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The British Car Dictionary(which also applies to other cars, not just ours)
| Terms Unique to SOL'ers |
| Term |
Meaning |
| SOL |
Scion(s) of Lucas (sometimes S... Out of Luck) (Includes both Sisters of Lucas, and Sons of Lucas)
Scion n. A descendant or heir.
|
| LBC |
Little British Car, Little British Convertible, Large British Car, etc. |
| PO |
The Previous Owner of your car. |
| DPO |
Dreaded Previous Owner (because of the hacks they always seem to have made on your car.) |
| The Prince of Darkness |
Lucas, Lucas electrics, etc. |
| BPSL |
British (Phlegm Sucking) Leyland. A term of, er, endearment, referring to the things they did to destroy the British Sports Car quality, designs and market (With thanks to Scott Fisher) |
| OSOTP |
Other Side of the Pond. (Across the Ocean) |
| SWORK |
Swearing While Working, a common practice. |
| VIQ |
Vehicle In Question |
| Wanker |
Someone who hacks at their car. Sometimes clueless. |
| British ----- American Automotive Translations |
| British Term | American Meaning |
| accumulator | battery |
| actuator | switch or servo |
| Artic articulated lorry | "tractor-trailer" |
| baulk ring | synchro ring |
| bonnet | hood |
| boot | trunk |
| bulkhead | firewall |
| choke tube | venturi |
| core plug | freeze plug |
| crocodile clip | alligator clip |
| crosshead (re: screwdriver) | Phillips |
| crown wheel | ring gear |
| cubby box | glove box or glove compartment |
| damper | shock absorber |
| drive shaft | half shaft or axle shaft |
| drop-head coupe | convertible version of 2 door coupe |
| dumpy screwdriver | short screwdriver |
| dynamo | generator |
| earth | ground |
| estate | station wagon |
| fascia | dashboard |
| fixed-head coupe | 2 door coupe |
| frogeye | bugeye |
| Gallon (Imperial) | 5 US Quarts |
| gearbox | transmission |
| gudgeon pin | wrist pin |
| hood | convertible top |
| jointing compound | gasket sealant |
| lorry | truck |
| mole wrench | locking pliers (re: Vice grips) |
| monocoque | unibody |
| MOT = Ministry of Transport | DOT = Department of Transportation |
| nave plate | hubcap |
| nose | front of car |
| paraffin | kerosene |
| pinking | knocking or pinging |
| prop shaft | drive shaft |
| petrol | gasoline |
| prise | pry |
| proud | above or raised |
| quarterlight | vent window |
| rev counter | tachometer |
| ring gear | flywheel gear, or starter gear |
| roadster | car that only comes in a convertible style |
| roundabout rotary | traffic circle |
| RoStyle | type of steel wheel (as opposed to wire) |
| saloon | 2 or 4 door sedan |
| scuttle | cowl |
| side curtains | removable side windows |
| silencer | muffler |
| sill | rocker panel |
| Shooting Brake | station wagon |
| spanner | wrench |
| split pin | cotter pin |
| spring washer | lock washer |
| squab | part of seat |
| suction advance | vacuum advance |
| sump | oil pan |
| thrust bearing | throwout bearing |
| tickover | idle |
| top gear | high gear |
| torch | flashlight |
| trunnion | sliding or rotating joint (suspension) |
| Tyre | tire |
| wheel nut | lug nut |
| whitworth | Brtish thread measuring standard |
| windscreen | windshield |
| wing | fender |
| Common Auto Abbreviations |
| Abbreviation | Meaning |
| AC (e.g. AC Cobra) | Auto Carrier |
| ARG | Austin Rover Group |
| BL | British Leyland |
| BLMC | British Leyland Motor Corporation |
| BMC | British Motor Corporation |
| BSF | British Standard Fine (Thread system) |
| BSW | British Standard Whitworth (Thread system) |
| BFH | Big F...... Hammer, AKA: "Bashing Tool"
(big, heavy hammer used "persuading" stuck parts, etc.) |
| CD | (refers to carbs) constant depression |
| DB (e.g. Aston-Martin DB6) | David Brown |
| M.G. | Derived from Morris Garage(s) |
| NOS | New, Old Stock parts (as opposed to a recent copy) |
| PI | petrol injection |
| SS | Swallow Sidecars |
| SU | Skinners Union (Carbs and Fuel pumps) |
| TVR | TreVoR (Wilkinson), the founder of TVR |
| ZS | Zenith-Stromberg (Carbs) |
| Some Common InterNet Abbreviations |
| Abbreviation | Meaning |
| AKA | Also Known As (alias) |
| BTW or OBTW | By The Way, or Oh, By the Way... |
| FLAMES ON/OFF | start/end of major gripe or insult |
| IMO | In My Opinion |
| IMHO | In My Humble Opinion |
| ROM | Rough Order of Magnitude (size, weight, usually cost, effort) |
| RTM | Read The Manual |
| RTFM | Read The (Fun, Foolish, F.....) Manual |
| SWAG | Scientific WAG (at least one reason for the guess exists) |
| WAG | Wild-Assed Guess |
| TTFN | Ta Ta For Now, AKA: "Bye for now" |
|
