Glossary of Basic Automotive Terms : MYNEWCAR.in

Whilst we take our automobiles to the service centers and garage we often come across some very perplexing words and acronyms. Some are related to the engine components and others are linked to other prominent functions of the car.

 We take you more close towards your car to develop a safe and sound ride when things go south. Here we have a complete list of some terms and abbreviations which we always used to muse on. 

Exterior Components and Parts

Wing Mirrors or ORVMs

The mirrors that are attached to the front door of the car for the reason of getting proper visibility on what’s behind while changing lanes and scooting your car in another direction.

 

Windshield

The front glass of the car is placed above the bonnet for the driver and co-passenger to look on the road while driving.

 

Brakes- Drum & Disc

We often see the brakes of our car just inside the wheels. In our Indian car market majority of the cars have disc brakes at the front and drum brakes at the rear.

The more simplified form for you is Disc brakes are more efficacious as they have a piece of equipment called the Caliper which holds the disc on which it is situated when the driver applies the brake putting the car to a stop.

Drum brakes are quite old now and the stopping power maintained by them is less as they rely on liners contacting the drum resulting in pressure forcing the wheel to slow down when the brake is applied.

 

Wheel Hub

It is the center of the wheel around which there are 5 or sometimes 4 bolts fastened to connect the wheel on the axle. In order to remove or replace the wheel, you should loosen the bolts after putting the car on a jack or a lift.

 

Tire Pressure

It is the pressure of air in the tire. It is generally measured in PSi and it is advised to maintain the required number for the better use of the tire.

 

Getting under the hood

 

Coolant

It is a fluid that runs around the engine and the radiator through pipes to reduce the high temperatures of the engine. It protects the climate control system of the car by maintaining the correct temperature.’ Thermostat valve operates the regulation of the coolant.

 

Brake Fluid

Inside the hood, you can find a container that says brake fluid on it. It is nothing but a fluid that ensures optimum braking because of the pistons working in the brake.

Fuel Pump

It is an electronic machine that delivers fuel to the engine when the ignition is on so that the engine is filled with correct measures of fuel and air.

 

ECU

ECU is an onboard computer of the car. It takes care of various parameters of maintaining efficient combustion in the engine. It also has some other important functions of turning the car on working in coordination with the immobilizer and other components.

 

Engine Oil

To prevent the oxidation of the interior components of the engine. Engine promotes the wear and tear of the engine.

 

Transmission

The engine cannot move the wheels alone. It is attached to a transmission that helps the car to go at high speeds. DSG, CVT, AMT are some examples of Automatic transmission and we have the good old Manual Transmission as well.

 

Powertrain

The powertrain is the combination of engine and transmission which propels the car.

 

Turbocharger

It is a tool that helps the engine to suck more air that provides better efficient combustion resulting in good mileage. Turbo is basically a turbine. It has two openings from which the air is piped in the engine and the other end makes the turbine rotate because of the exhausted air.

 

Other Terms

 

ABS (Anti Lock Braking System)

It is a helpful system that ensures no locking of brakes in the biting position which can lead to slipping on wet surfaces and skidding. 

 

Traction Control

It is a connection between the accelerator input and the torque that is transferred on the wheels of the car reducing the amount of wheel spin generated by the car on heavier acceleration.

 

Chassis Number

A unique identification number is given to a car so that it can be recognized by the RTO and the manufacturer. Each and every car on the road has a different number.

 

Service Profile

It is a written form of data that holds a record of the time and record of kilometers since your last service and when is the next one due. Nowadays in the modern car, this data is available in the car infotainment system.

 

Ignition System

The main motive of this system is to generate a spark so that the fuel is ignited and the combustion process starts that eventually starts up the engine.

Horsepower

It is used to describe the potential of an automobile on its ability to maintain the high speeds

 

Emissions

One of the important factors that derive how many gases and other pollutants the car is emitting in the air through the exhaust pipe. It denotes a specific limit and every car’s emission test should not exceed that value.

Knowing all of this may not make you an automobile engineer but it will surely guide you towards the important processes that a running car has to go through. 

We hope you found it helpful and it was an informative one and you've known few terms that you were unaware.

 

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