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Car & Street

🚗 Car & Street Slang

Basic Ride Terminology

  1. Whip - Car
    ”Just detailed my new whip”
  2. Ride - Vehicle
    ”Sweet ride, how much HP?”
  3. Daily - Primary vehicle
    ”The Civic’s my daily”
  4. Project car - Ongoing restoration
    ”My Fox Body’s a project car”
  5. Beater - Rundown car
    ”College beater barely runs”

Car Types & Styles

  1. Donk - 70s car on huge wheels
    ”That candy purple donk”
  2. Slab - Southern slow-rolling luxury car
    ”Texas slabs with swangas”
  3. Bubble - 90s cars with rounded trunks
    ”That ‘94 Impala bubble”
  4. Sleeper - Fast but looks stock
    ”Grandma’s ‘sleepr’ Malibu runs 10s”
  5. Rat rod - Rough custom build
    ”Junkyard rat rod with patina”

Performance Terms

  1. Built - Performance engine
    ”Built not bought”

  2. Boosted - Turbo/supercharged
    ”Boosted K24 making 500whp”

  3. Cammed - Aggressive camshaft
    ”Lope of that cammed LS”

  4. Straight piped - No mufflers
    ”Straight piped diesel rolling coal”

  5. Tuned - ECU optimized
    ”Stage 2 tuned GTI”

Street Racing

  1. Dig - From-stop race
    ”Let’s go for a dig”

  2. Roll race - Highway pull
    ”40-140 roll race”

  3. Gappin’ - Leaving competitors
    ”Sent him to gapplebees”

  4. Hook - Good traction
    ”These DRs hook hard”

  5. Busa - Hayabusa motorcycle
    ”That busa’ll gap anything”

Police & Avoidance

  1. Five-0 - Police
    ”Five-0 lurking near exit 32”

  2. Bear - Highway patrol
    ”Bear in the median”

  3. Black & white - Police cruiser

  4. Kitty - Police radar
    ”My detector sniffed the kitty”

  5. Code 3 - Lights & sirens
    ”All units going code 3”

Car Meet Culture

  1. Meet - Car gathering
    ”Friday night meet at Walmart”

  2. Show quality - Exhibition ready

  3. Trailer queen - Rarely driven
    ”$100k trailer queen”

  4. Parking lot pimp - Showoff
    ”Dude’s a parking lot pimp”

  5. Rice - Overdone mods
    ”Altezzas are so rice”

Regional Terms

  1. Swangas - Texas wire wheels
    ”84s on that slab”

  2. Scraper - NorCal lowrider
    ”Oakland scraper on Daytons”

  3. Hi-boy - Raised classic
    ”Arizona hi-boy Chevelle”

  4. Low-low - Hydraulic car
    ”Three-wheel motion”

  5. Mob - East Coast crew
    ”Bronx mob deep”

Modifications

  1. Stanced - Aggressive fitment
    ”Bagged and stanced”

  2. Murdered out - All black
    ”Murdered out Challenger”

  3. VIP - Japanese luxury style
    ”VIP LS400 on works”

  4. Bosozoku - Japanese rebel style
    ”Bosozoku exhaust stacks”

  5. Resto-mod - Modernized classic

Mechanical Issues

  1. Threw a code - Check engine light

  2. Knock - Engine damage
    ”Hear that knock? RIP”

  3. Limped home - Barely running

  4. Money shift - Wrong gear
    ”Money shifted to 2nd”

  5. Blown - Engine failure

Car Audio

  1. Bump - Loud system
    ”That trunk bumps”

  2. Skar - Bass brand
    ”Two Skar 15s slamming”

  3. Cap - Capacitor
    ”Need a cap for voltage”

  4. Flex - Bass vibration
    ”Flexing the windshield”

  5. Demo - Show off system

Driving Styles

  1. Hoon - Drive aggressively
    ”Hooning in the lot”

  2. Canyon carving - Mountain roads

  3. Drafting - Tailgating for speed

  4. Power slide - Controlled drift

  5. Brake stand - Burnout technique

Street Essentials

  1. The block - Neighborhood

  2. Hood - Local area

  3. Trap - Drug spot

  4. Plug - Supplier

  5. OT - Overtime (hustle)

Car Buying/Selling

  1. Clean title - No accidents

  2. Salvage - Rebuilt status

  3. Mint - Perfect condition

  4. Creampuff - Low-mileage gem

  5. Asking - Listing price

Motorcycle Terms

  1. Crotch rocket - Sport bike

  2. Hardtail - Rigid frame

  3. APE hangers - Tall handlebars

  4. Squid - Reckless rider

  5. Cage - Derogatory for cars

Truck Culture

  1. Lifted - Raised suspension

  2. Brodozer - Overdone truck

  3. Prerunner - Off-road style

  4. Rolling coal - Diesel smoke

  5. Truck nuts - Decorative testicles

Racing Flags

  1. Green - Go

  2. Checkered - Finish

  3. Black flag - Disqualification

  4. Blue - Faster car behind

  5. Red - Stop

European Terms

  1. Hot hatch - Performance compact

  2. Wagon - Estate car

  3. Knight rider - Black luxury car

  4. Autobahn - High-speed driving

  5. Ring - NĂŒrburgring

JDM (Japanese)

  1. JZX - Chaser/Mark II

  2. K swapped - Honda engine

  3. Itasha - Anime wrap

  4. Kaido racer - Japanese style

  5. Shakotan - Lowered vintage

Drifting Terms

  1. Tandem - Multiple drifters

  2. Scando flick - Technique

  3. Angle kit - Steering mod

  4. Clutch kick - Initiation method

  5. Door banger - Close proximity

Vintage Slang

  1. Lead sled - 50s custom

  2. Gasser - 60s drag style

  3. Kustom - Traditional hot rod

  4. Shoebox - 49-54 Chevy

  5. Deuce - 1932 Ford

Modern Internet Terms

  1. Clout - Social credibility

  2. Flex - Show off

  3. Send it - Go all out

  4. Yeet - Throw/launch

  5. Bussin’ - Excellent

Car Show Terms

  1. Peanut butter - Perfect interior

  2. Frame-off - Full restoration

  3. Survivor - Original condition

  4. Patina - Worn finish

  5. Trailer queen - Never driven

Racing Classes

  1. Pro mod - Professional

  2. Outlaw - No rules

  3. Index - Time bracket

  4. Grudge - Personal rivalry

  5. Test & tune - Practice

Tools & Shop

  1. Impact - Power tool

  2. Breaker bar - Long wrench

  3. PB Blaster - Penetrating oil

  4. Ziptie - Temporary fix

  5. Send it - Install anyway

Tire Terms

  1. DR - Drag radial

  2. Slicks - Racing tires

  3. All-seasons - Compromise tires

  4. Run-flats - Temporary use

  5. Stretched - Narrow on wide rim

Engine Terms

  1. LS - GM engine family

  2. 2JZ - Toyota powerhouse

  3. RB - Nissan straight-6

  4. B18 - Honda performance

  5. EJ - Subaru boxer

Transmission

  1. Stick - Manual

  2. Row gears - Shift manually

  3. Granny shift - Slow shifts

  4. Money shift - Destructive downshift

  5. DSG - Dual-clutch

Suspension

  1. Bags - Air suspension

  2. Static - Fixed height

  3. Coilovers - Adjustable

  4. Sway bar - Anti-roll

  5. Toe - Wheel alignment

Exhaust

  1. Catless - No catalytic converter

  2. Resonator - Sound tuning

  3. Muffler delete - Straight pipe

  4. Dump - Cutout valve

  5. Crackles - Pop tune

Interior

  1. Bucket seats - Performance

  2. Cage - Roll bar

  3. Dead pedal - Foot rest

  4. Paddle shifters - Steering wheel

  5. Plaid - Classic VW pattern

Lighting

  1. Halos - Angel eyes

  2. LED - Modern bulbs

  3. Smoked - Tinted lights

  4. Euro - Clear lenses

  5. Projectors - Focused beams

Wheels

  1. Concave - Deep dish

  2. Lip - Outer rim

  3. Step-lip - Two-piece look

  4. Rotary forged - Lightweight

  5. Steelies - Basic wheels

Paint & Body

  1. Wrap - Vinyl coating

  2. PPF - Paint protection

  3. Ceramic - High-end coating

  4. Matte - Flat finish

  5. Chameleon - Color-shift

Driving Techniques

  1. Heel-toe - Rev-matching

  2. Left-foot brake - Performance

  3. Trail brake - Cornering

  4. Pendulum - Weight transfer

  5. Scandinavian flick - Rally turn

Racing Flags

  1. Meatball - Mechanical issue

  2. White - Slow vehicle

  3. Yellow - Caution

  4. Stripes - Start position

  5. Waving - Final lap

Fuel Terms

  1. 93 octane - Premium

  2. E85 - Ethanol blend

  3. Race gas - High octane

  4. Tune - ECU optimization

  5. Map - Performance setting

Electronics

  1. Haltech - Aftermarket ECU

  2. Accessport - Cobb tuner

  3. Boost controller - Turbo

  4. Wideband - Air/fuel monitor

  5. Dyno - Power measurement

Maintenance

  1. Oil change - Basic service

  2. Flush - Fluid replacement

  3. Plugs - Spark plugs

  4. Belts - Drive components

  5. Gaskets - Seals

Safety

  1. Harness - Racing belts

  2. HANS - Neck support

  3. Fire system - Suppression

  4. Kill switch - Emergency

  5. Cage - Roll protection

Miscellaneous

  1. Garage queen - Rarely driven

  2. Weekend warrior - Occasional

  3. Track rat - Frequent racer

  4. Barn find - Discovered classic

  5. Survivor - Unrestored original

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