Common Car Terms & Their Meaning
You may have heard some of these car terms quite frequently, but do you really know what they mean, or what those acronyms actually stand for? They can be confusing, & with technology constantly advancing, new terms are appearing all the time.
Here we’ve outlined a few of the most common terms you may come across to help give you a bit more of an understanding of your vehicle.
Horsepower
Horsepower refers to a unit of measure of an engine’s power. One horsepower is equal to 550 foot-pounds per second (the power needed to move 550 pounds, or roughly 249kgs, one foot in one second). The higher the horsepower, the more power & capability to push a car to faster speeds.
Torque
Torque is a measurement of an engine’s rotational force & how much of that force is available at a specific engine speed. It reflects the engine’s power output, or how forcefully it can rotate the crankshaft.
RPMs
RPMs is a car term that stands for Revolutions Per Minute, & is used to measure the frequency of rotation
(the number of full rotations around a fixed axis in one minute).
ABS
ABS stands for Anti-lock Braking System. This technology prevents the car’s wheels from locking during a sudden, emergency braking. They do this by pulsing the brakes on & off & helps to maintain grip with the road automatically at the first sign of a lock-up. Without ABS, the wheels would lock up & the car would skid. Modern cars now come with ABS as a standard safety feature.
Transmission
Transmission is the internal system that allows the vehicle to change gears by transferring the power from the engine into movement through a manual or automatic shifting mechanism. Transmission types are automatic or manual, but the term generally refers to the gearbox.
PSI
PSI stands for Pounds per Square Inch; the common unit of measurement for pressure. It is most commonly used to describe the air pressure in tyres. Your recommended PSI for your vehicle’s tyres refers to the amount of air pressure required to ensure that the tyres are properly inflated.
SUV
SUV stands for Sports Utility Vehicle. Definitions vary slightly between countries, but it’s usually agreed upon that it is a powerful, four-wheel drive vehicle with some off-road capability. It is suited to on-road driving, but has raised ground clearance for driving over rough ground.
VIN
VIN stands for Vehicle Identification Number. It is a unique code (17 digits) assigned to every vehicle during the manufacturing process. The VIN consists of both letters & numbers & identifies information about a vehicle; like the manufacturer, its model year & where it was manufactured.
It can also be used to access information of a particular vehicle; such as if a used vehicle has been damaged, written off or stolen. The VIN is stamped onto a plate or sticker & is located inside the engine bay & on the driver’s side door jamb.
4 Cylinder/ 6 Cylinder Etc.
The amount of cylinders in a vehicle represent the engine size. Most cars & SUVs have 4, 6 or 8 cylinders. The cylinder is the power unit of the engine. A 4 cylinder vehicle has 4 cylinders, a V6 has 6, and so on. The cylinder is where the fuel is burned & turned into energy that powers the vehicle.
Each cylinder contains a piston which pumps up & down. The more cylinders a vehicle has, the more pistons are pumping, which results in more power being produced in a shorter time period, & increasing the efficiency of the engine when reaching higher seeds. An engine with fewer cylinders has superior fuel efficiency, but lacks the power of a vehicle with a higher number of cylinders.
Drivetrain
The drivetrain is all the components of a vehicle (excluding the engine) that work together to transmit power/ torque from the engine to the wheels. It includes the transmission (which will differ according to the type of vehicle- manual, automatic, 4WD or 2WD etc) driveshafts, drive axles, clutch (on manuals) & torque converter (on automatics).
AWD/ 4WD/ 2WD
AWD stands for All-Wheel Drive. AWD provides a varying amount of energy to each wheel, according to which wheels require the most traction. An AWD system employs a rear, a front, and a centre differential to distribute the engine’s torque. The power is transmitted to the wheels that require the most traction, and the driver doesn’t typically control this.
An AWD is not suited for rocky or hilly roads since it was designed to enhance traction on slick or icy roads, as it has great traction and road grip.
4WD stands for Four-Wheel Drive. A four-wheel drive system works by transferring power from the engine to the transfer case. The power is then divided between the front and rear axles so the torque is equally distributed to the four wheels.
Drivers have the ability to switch between
2WD (Two-Wheel Drive) and 4WD, depending on road conditions, as most of the 4WD systems are primarily part-time. On normal road conditions, the 2WD mode is recommended as it improves on-road driveability. The front wheels rotate freely, while the rear wheels drive the vehicle forward. When driving on unpaved roads and rough terrain, the 4WD mode can be turned on to gain more torque and traction.
Chassis
Chassis is a broad term that refers to a vehicle’s structural frame, or skeleton.
Hybrid
A hybrid vehicle uses more than one type of power source to propel the vehicle; such as internal combustion engine (petrol or diesel) & an electric motor & hybrid battery. Hybrid vehicles emit less CO2 than traditional vehicles. They also have the ability to run on electricity only, but the driving distance is limited.
LPG
LPG stands for Liquid Petroleum Gas; a combination of propane and butane that can be used as a fuel in internal combustion engines.
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Ask about our mobile service; we can pick up your car and drop it back to you when we are done. We strive to make our service convenient & hassle free & educate our customers.
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