Jargon Helper

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  Jargon   Meaning   Yes But What Does That Mean!?  
  Fuel Type   What type of fuel the vehicle uses. This will either be Petrol, Diesel, or Petrol Hybrid.  
  • Petrol - The most common fuel currently, quieter engines with more bhp.
  • Diesel - Better mpg, more common on larger vehicles. Noisier engines.
  • Hybrid - Use a small petrol engine in conjunction with large electrical battery. More fuel efficient with great mpg.
 
  Insurance Group   Gives an indication of how expensive a car will be to insure.   Rises on a scale from 1 to 20 (20 being the most expensive). The more expensive and desirable your car, the higher the group.  
  Engine Type and Size   The layout/design of an engine and number of cylinders along with capacity.   The main types apart from the normal are:
  • Flat - Cylinders lay horizontally.
  • V - Cylinders arranged in a V formation.
  • W - Two V arrangements joined together to create a 'W' shape.
  • Rotary - Rare engine, using wankel rotary system instead of cylinders.
These layouts can contain anything from 3 up to 12 cylinders. The total capacity of these cylinders is measured in cubic centimetres (cc) and gives a rough indication of the power output. 		 
  Brake Horse Power (BHP)   Horse Power is the 'power' generated by a car engine. It determines how fast a car will accelerate at a given speed.   Brake Horse Power is the measurement taken, without the loss in power caused by the gearbox, generator, differential, water pump and other subsystems. 1hp is roughly equivalent to 700W of electrical power.  
  Torque (lb/ft)   The 'pulling power' of an engine. Measured in pounds of force per foot.   The more torque in an engine, the more power is provided at lower rpm. This improves driveability of a car.  
  Miles Per Gallon (MPG)   Is a fuel consumption figure, measuring the number of miles that can be travelled with one gallon of fuel.   This site uses 'combined' mpg figures, which a kind of average calculation made up from 55% urban/city driving, and 45% extra-urban/motorway driving. This means that you will probably notice about 10mpg less when you drive around urban areas, and about 10mpg more when you are taking longer journeys.  
  CO2 Emission   Relates to the number of grams of CO2 your engine will create for every kilometre travelled.   For the environmentally conscious, carbon dioxide is a greenhouse gas which is one of the waste products of an engine. The larger the engine, the more carbon dioxide is created. Company car tax is assessed using this figure also.  
  NCAP Rating   Based on a scale from 1 to 5 (5 is better), an indication of the relative safety of a vehicle in an accident.   The New Car Assessment Programme (NCAP) has been created in Europe to allow carbuyers to evaluate how safe their car would be in an accident. Crash tests are carried out, using crash test dummies to analyze damage to vehicle occupants and pedestrians.  
  Company Car Tax   Is a government tax levied on company car drivers, according to how much CO2 is created by their car engine.   A complex tax calculated using 4 main factors:
  • The list price of the car, on the day before it was first registered, plus certain accessories
  • The rate at which the car emits carbon dioxide (CO2)
  • The fuel type
  • Your highest rate of income tax
  
  Body Style   General shape of the vehicle, also giving an indication of size, doors, and seats.  

Body shape will be one of the following styles:

  • Hatchback - with either 2 or 4 doors, with a hatch opening on the back.
  • Saloon - 4 doors with a boot instead of a hatch.
  • Estate - 4 doors with an elongated boot area.
  • Coupe - 2 door, sportier shape.
  • MPV - Multi Person Vehicle, usually having more than 5 seats.
  • 4x4 - Usually a 4 wheel drive vehicle (though not always) with larger tyres and heavier body.
  • Convertible - Roof folds down to give an open top.
 
  Road Tax   In the UK, Vehicle Excise Duty (VED) (often known as road tax) is an annual tax on the use of motor vehicles on the public roads. It is collected and enforced by the DVLA.   In March 1998, graduated vehicle excise duty (GRAD VED) was introduced as an incentive to purchase vehicles with low emission levels:
  • Cars registered before 1st March 2001 are charged according to engine capacity. £110 for those with a capacity under 1550cc, and £175 for those above.
  • Cars registered on or after 1st March 2001 are charged according to their level of carbon dioxide (CO2) emission. This was up to £300, with the least polluting vehicles paying no excise duty at all.
  • The highest rates of Vehicle Excise Duty ("Band G") only apply to vehicles manufactured after 23 March 2006 - the maximum VED for vehicles manufactured before that date is £205 for petrol and diesel powered vehicles.