That part of the body containing the driving instruments, switches, etc. Also called the "instrument panel" or "dash panel" or just "dash."

[1] A metal or plastic plate which is mounted to the dash to indicate the brand, model, or series of vehicle.

[2] A metal plate which is mounted to the dash to indicate an award for attending or winning a rally or other automotive event.

A mirror which adjusts to prevent the glare from the headlights of following cars. The British term is "dipping mirror."

A battery that registers almost no electrical charge. Sometimes it can be brought back to life with a charger.

(Br) flat battery

A road which has no outlet

The action of slowing down. The opposite of accelerate

the lid of the luggage compartment (trunk)

The action of removing mist or condensation from the inside of a window or the outside of a mirror by means of blowing air or heated wires imbedded in the glass.

(Br) demist

The action of removing frost from the inside of a window or the outside of a mirror by means of blowing air or heated wires imbedded in the glass.

[1] To remove oil and grease from the surface of a part.

[2] Wiping the surface to be painted with a clean cloth saturated in a solvent. This is essential to good paint adhesion.

Water from which impurities have been removed by a special process and used for topping up batteries.

A windshield scraper which can be set to activate at various times and pauses between each swipe. It is useful when there is a mist or light rain. Also called "intermittent wiper."

A two piece rim found on trucks. The main part of the rim remains on the axle while a side piece and a locking ring is removable. In this way the whole rim is not removed from the vehicle like a passenger car's rim and wheel. Also called a "detachable rim".

An alternative route which traffic has to follow due to closure of a stretch of road for repairs, etc. A diversion.

(Br) rumble seat

to produce a part by pouring a molten metal alloy, into a mold

A type of engine or fuel or oil used for that engine.

A switch used to lower or dip the headlights from high beam to low beam and back again.

the device used to measure the level of a fluid (usually oil or transmission fluid). It is commonly known as an "oil dipstick" or "transmission dipstick," but also can be found in power steering reservoirs and other fluid reservoirs

a brake where a kidney-shaped brake pad, lined with asbestos or other heat resistant material is pressed against a disc attached to the wheel to stop the car

Back to back seating on older cars where the driver and front passenger faced forward; but the two rear passengers faced rearward.

Vehicles with manual transmission and no synchromesh have difficulty shifting from one gear to another. With synchromesh, shifting is accomplished by depressing the clutch pedal and moving the gearshift selector from one gear to the next. Without synchromesh, shifting is not smooth unless you double clutch. Here you depress the clutch pedal shift to neutral lift up on the clutch pedal blip the throttle (accelerator), then depress the clutch pedal again and shift to the next gear. While this action seems complicated, you can get used to doing it to avoid the grinding noise heard in non-synchromesh transmissions.

A carburetor in which the air passes downward through the carburetor into the intake manifold. Contrasts with sidedraft carburetor.

Manually shifting to a lower gear in order to use the engine compression to assist in reducing the vehicle's speed. Also called "downgearing."

The action of following closely behind a faster vehicle so as to take advantage of the aerodynamic effect which causes both the vehicles behind and the one in front to move faster.

also known as the power train, the parts between the engine and the driving wheels, including the clutch, transmission, drive shaft, and the rear axle

Electrical device used to provide dc electricity, having no liquid in the cells.

A brake system that uses a tandem or dual master cylinder to provide separate brake system for both front and rear of vehicle. In the event of a loss of hydraulic fluid, one system may still work because it is independent of the other system. Often the front left brake is linked with the right rear brake. Likewise the right front brake is linked with the left rear brake. Some cars like the Rolls-Royce, link the two front brakes with the right rear brake, and the two front brakes with the left rear brake. Also called "dual-circuit braking system."

a touring car with a rear windshield mounted on a folding cowl which covers part of the rear compartment

A tube or channel through which air, gas, or liquid is conducted, conveyed, or moved.

Expression to indicate quality, as "It's a duesy." The word is derived from the high quality Duesenberg automobiles.

(Br) a generator producing direct current.