle French guiestres, guestes pl, from Old French *gueste, from Frankish *wastiju, from Proto-Germanic *wastijō (“garment; dress”).
Cognate with Middle High German wester (“a child's chrisom-cloth”), Middle High German westebarn (“godchild”), Old English wæstling (“a coverlet”), Gothic 𐍅𐌰𐍃𐍄𐌹 (wasti, “garment; dress”).

cog

(automotive) A protective flexible sleeve covering a moving part, intended to keep the part clean.


winker

From wink (“blinking of only one eye”) + -er (suffix forming agent nouns).

silmäniskijä

A thing which is used to wink with, or which winks.

(automotive, informal) Synonym of turn signal (“each of the flashing lights on each side of a vehicle which is used to indicate that the vehicle is moving left or right”); a blinker, an indicator.


instrumentation

en-noun

instrumentation (countable and uncountable, plural instrumentations)

The car's instrumentation included fuel, temperature, voltimeter and oil pressure gauges, along with a speedometer and tachometer.

(automotive) On a vehicle, dashboard gauges monitoring engine functions and performance, along with other essential functions.


drift

en-verb

drift (third-person singular simple present drifts, present participle drifting, simple past and past participle drifted)

drifts (present singular third-person)
drifting (participle present)
drifted (participle past)
drifted (past)

From Middle English drift, dryft (“act of driving, drove, shower of rain or snow, impulse”), from Old English *drift (“drift”), from Proto-Germanic *driftiz (“drift”), from Proto-Indo-European *dʰreybʰ- (“to drive, push”). Equivalent to drive + -t; cognate with North Frisian drift (“drift”), Saterland Frisian Drift (“current, flow, stream, drift”), Dutch drift (“drift, passion, urge”), German Drift (“drift”) and Trift (“drove, pasture”), Danish drift (“impulse, instinct”), Swedish drift (“impulse, instinct”), Icelandic drift (“drift, snow-drift”).

cog

(automotive) To oversteer a vehicle, causing loss of traction, while maintaining control from entry to exit of a corner. See Drifting (motorsport).

driftata

to oversteer a vehicle, causing loss of traction


core

non-rhotic, without the horse–hoarse merger

(automotive, machinery, aviation, marine) A deposit paid by the purchaser of a rebuilt part, to be refunded on return of a used, rebuildable part, or the returned rebuildable part itself.


vignette

First attested in 1751. From French vignette, diminutive of vigne (“vine”), from Latin vīnea, from vīnum (“wine”). Replaced earlier Middle English vynet.

In order to drive on Bulgarian roads outside Sofia you'll need to purchase a vignette which must be displayed in the windscreen.

2008, Sofia In Your Pocket, In Your Pocket, →ISBN, page 7:

(automotive) A small sticker affixed to a vehicle windscreen to indicate that tolls have been paid.


tint

Alteration of earlier tinct, influenced by French teinte (“tint”), from Latin tinctus (“dyed”), past participle of verb tingō (“tinge”). Doublet of tent (“kind of red wine”). Cognate with Dutch tint, Estonian tint, French teinte, German Tinte, Hungarian tinta, Italian tinta, Luxembourgish Tintin, Portuguese tinta, and Spanish tinta.

About an hour later, she noticed an all black Phantom with tints and chrome rims riding slowly through the car lot.

2010, Rochelle Magee, No Witnesses: A Perilous Journey, page 36:

I'd watch as cars marched by like a line of ants. Cars with those cool hydraulics. Cars with tints so dark, you couldn't see anything inside.

2021, Carol Park, Memoir of a Cashier: Korean Americans, Racism, and Riots:

(automotive, informal) A vehicle window that has been darkened to conceal the occupant.


flathead

(plural only "flatheads", automotive) A type of engine that has the valves placed in the engine block beside the piston, instead of in the cylinder head, as in an overhead valve engine.


track

→ Kashubian: trak (Canada)

From Middle English trak, tracke, from Old French trac (“track of horses, trail, trace”), of uncertain origin. Likely from a Germanic source, either Old Norse traðk ("a track; path; trodden spot"; > Icelandic traðk (“a track; path; tread”), Faroese traðk (“track; tracks”), Norwegian tråkke (“to trample”)) or from Middle Dutch trec, *trac, treck ("line, row, series"; > Dutch trek (“a draft; feature; trait; groove; expedition”)), German Low German Treck (“a draught; movement; passage; flow”). See tread, trek.

gloss

"line, row, series"; > Dutch <i class="Latn mention" lang="nl">trek</i> (“a draft; feature; trait; groove; expedition”)

cog

(automotive) The distance between two opposite wheels on a same axletree.

caterpillar track
caterpillar track#English

(automotive) Short for caterpillar track.


crunch

en-verb

crunch (third-person singular simple present crunches, present participle crunching, simple past and past participle crunched)

crunches (present singular third-person)
crunching (participle present)
crunched (participle past)
crunched (past)

From earlier craunch, cranch, of imitative origin.

جَرَشَ

to crush something with a noisy crackling sound

(automotive, transitive) To cause the gears to emit a crunching sound by releasing the clutch before the gears are properly synchronised.


banger

→ Estonian: bänger

→ Finnish: bängeri

From bang + -er. The sausages were so called because of their excess water content and impervious skin, leading to the risk of explosion if not punctured before cooking.

A thing or person which bangs, in any sense.

(automotive, slang) An old, worn-out car. From a stereotypical one backfiring, making banging noises.

He drives a little four-banger to work.

(US, automotive, slang) A car or an engine; referring to the cylinders of an engine in a car. From the explosive bangs on every cylinder firing.


Clio

Fred loved to take his Clio for a spin.

(automotive) A model of car manufactured by Renault.


hood

From Middle English hood, hod, from Old English hōd, from Proto-Germanic *hōdaz (cognate with Saterland Frisian Houd, West Frisian/Dutch hoed, German Low German Hood, German Hut). Cognate with Proto-Iranian *xawdaH (“hat”) (compare Avestan 𐬑𐬂𐬛𐬀 (xåda), Old Persian 𐎧𐎢𐎭 (x-u-d /xaudā/)), from Proto-Indo-European *kadʰ- (“to cover”). More at hat.

kapuç

covering for the head attached to a larger garment such as a jacket or cloak

(automotive, chiefly UK) A soft top of a convertible car or carriage.

гюрук

(automotive, chiefly US, Canada) The hinged cover over the engine of a motor vehicle, known as a bonnet in other countries.


flasher

(automotive) An indicator or turn signal.


pony

→ Belarusian: по́ні (póni)

→ Danish: pony

→ Dutch: pony
→ Indonesian: poni

→ Finnish: poni

→ French: poney
→ Romanian: ponei

→ Georgian: პონი (ṗoni)

→ German: Pony
→ Estonian: poni

→ Hungarian: póni

→ Irish: pónaí

→ Italian: pony

→ Japanese: ポニー (ponī)

→ Lithuanian: ponis

→ Maltese: poni

→ Norwegian: ponni

desc

→ Portuguese: pónei, pônei (Brazil), poney

→ Russian: пони (poni)

→ Spanish: poni

→ Swedish: ponny

→ Ukrainian: по́ні (póni)

1659 from Scots powny, apparently from Middle French poulenet (“little foal”), ultimately from Late Latin pullanus (“young of an animal”), from pullus (cognate to English foal). Sense “small serving of alcohol” from 19th century, both for small sizes generally and for a quarter pint specifically, from the small size.

uder

How many ponies are under the hood?


premium

→ German: premium

→ Spanish: premium, prémium

(automotive) High-end; belonging to the market segment between mid-market and luxury.


bumper

Dutch: bumper

Japanese: バンパー (banpā)

Korean: 범퍼 (beompeo)

Russian: ба́мпер (bámper)

(automotive) Parts at the front and back of a vehicle which are meant to absorb the impact of a collision; fender.


preignition

(automotive) The premature detonation of a fuel charge in Four-stroke cycle engines.

aikainen sytytys

premature detonation in four-stroke cycle engines


corner

en-verb

corner (third-person singular simple present corners, present participle cornering, simple past and past participle cornered)

corners (present singular third-person)
cornering (participle present)
cornered (participle past)
cornered (past)

From Middle English corner, from Anglo-Norman cornere (compare Old French cornier, corniere (“corner”)), from Old French corne (“corner, angle”, literally “a horn, projecting point”), from Vulgar Latin *corna (“horn”), from Latin cornua, plural of cornū (“projecting point, end, horn”). The sense of "angle, corner" in Old French is not found in Latin or other Romance languages. It was possibly calqued from Frankish *hurnijā (“corner, angle”), which is similar to, and derived from *hurn, the Frankish word for "horn". Displaced native cognate Middle English hirn, herne, from Old English hyrne, from Proto-Germanic *hurnijǭ (“little horn, hook, angle, corner”), whence modern English hirn (“nook, corner”), itself related to horn.

cog

As the stock car driver cornered the last turn, he lost control and spun out.

(automotive, transitive) To turn a corner or drive around a curve.

That BMW corners well, but the suspension is too stiff.

(automotive, intransitive) To handle while moving around a corner in a road or otherwise turning.


bracketry

(automotive) The mounting hardware used to hold one part to another, typically consisting of stamped metal pieces that make up the actual bracket, and any other bolts, nuts, rubber etc. needed to complete the mounting of the part.


rollback

en-noun

rollback (countable and uncountable, plural rollbacks)

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-rollback.wav

The noun is a deverbal from roll back. The verb is a back-formation from the noun despite being redundant to roll back.

(informal, automotive) A form of flatbed truck adapted or designed specifically as a tow truck or for transporting other vehicles.


Toyota

en-proper noun

Toyota (countable and uncountable, plural Toyotas)

[tɔɪ̯ˈoʊ̯ɾə]

[taɪ̯ˈoʊ̯ɾə]

From Japanese トヨタ (Toyota), from the name of the Toyoda family. The spelling was changed to Toyota because of a belief that it sounded better, or because トヨタ takes eight strokes to write, and 8 is considered lucky.

(automotive) The Toyota Motor Corporation, a Japanese manufacturer of cars.

Coordinate term: Lexus

It is the prelapsarian Polynesia of free love, noble savagery, Kon Tiki rafting and Easter Island statuary, not the Levi’s-wearing, Toyota-driving, pédalo-pushing, efflorescent-cocktails-in-a-split-coconut-serving pseudo-paradise that awaits latter-day travellers.

2001, Stephen Brown, Marketing – the Retro Revolution, London: SAGE Publications, →ISBN, page 139:

(automotive) A brand of car manufactured by Toyota.


Toyota

[tɔɪ̯ˈoʊ̯ɾə]

[taɪ̯ˈoʊ̯ɾə]


stall

en-verb

stall (third-person singular simple present stalls, present participle stalling, simple past and past participle stalled)

stalls (present singular third-person)
stalling (participle present)
stalled (participle past)
stalled (past)

From Middle English stallen (“to abide, dwell, place in a location, stop, come to a standstill”), partly from Old French estaler, ultimately from the same origin as Etymology 1 (see above); and partly from Middle English stalle (“fixed position, stall”).

estää

to cause to come to a standstill; to forestall

(transitive, automotive) To cause the engine of a manual-transmission car or truck to stop by going too slowly for the selected gear.


halo

From Latin halōs, from Ancient Greek ἅλως (hálōs, “threshing floor; disk; disk of the sun or moon; ring of light around the sun or moon”), of unknown origin. The threshing floor's circular threshold or oxen walking on it in a circle gave rise to the other meanings. Used in English since 1563; the sense of light around someone’s head since 1646.

massive astronomical compact halo object

massive astrophysical compact halo object


gallery

From Middle English galery, gallerye, from Middle French galerie, gallerie, from Old French galerie, gallerie (“a long portico, a gallery”), from Medieval Latin galeria (“gallery”), perhaps an alteration of galilea (“church porch”), probably from Latin Galilaea, Galilee, region of Palestine. More at Galilee.

At about 2500 r.p.m., as much oil is by-passed through the cooler as the amount delivered to the main gallery and at higher engine speeds the flow through the cooler is appreciably greater.

2012, Colin Campbell, The Sports Car: Its design and performance, page 92:

Metal grit from a previous engine failure was lodged in the oil galleries and had come loose upon driving the vehicle.

2014, Tim Gilles, Automotive Engines, page 164:

(automotive) A channel that carries engine oil to parts of the engine that need lubrication, such as the main bearings.


Selected so as to be able to continue using most of the labelling from its former name 901 after its competitor Peugeot objected that it had the legal rights to 3-digit automotive model names with a central 0 in the French market. The name 901 had been selected since it was the first version of the 6th major design project after the earlier Porsche 356, which the 911 largely replaced. The name is pronounced "nine-eleven" by analogy with German Neunelfer.

(automotive) A prominent family of sports cars manufactured by Porsche.


console

Borrowed from French console (“bracket”, noun), from consoler (“to console, to comfort”, verb).
Sense of “bracket” either due to a bracket alleviating the load, or due to brackets being decorated with the Christian figure of a consolateur (“consoler”), itself perhaps a pun on the first sense (alleviating load).
Originally used for the bracket itself, then for wall-mounted tables (mounted with a bracket), then for free-standing tables placed against a wall. Use for control system dates at least to 1880s for an “organ console”; use for electrical or electronic control systems dates at least to 1930s in radio, television, and system control, particularly as “mixer console” or “control console”, attached to an equipment rack. This was popularized in computers by mainframes such as the IBM 704 (1954) in terms such as “operator’s console” or “console typewriter”, and then generalized to any attached equipment, particularly for user interaction. The automotive sense harks back to earlier use as “support”.

(automotive) A storage tray or container mounted between the seats of an automobile.

конзола

automotive: storage tray or container mounted between the seats of an automobile


HOT

en-noun

HOT (countable and uncountable, plural HOTs)

(automotive) Acronym of high-output turbo. (turbocharger)


tanker

(automotive, US) A tank truck (tanker truck).

(automotive, UK) A fuel tanker, petrol tanker, road tanker.


VIN

vehicle identification number
vehicle identification number#English

(automotive) Acronym of vehicle identification number.


transmission

transmission (countable and uncountable, plural transmissions)

Borrowed from Latin transmissionem (accusative of transmissio), from transmittere.

monochromated scanning transmission electron microscope

Any vehicle with an internal combustion engine needs a transmission that can alter the gear ratio (engine RPM to wheel RPM) as the vehicle's speed changes.

(automotive) A device, usually an assembly of gears (gearbox) plus a clutch or torque converter, through which power is sent from the engine to the driveshaft in an automobile (motor car or motor truck).


caster

From cast + -er; the wheel sense comes from obsolete cast (“to turn”).

In addition, caster helps to reduce steering effort and to return the steering wheel to the center position after a turn.

2008, Ronald G Haefner, The Car Care Book, →ISBN, page 238:

(automotive) The angle of the axis around which a car's front wheels rotate when the steering wheel is turned, with a vertical axis being defined as zero caster.


spoiler

→ Catalan: espòiler

→ Czech: spoiler

→ French: spoiler

→ Georgian: სპოილერი (sṗoileri)

→ German: Spoiler

→ Italian: spoiler

→ Polish: spoiler

→ Portuguese: spoiler

→ Russian: спо́йлер (spójler)

→ Spanish: spoiler

→ Turkish: spoiler

→ Ukrainian: спо́йлер (spójler)

спо́йлер

automobiles: device to reduce lift and increase downforce

(automotive) A device to reduce lift and increase downforce.


Mario

From Italian and Spanish Mario, both of which coming from Latin Marius.

(automotive, motor racing, figurative) Ellipsis of Mario Andretti (“one who drives fast or recklessly”).


waistline

[...] with the adoption of a curved bodyside profile Bulleid considerably raised the height of the waistline and at the shoulder height of seated passengers, just where the extra space was most needed.

1979 August, Graham Burtenshaw, Michael S. Welch, “O.V.S. Bulleid's SR loco-hauled coaches - 1”, in Railway World, page 396:

(automotive) The horizontal line just below the windows of a car or other vehicle.


ps

(automotive, in classified ads) Abbreviation of power steering.


blow-by

blow-by (countable and uncountable, plural blow-bys)

(automotive) In an internal combustion engine, any burnt or unburnt matter escaping from the cylinder, past the (worn) rings on the piston, and into the crankcase.


AFL

(automotive) Initialism of adaptive front light.


blindside

(automotive) A driver's field of blindness around an automobile; the side areas behind the driver.


bus lane

(automotive, road transport) A traffic lane designated for the use of buses.


roadworthy

en-adj

roadworthy (comparative more roadworthy, superlative most roadworthy)

more roadworthy (comparative)
most roadworthy (superlative)

Coordinate term: unroadworthy

It was one of the rapidest Constitutions ever put together; made, some say in eight days, by Hérault Séchelles and others; probably a workmanlike, roadworthy Constitution enough; — on which point, however, we are, for some reasons, little called to form a judgment.

1851, Thomas Carlyle, The French Revolution: A History:

The coupe shrieked as it hit the curve, but Harry managed the twist with precision and the roadworthy car responded.

1937 July 15, Maxwell Grant, “House of Silence”, in The Shadow:

(automotive, road transport) Being able to be driven, or suitable for driving, on the open road.


drifter

However, sensing the available traction may actually be more important to a drifter.

2006, Paul Morton, How to Drift: The Art of Oversteer, page 32:

For professional drifters looking for even more fine-tuning of their suspension setups, some companies offer more advanced two-way adjustable shocks […]

2007, Calvin Wan, Calvin Wan's Drifting Performance Handbook, page 132:

While this method is used by a few drifters in rear-wheel drive cars, this technique is really the only way one can drift in a front-wheel drive car.

2009, Michael Bender, The Fast, the Fraudulent and the Fatal, page 50:

(automotive) A driver who uses driving techniques to modify vehicle traction to cause a vehicle to slide or power slide rather than drive in line with the tires.


airbag

In a fast German car / I'm amazed that I survived / An airbag saved my life

1997, “Airbag”, in OK Computer, performed by Radiohead:

However, the challenges for the railway world are much greater than for automotive as we generally have more occupants, higher speeds, greater masses, higher energies, and an absence of seatbelts or airbags to contend with.

2021 December 29, Dominique Louis, “Causal analysis: crashworthiness at Sandilands”, in RAIL, number 947, page 32:

(automotive) A protective system in automobiles in which when a crash occurs, a bag containing nitrogen, formed by the explosive decomposition of sodium azide, quickly inflates in front of the driver or passenger, preventing injury to the head. Side air bags, including the back seat passengers, also prevent injury.


slick

From Middle English slicke, slike, slyke, from Old English slīc (“sleek, smooth; crafty, cunning, slick”), from Proto-Germanic *slīkaz (“sleek, smooth”),
from Proto-Indo-European *sleyg-, *sleyǵ- (“to glide, smooth, spread”). Akin to Dutch sluik, dialectal Dutch sleek (“even, smooth”), Old Norse slíkr (“sleek, smooth”), Old English slician (“to make sleek, smooth, or glossy”).

cog

You'll go much faster if you put on slicks.

(sports, automotive) A tire with a smooth surface instead of a tread pattern, often used in auto racing.


topless

(automotive) A convertible car having the top retracted or otherwise open.


chopped

en-adj

chopped (comparative more chopped, superlative most chopped)

more chopped (comparative)
most chopped (superlative)

He later bought a '33 Ford coupe, chopped and channeled it and installed a Mercury engine.

1958, Charles Beaumont, William F. Nolan, Omnibus of Speed: An Introduction to the World of Motor Sport, Putnam, page 183:

(automotive, slang) Having a vehicle's height reduced by horizontal trimming of the roofline.


bootlegger reverse

en-noun

bootlegger reverse (plural bootlegger reverses)

(US, automotive) An automobile driving maneuver where the driver puts the vehicle in a controlled skid in order to quickly reverse the vehicle's bearing to the opposite direction.


trim

trim (countable and uncountable, plural trims)

From Middle English trimen, trymen, trümen, from Old English trymman (“to make firm; strengthen”), from Proto-West Germanic *trummjan, from Proto-Germanic *trumjaną (“to make fast; strengthen”), from Proto-Germanic *trumaz (“firm; strong; sound”).

varustelutaso

the manner in which something is equipped

Holonyms: make; model

Near-synonym: submodel

This model of car comes in three different trims.

If you want air conditioning, you'll need to move up to the next-higher trim level.

(countable) The manner in which something is equipped or adorned; order; disposition.

(especially automotive) An established configuration of features within a model.


Tempo

Genericization of the trademark Tempo. From the name of a popular manufacturer of such structures. Clipping of temporary.

(Quebec, automotive) A type of car shelter, a temporary kit-built prefabricated steel-framed high tunnel peaked hoop house with an impermeable translucent plastic fabric cover, and flap doors.


pb

(automotive, in classified ads) Abbreviation of power brakes.


locker

From lock (lock + -er (patient suffix) or -er (agent noun suffix)) from Old English loc (“fastening, enclosure”), from Proto-Germanic *luką. Cognate with German Loch, Dutch luik, and Dutch loket.

шка́фчик

запирающийся

я́щик

запирающийся

locking differential
locking differential


Taurus

From Latin Taurus (from taurus (“bull”)), from Ancient Greek Ταῦρος (Taûros); compare Aramaic תּוֹר (tor), Arabic ثَوْر (ṯawr). Latin taurus (“bull”) is a doublet of steer, tur, Tavros, and Tarvos.

doublet

(automobile) An automobile model produced by the Ford Motor Company (1986-present).


D

en-noun

D (countable and uncountable, plural Ds)

(automotive) Abbreviation of drive, the setting of an automatic transmission.


T

T (countable and uncountable, plural Ts)

(automotive) The Ford Motor Company's Model T automobile.


COE

(automotive) Initialism of cab over engine.


COE

(automotive) Initialism of cab-over-engine.


DD

DD (countable and uncountable, plural DDs)

(automotive) Initialism of daily driver: a vehicle which is used for everyday commuting, unlike a weekend warrior / Sunday Funday vehicle.


scoop

From Middle English scope, schoupe, a borrowing from Middle Dutch scoep, scuep, schope, schoepe (“bucket for bailing water”) and Middle Dutch schoppe, scoppe, schuppe ("a scoop, shovel"; > Modern Dutch schop (“spade”)), from Proto-Germanic *skuppǭ, *skuppijǭ, from Proto-Indo-European *(s)kep- (“to cut, to scrape, to hack”). Cognate with Old Frisian skuppe (“shovel”), Middle Low German schōpe (“scoop, shovel”), German Low German Schüppe, Schüpp (“shovel”), German Schüppe, Schippe (“shovel, spade”). Related to English shovel.

gloss

"a scoop, shovel"; > Modern Dutch <i class="Latn mention" lang="nl">schop</i> (“spade”)

cog

(automotive) An opening in a hood/bonnet or other body panel to admit air, usually for cooling the engine.


CPO

Certified Pre-Owned
certified pre-owned#English

(automotive) Initialism of Certified Pre-Owned. (referring to a used car with a manufacturer's warranty)

Certified Pre-Owned

charge point operator
charge point operator#English

(automotive, electrical) Initialism of charge point operator.


squib

Possibly imitative of a small explosion.

unk

Possibly

(automotive) The heating element used to set off the sodium azide pellets in a vehicle's airbag.


CAA

Canadian Automobile Association
w:en:Canadian Automobile Association

(Canada, automotive) Initialism of Canadian Automobile Association.


ICE

internal combustion engine
internal combustion engine#English

internal-combustion engine
internal-combustion engine#English

(automotive) Acronym of internal combustion engine, internal-combustion engine.

in-car entertainment
w:in-car entertainment

(automotive) Initialism of in-car entertainment.


ICE

en-verb

ICE (third-person singular simple present ICEs, present participle ICEing, simple past and past participle ICEd)

ICEs (present singular third-person)
ICEing (participle present)
ICEd (participle past)
ICEd (past)

“We do get charge rage if someone ICEs your bay. And people don’t like it if someone parks a Tesla to charge for two hours. When your car has finished charging, our message is: move it.”
ICE-ing is EV owner-speak for when an internal combustion engine (ICE) car blocks or parks in a charging point space. On EV internet forums, stories of drivers being ICEd abound.

2017 May 18, James Foxall, “Electric car drivers face queues and quarrels”, in The Daily Telegraph:

Clearer signs for electric vehicle charge points are needed to prevent drivers of petrol and diesel cars blocking access, the government has been told. […] It was claimed that the blocking of charge points by internal combustion engine cars — known as spaces being “iced” out — was a serious problem.

2020 April 29, Graeme Paton, “Too many electric car charging spaces being blocked”, in The Times:

internal combustion engine
internal combustion engine

(automotive, slang) To occupy a reserved electric car parking space (especially one equipped with a charger) with a traditional car equipped with an internal combustion engine.


RV

Mostly old and pensioned, theyʼd troll the streets in their out-of-state license-plated RVs looking for the last link to their youths.

2015, Paul Beatty, The Sellout, Oneworld Publications (2016), page 67:

According to Outdoorsy, an R.V. share app, millennial R.V. rental bookings went up 70 percent from 2019 to 2020.

2021 August 23, Jay Caspian Kang, “Zen and the Art of #VanLife Influencing”, in The New York Times, →ISSN:

recreational vehicle
recreational vehicle#English

(US, automotive) Initialism of recreational vehicle.


AWD

(automotive) Initialism of all-wheel drive.


GMC

(automotive, US) Initialism of General Motors Company.

(automotive, US, dated) Initialism of General Motors Corporation.


ACC

(automotive) Initialism of adaptive cruise control. (See Wikipedia entry on Autonomous cruise control system)


UDS

(computing, automotive) Initialism of Unified Diagnostic Services.


EP

(automotive) Initialism of extreme pressure (an indicator used in lubricant additives.)


ABS

acrylonitrile butadiene styrene
anti-lock braking system

antilock braking system
antilock brake#English

(automotive) Initialism of antilock braking system.


ATF

en-noun

ATF (countable and uncountable, plural ATFs)

(automotive) Abbreviation of automatic transmission fluid.


RHD

RHD (countable and uncountable, plural RHDs)

right-hand drive
right-hand drive#English

(automotive) Initialism of right-hand drive.


GIS

GIS (countable and uncountable, plural GISs)

(automotive) Initialism of gas injection system.


FWD

FWD (countable and uncountable, plural FWDs)

front-wheel drive
front-wheel drive#English

(automotive) Initialism of front-wheel drive.


ESP

ESP (countable and uncountable, plural ESPs)

electronic stability program
w:electronic stability program

(automotive) Initialism of electronic stability program.


automatic leveling system

automatic leveling system (plural automatic leveling systems)

(automotive) A suspension system that automatically adjusts front and rear ride heights to compensate for changes in axle load.


automatic distance control

automatic distance control (uncountable)

(automotive) Technologies that use radar, infrared and image processing to allow for a decentralized recording of the environment around a vehicle.


TPI

(automotive) Initialism of transfer port injection.


semi-automatic

semi-automatic transmission
semi-automatic transmission

(automotive) A semi-automatic transmission.


stripper

(automotive, informal) A base or entry-level trim level of a car model, lacking amenities or features found in higher trim levels.


moose test

From Swedish älgtest (which see for more), from German Elchtest; although a Swedish test, the word was coined in German and then calqued into Swedish.

(automotive, engineering) A test of the stability of a vehicle, which determines the maximum speed it can attain and still be able to steer clear of an obstacle (such as a child or a large animal running in front of the car) without going out of control.


overdrive

overdrive (countable and uncountable, plural overdrives)

From over- + drive, originally referring to gear ratios over 1:1.

/ˌəʊvə(ɹ)ˈdɹaɪv/

/ˈəʊvə(ɹ)ˌdɹaɪv/

Near-synonym: top gear

In the 1970s, many transmission designs were revised to add an overdrive gear.

Cruising in overdrive at legal highway speed keeps rpm right at 1800, depending on rear-axle ratio.

1981 October, Popular Mechanics, volume 156, number 4, page 201:

en:high-ratio gear most suitable for highway use

(dated, automotive) A gear, on an automobile, higher than the traditionally normal top gear, mainly to allow better fuel economy at highway speeds. In the 21st century, such gears are no longer viewed as "extra" and thus are often not called by this name anymore.


HGV

The unnamed driver appeared before the South East Traffic Commissioner in late November, to receive a six-month HGV driving ban. It followed an earlier court appearance when he was fined a means-tested £715 and given six points on his driving licence for driving without due care and attention.

2022 December 14, “Network News: HGV driver banned after Coulsdon bridge bash”, in RAIL, number 972, page 7:

I'm a writer first, but I do have my HGV licence, and I use it every now and then.

2024 March 6, Pip Dunn, “Freight's future is in ISO containers”, in RAIL, number 1004, page 36:

heavy goods vehicle
heavy goods vehicle#English

(UK, automotive, transport) Initialism of heavy goods vehicle. (a lorry/truck weighing more than 3.5 tons)


radiator

→ Gulf Arabic: راديتر (rādētar)

/ˈrædɪeɪ̯tə/

From radiate + -or. Doublet of radiatori.

(automotive) A device that lowers engine coolant temperature by conducting heat to the air, through metal fins.


jaywalk

en-verb

jaywalk (third-person singular simple present jaywalks, present participle jaywalking, simple past and past participle jaywalked)

jaywalks (present singular third-person)
jaywalking (participle present)
jaywalked (participle past)
jaywalked (past)

Back-formation from jaywalker. Analyzable as jay (“a stupid person”) + walk.

(chiefly US, law, automotive, transitive, intransitive) To behave as a jaywalker; to violate pedestrian traffic regulations by crossing a street away from a designated crossing or to walk in the part of the street intended for vehicles rather than on the sidewalk.

eine Straße an verbotener Stelle überqueren

atravessar no meio da rua

literally: to cross in the middle of the street

переходи́ть доро́гу в неполо́женном ме́сте

but see oförsiktig fotgängare and vårdslös fotgängare.


tub

From Middle English tubbe, tobbe, from Middle Dutch tubbe or Middle Low German tubbe, tobbe, further etymology unknown. Considered to be unrelated to tube.

Every street or race car McLaren has built since 1981 uses a carbon fiber tub. Now, McLaren will make them in-house.

2017 February 10, Máté Petrány, McLaren Will Start Building its Own Carbon Fiber Tubs, archived from the original on 2023-08-31:

(automotive) The bare body shell of an automobile (minus the doors, hood, trunk lid, fenders, etc.) which is lowered onto the chassis at the time of assembly, or in the case of modern unibody designed vehicles, is itself a monocoque around which the rest of the vehicle is built.


back door

(automotive) A rear side door of a car, or at the back of a van.


skateboard

(automotive) A vehicle chassis format, used for electric vehicles, which holds the drive motors and power energy store (ie. batteries), forming the vehicular base.


bonnet

→ Scottish Gaelic: bonaid

From Middle English bonet, from Middle French bonet (Modern French bonnet), from Old French bonet (“material from which hats are made”), from Frankish *bunni (“that which is bound”), from Proto-Germanic *bundiją (“bundle”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰendʰ- (“to tie”).
Compare also Late Latin abbonis, obbonis (“ribbon of a headdress”), also of Germanic origin, from Frankish *obbunni, from *ob- (“above, over”) + *bunni.
Cognate with Old High German gibunt (“band, ribbon”), Middle Dutch bont (“bundle, truss”), Gothic 𐌲𐌰𐌱𐌿𐌽𐌳𐌹 (gabundi, “bond”). More at over, bundle.

der

The car is burgundy red, wide and elegant, ten years old but still the boys are impressed and they run to touch it, pressing sticky handprints against the polished bodywork and trying to climb up onto the bonnet.

2003, Jon McGregor, If Nobody Speaks of Remarkable Things, page 189:

People were reluctant to slam a bonnet shut in those days. One just did not slam bonnets and doors.

2004, David Spencer, quoted in Don Loffler, The FJ Holden: A Favourite Australian Car, page 217:

By about 20 ms, there is contact between the bonnet leading edge and the pedestrian upper leg/pelvis on the struck side, the severity of which depends on the vehicle shape.

2009, Ciaran Simms, Denis Wood, Pedestrian and Cyclist Impact: A Biomechanical Perspective, page 38:

Stoll was still standing on the car bonnet with the catch of his large-calibre repeating rifle off.

2009, Stefan Aust, Anthea Bell, Baader-Meinhof: the inside story of the R.A.F., page 308:

(Australia, British, New Zealand, South Africa, automotive) The hinged cover over the engine of a motor car; a hood.


roadkill

en-noun

roadkill (usually uncountable, plural roadkills)

(chiefly US, automotive) The killing of an animal by a road vehicle.

The van was heading straight for her and travelling faster and faster by the second. Zoe had to do something or she would be roadkill.

2012, David Walliams [pseudonym; David Edward Williams], Ratburger, London: HarperCollins Children’s Books, →ISBN:

(chiefly US, automotive) The animal or animals so killed.


rollover

rollover (countable and uncountable, plural rollovers)

“They blink if I step on the brake at the same time, and anybody who don't step on his brakes when he's makin^([sic]) a turn is lookin^([sic]) to do a rollover.”

1980, Stephen King, Big Wheels: A Tale of the Laundry Game:

(automotive) A road traffic accident in which a vehicle overturns.

kierähdysonnettomuus

automotive: a road traffic accident in which a vehicle overturns


road rage

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-road rage.wav

road + rage. First use appears c. 1988 in the Orlando Sentinel.

For quotations using this term, see Citations:road rage.

(automotive, law, psychology) Uncontrollable aggressive behavior by the driver of a road vehicle, especially when caused by stress or frustration.


PFI

port fuel injection
port fuel injection#English

(automotive) Initialism of port fuel injection.


sleeper

(automotive, slang) An automobile which has been internally modified to excess, while retaining a mostly stock appearance in order to fool opponents in a drag race, or to avoid the attention of the police.


ignition

ignition (countable and uncountable, plural ignitions)

mechanical engineering
mechanical engineering

(automotive, mechanical engineering) A system for activating combustion in a combustion engine.

запалване

system for activating combustion in an engine

Put the key in the ignition and turn in right.

(automotive) Receptacle for a key used to start the engine in a vehicle.


indicator

From Late Latin indicātor (“one who points out”), from Latin indicō (“point out”); see indicate.

der

(UK, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, South Africa, automotive) A turn signal; each of the flashing lights on each side of a vehicle which indicate a turn is being made to left or right, or a lane change etc.


seat belt

"Wearing a seat belt for drivers and front seat occupants reduces the risk of death by 45 to 50%. Just think about that for a moment. A 50% more chance of staying alive. Who wouldn't go for that?" Michelle Yeoh, Reckless driving has 'immense' human and economic toll, Brussels, Euronews, Jorge Liboreiro, 20/9/2023

(automotive) A restraining belt attached to a vehicle seat and fastened around occupants in order to keep them in place and decelerate them smoothly rather than suddenly in an accident, mitigating the risk of injury from uncontrolled impact with injurious objects.

would you mind putting on your seat belt


Volga

(automotive) Any of several automobiles of the same brand manufactured by GAZ in the Soviet Union and Russia.


headliner

(automotive) The interior fabric covering the roof of a vehicle.


catalytic converter

en-noun

catalytic converter (plural catalytic converters)

(automotive) A chamber containing a finely divided platinum catalyst in which carbon monoxide and hydrocarbons from vehicle exhaust are oxidized to carbon dioxide.

محول حفزي

chamber in which carbon monoxide and hydrocarbons from vehicle exhaust are oxidized into carbon dioxide


CVT

(automotive) Initialism of continuously variable transmission.


ADB

(automotive) Initialism of adaptive driving beams.


bhp

brake horsepower
brake horsepower#English

(automotive) Initialism of brake horsepower.


top-down

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-top-down.wav

a top-down ride

(automotive, of a drop top) with the convertible top down


peel out

en-verb

peel out (third-person singular simple present peels out, present participle peeling out, simple past and past participle peeled out)

peels out (present singular third-person)
peeling out (participle present)
peeled out (participle past)
peeled out (past)

(idiomatic, US, automotive) To start abruptly from a standing stop, accelerating rapidly, especially so as to produce skid marks.


propeller shaft

en-noun

propeller shaft (plural propeller shafts)

(automotive) the shaft which connects the gearbox to the differential on the axle of a rear-wheel-drive or four-wheel-drive vehicle.


compression

compression (countable and uncountable, plural compressions)

Borrowed from Middle French compression, from Latin compressiō.

(automotive) The cycle of an internal combustion engine during which the fuel and air mixture is compressed.

компресия

the cycle of an internal combustion engine during which the fuel and air mixture is compressed


glove compartment

glove compartment (plural glove compartments)

Such was my enthusiasm to get there, I probably went faster than was prudent over such a dodgy road, but by the time I arrived the only damage was that the glove compartment had rattled loose.

2005, Sean Dooley, The Big Twitch, Sydney: Allen and Unwin, page 206:

(automotive) A compartment recessed in an automobile’s dashboard, that usually has a door and can be locked, intended to hold gloves, papers, etc.


glove box

There's a map in the glovebox.

So I went for the shotgun in the Hilux, but could only find one rat-shot shell in the glove box.

2005, Paul Carter, Don't Tell Mum I Work on the Rigs, Crows Nest: Allen and Unwin, page 25:

(automotive) A small compartment with a door on the dashboard of a car, usually on passenger side, used to store (and sometimes lock) items.


knocking

Sir―I was greatly interested in a short article in The Motor Cycle on the subject of engine knocking.

1914 November 14, The Motor Cycle, London, page 528, column 1:

Knocking can also occur at high speed, but that may go undetected by the driver.

2021 December 20, The Road Ahead, Brisbane, page 56, column 1:

(automotive) A repetitive ping, knock, or similar sound coming from an engine in which there are repeated uncontrolled explosions in the combustion chamber.


dizzy

A service exchange distributor usually needs to be ordered by a motor factor and cost £150-200! I would suggest you use the SD1 dizzy body/cap etc but change the trigger mechanism to a modern electronic/breakerless unit such as the Newtronic unit.

2005, Roger Williams, How to Give Your MGB V8 Power, page 201:

(slang, automotive) A distributor (device in internal combustion engine).


tailgate

When they first attached tailgates to cars, we were hooked. By the 1970s, wagons with names like Vista Cruiser and Town & Country sported tailgates as big as dining tables.

2007, Stephen Linn, The Ultimate Tailgater's Racing Guide, →ISBN:

(automotive) A hinged board or hatch at the rear of a vehicle that can be lowered for loading and unloading.


tailgate

en-verb

tailgate (third-person singular simple present tailgates, present participle tailgating, simple past and past participle tailgated)

tailgates (present singular third-person)
tailgating (participle present)
tailgated (participle past)
tailgated (past)

That idiot has been tailgating me for the last five minutes.

She also tailgated them at high speed in her convertible yellow Mercedes.

2002 October 19, Helen Carter, “That's no lady - that's the heiress who taunted neighbours”, in The Guardian:

Last week the UK government announced a crackdown on unsafe driving. From now on, those of us spotted tailgating or lane hogging will face on-the-spot fines of £100 and three penalty points.

2013 August 19, Chris Chambers, “Bad driving: what are we thinking?”, in The Guardian:

(automotive, intransitive, transitive) To drive dangerously close behind another vehicle.


indy

From Indianapolis (“location of major car race”).

(motor racing, automotive) A car designed to meet the rules on the Indianapolis 500 car race.

(by extension, motor racing, automotive) An open-wheel open-cockpit single-seat racecar


chipped

en-adj

chipped (comparative more chipped, superlative most chipped)

more chipped (comparative)
most chipped (superlative)

engine management system
engine management system

(automotive, not comparable) Having had the engine management system upgraded, usually to increase power.

chippad

having had the engine management system upgraded


blind spot

زاوِية مَيِّتة

part of the road/railway track/tramway track that cannot be seen

When he changed lanes, he sideswiped a car that was in his blind spot.

‘Blind Spot Information System (BSIS)’ means a system to inform the driver of a possible collision with a bicycle near side.

UN Regulation No 151 – Uniform provisions concerning the approval of motor vehicles with regard to the Blind Spot Information System for the Detection of Bicycles

As its name suggests, BSW can detect traffic in a vehicle’s side blind spots and alert a driver to its presence. […] Taller and heavier vehicles tend to have larger side and rear blind spots, and generally pose a greater risk to those outside of them when compared to smaller vehicles.

2023 August 24, Keith Barry, “SUV and Truck Buyers May Pay Thousands More for Life-Saving Feature, CR Study Shows” in Consumer Reports

(automotive) In driving, the part of the road that cannot be seen in the rear-view mirror or side-view mirror.


supercharger

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компресор

(automotive) An inlet air compressor for an internal combustion engine (either Otto or Diesel cycle).

(most commonly) Such a compressor which is specifically powered from the crankshaft.


supercharge

en-verb

supercharge (third-person singular simple present supercharges, present participle supercharging, simple past and past participle supercharged)

supercharges (present singular third-person)
supercharging (participle present)
supercharged (participle past)
supercharged (past)

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-supercharge.wav

(automotive) To increase the power of an internal combustion engine (either Otto or Diesel cycle) by compressing the inlet air with power extracted from the crankshaft.

ahtaa

to increase the power of an internal combustion engine


trafficator

There were vehicles following me, of course, but was any of them trailing me? […] Without any warning, and without signalling with the trafficator, I took a sudden right turn, hoping to shake off my trailer.

2014, Chris Ekpekurede, Laughing Over Serious Matters: Stories to Make You Laugh and Reflect:

(Nigeria, automotive) A blinking light on a motor vehicle that indicates the direction in which it is about to turn.


sump

From Middle English sompe, either from Middle Dutch somp, sump or Middle Low German sump from Old Saxon *sump, from Proto-West Germanic *sump, ultimately from Proto-Germanic *sumpaz. Doublet of swamp.

(automotive) The crankcase or oil reservoir of an internal combustion engine.


PDI

en-noun

PDI (countable and uncountable, plural PDIs)

petrol direct injection
petrol direct injection#English

(automotive) Initialism of petrol direct injection. (fuel injection)


feedline

(automotive) The tube for gasoline that goes to the engine.


DTC

diagnostic trouble code
diagnostic trouble code#English

(automotive) Abbreviation of diagnostic trouble code.


(automotive) A motor vehicle fuel blend based on close to 100% ethanol used in alcohol fuelled vehicles


aquaplane

en-verb

aquaplane (third-person singular simple present aquaplanes, present participle aquaplaning, simple past and past participle aquaplaned)

aquaplanes (present singular third-person)
aquaplaning (participle present)
aquaplaned (participle past)
aquaplaned (past)

PIE word
 *h₂ékʷeh₂
The noun is derived from aqua- (prefix meaning ‘water’) + plane (“flat or level surface”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *pleh₂- (“flat”)).
The verb is derived from the noun, and is analysable as aqua- + plane (“to glide; to soar; to skim a water surface”).

prefix

So much water. They were held up by it, the tyres skating over a film of rain. Aquaplaning. Flying his sister’s fancy car through the wet air. Touching nothing.

2015, Anne Enright, “Shannon Airport”, in The Green Road, New York, N.Y., London: W[illiam] W[arder] Norton & Company, →ISBN, part 2, page 203:

(by extension, chiefly British, automotive) Of a car or other road vehicle: to lose traction with the road due to the vehicle's tyres sliding on a film of water on the road.

olla vesiliirrossa

of a car, etc.: to lose traction with the road due to the vehicle’s tyres sliding on a film of water on the road


diff

This diff is capable of locking up when wheel slip occurs.

Many operators cursed the early diff and driveline set-ups[.]

2000, Bob Foster, Birdum or Bust!, Henley Beach, SA: Seaview Press, page 45:

(automotive) Abbreviation of differential: the differential gear in an automobile.


DMS

en-noun

DMS (countable and uncountable, plural DMSs)

driver monitoring system
w:driver monitoring system

(uncountable, automotive) Initialism of driver monitoring system.


burn out

en-verb

burn out (third-person singular simple present burns out, present participle burning out, simple past and past participle burned out or (mostly Commonwealth) burnt out)

burns out (present singular third-person)
burning out (participle present)
burned out (participle past)
burned out (past)
burnt out (Commonwealth participle past)
burnt out (Commonwealth past)

(intransitive, automotive) To have one's tires skid against the ground; to peel off, peel out.


left-hander

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(automotive) A bend or turn to the left; a left-hand corner.


Mexican overdrive

Synchronically, coordinate with other variants of overdrive in this sense of the word, whereas some of the variants certainly denigrate outgroups (e.g., Jewish overdrive, Polish overdrive) and others might not be denigrating but rather celebratory (e.g., Georgia overdrive); diachronically, this one has been said to be based on NASCAR teams' experience in the early 1950s in the legendary Carerra Panamerica, where the long hills would have otherwise overrevved the engines, although this may be a folk etymology for just another outgroup-denigrating variant.

He shifted his car out of gear, at the top of the hill, and coasted down in Mexican overdrive.

(US, slang, automotive) Synonym of angel gear.


drunk driving

(law, automotive, US) The act of driving under the influence of alcohol.

Specifically, the criminal offence of driving with a blood alcohol content (BAC) level higher than the local legal limit.


hydroplane

hydroplane (third-person singular simple present hydroplanes, present participle hydroplaning, simple past and past participle hydroplaned)

hydroplanes (present singular third-person)
hydroplaning (participle present)
hydroplaned (participle past)
hydroplaned (past)

Don't drive too fast on wet roads or the car may hydroplane and cause you to lose control of the vehicle.

(automotive) For a car or similar vehicle to slide along the road on a thin film of water between the road and the tyres. This occurs when a car has some speed and comes to somewhere with more water on the road than the weight of the car and the grooves in the tyre tread pattern (if any) can push away. The result is almost no traction at all for steering or braking.


driving under the influence

en-noun

driving under the influence (uncountable)

(law, automotive) Operating a motor vehicle while impaired due to the consumption of drugs or alcohol.


car battery

(automotive) A 12-volt battery used to run the electric starter motor in order to ignite the internal combustion engine of an automobile, and power accessories when the engine is off and the alternator is not turning.

Autobatterie

battery used to start the engine of an automobile


California roll

California roll (plural California rolls)

(colloquial, automotive) A rolling stop (when a car slows down at a stop sign, but does not come to a complete stop).


nitrous

From Middle French nitreux, and its source, Latin nitrōsus (“nitrose”). Doublet of nitroso. By surface analysis, nitro- + -ous.

(dentistry, automotive, informal) Nitrous oxide.

When a shot this big is being run, it will also be necessary to pull 6-10 degrees of timing out when the nitrous is being run.

2002, Mike Kojima, Honda/Acura Engine Performance: How to Modify D, B and H Series Honda/Acura Engines for Street and Drag Racing Performance, Penguin, →ISBN, page 111:

To simulate nitrous, we will use a very simple approach: apply a large force to the back of the car when the nitrous is on.

2004, Simon Carless, Gaming Hacks, "O'Reilly Media, Inc.", →ISBN, page 320:

When tested on a typical summer day, an engine with fuel fed by an annular discharge booster could be 10 hp less over a stepped dogleg booster, but 10 hp more when the nitrous is in operation.

2013, David Vizard, David Vizard's How to Super Tune and Modify Holley Carburetors, CarTech Inc, →ISBN, page 74:

(automotive, informal) The system in some racing vehicles which pumps nitrous oxide into the engine to improve performance.


boneyard

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B-52s in a boneyard

a 440 V-8 from the boneyard

Or what is conveyed to those unversed in railway matters by reports following a shed visit that "the frame of Claud Hamilton lay in the boneyard and had many endearing messages of farewell chalked on it"?

1951 April, R. S. McNaught, “Railway Enthusiasts”, in Railway Magazine, number 600, page 269:

The “Boneyard” is a place of antiques and historic symbolism, a burial ground for aircraft.

1999, Naval Aviation News, volumes 82-83, page 37:

Beginning in December 1969, the entire fleet was retired to the “boneyard” at Davis-Monthan AFB in Tucson, Arizona.

2017, William A. Flanagan, Aviation Records in the Jet Age:

(aviation, automotive, slang) A dumpsite for obsolete or unusable aircraft etc; a junkyard.


mag wheel

(automotive, originally late 1950s and into 1960s) A wheel for a motor vehicle, made from an alloy of magnesium, typically lighter and offering better heat conduction than steel wheels; often styled in a five-point star pattern; (sometimes also) a wheel made to look like such wheels but not truly of magnesium.


FCA

(automotive) Initialism of Fiat-Chrysler Automobiles., an Italian&American automaker


burnout

burnout (countable and uncountable, plural burnouts)

→ Dutch: burn-out

→ Finnish: burnout

→ German: Burn-out

(automotive) Use of the throttle to spin the wheels of a vehicle being held stationary, causing the spinning tires to produce smoke and burn rubber.

burn

using the throttle to spin the wheels of a vehicle being held stationary


prime mover

Originally in translation of Latin primum mobile.

(automotive) The front part of a semi-trailer type truck, i.e., the tractor to which the trailer part attaches.


(automotive, engineering) Alternative spelling of V-twin


hot hatch

Clipping of hot hatchback., from hot + hatchback. From being a hatchback-configuration small car, compact, subcompact that has some zip.

(automotive, informal) A high-performance hatchback small motor car.


car door

We found Jeru to be a pleasant city; with only one fault: the inhabitants will crowd into a car before passengers can get out; consequently the heads of the two columns collide near the car-door, and there is a general choke.

1863, Gail Hamilton, Gala-Days, Boston: Ticknor and Fields, page 22:

(automotive, rail transport) A door designed for use on a car (whether a railway carriage or an automobile).


blip

en-verb

blip (third-person singular simple present blips, present participle blipping, simple past and past participle blipped)

blips (present singular third-person)
blipping (participle present)
blipped (participle past)
blipped (past)

Standing NATO Mine Countermeasures Group 1

(automotive) To apply the throttle briefly when downshifting, to provide a smoother gear transition and prevent wheelspin.


caliper

(automotive) The part of a disc brake that holds the brake pads.


turning circle

But the horse has left his mark, for his successor is a mechanical horse designed to a large extent to copy the leading characteristics of the live horse; easy attachment to or detachment from its load, a small turning circle, a small appetite for petrol, but giving a much higher acceleration and speed, and so capable of much greater distances, so that fewer cartage units are required.

1944 November and December, T. F. Cameron, “Motor and Cartage Working”, in Railway Magazine, page 335:

(automotive, of a road vehicle) The circular path formed by the wheel furthest from the centre of the turn when turning to the maximum extent.


rolling stop

(automotive) An automobile driving maneuver in which a driver slows down, but does not completely stop, at a stop sign.


side-by-side

(automotive) A type of multipurpose off-highway utility vehicle, with four wheels, resembling a club cart or a golf cart


downshift

The noun is derived from down (preposition) + shift (“slight change or movement”). The verb is derived from the noun.

compound

The driver, Lindsay, gave me a regal wave at the top after he had completed a series of perfect downshifts[.]

2000, Bob Foster, Birdum or Bust!, Henley Beach, SA: Seaview Press, page 197:

(automotive, cycling) A shift of a transmission into a lower gear, as dictated by heavier load on the engine, as for example when climbing a hill or strongly accelerating.


downshift

en-verb

downshift (third-person singular simple present downshifts, present participle downshifting, simple past and past participle downshifted)

downshifts (present singular third-person)
downshifting (participle present)
downshifted (participle past)
downshifted (past)

zwalniać

to change one’s career or lifestyle to one which is not as well paid but less stressful and more personally rewarding

落波

to shift the transmission of a car or bicycle into a lower gear

He brought the car to a stop before the bridge, downshifted and then put her at the road again in a rising disciplined snarl along the N.6 to Cannes.

a. 1962, Ernest Hemingway, chapter 27, in The Garden of Eden, New York, N.Y.: Charles Scribner’s Sons, published 1986, →ISBN, page 229:

(automotive, cycling) To shift (a car or bicycle) into a lower gear.

In a stick-shift vehicle, the driver must downshift when necessary; in an automatic, the transmission downshifts as needed.

(automotive, cycling) To shift a transmission into a lower gear.