Auto Acronyms

27-March-2008

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Is it just me, or does there seem to be a lot of half-speak we're instinctively meant to know about these days? I'm not just talking about glossy spreads that read a lot like a maths/science formula – TomKat squared = Suri or Britney - K-Fed = Fed-Ex. I'm talking in particular about the car terms that pop up with little or no explanation at all about what they actually are and mean.

Don't get me wrong, just coz I'm an X-Gen doesn't mean I'm not in the know. I realise that LBD is actually a fashion term, an every-season essential, and the modern use of ESP doesn't actually relate to mental telepathy. But while I think acronyms are SHRN (so hot right now) and absolutely TDF (to die for), I think it gets a little confusing when you're purchasing a car and every single car ad makes reference to features like ABS, ESP and GPS, rolling off the tongue like you're cruelly missing out a well-known in-joke. LOL. Or maybe not.

So here's just a brief run-down of the essentials, for your auto pleasure:

ESP/ESC:

Not the sixth sense variety but Electronic Stability Program/Control – it helps prevent the car careering out of control, by reducing the ability to skid! It can reduce single car crashes by up to 67 per cent. Also is known as Dynamic Stability/Traction Control.

GPS:

Not to be confused with GDP, is actually Global Positioning System, commonly referred to as satellite navigation, a modern day digi-map. It can find you any location in any weather.

AWD:

Is an acronym for All Wheel Drive. It is a four-wheel drive term and is when all the wheels received electricity from the engine together.

BA:

Can mean an Arts degree but we're talking Brake Assist. BA is "braking technology that increases braking pressure in an emergency situation."

ABS:

Is common after a few sessions at the gym, but we mean the Anti-Lock Braking System that "prevents the wheels from locking while braking" variety.