Hot Rod Glossary: Basic Terms Defined

'39 Zephyr (model: Jennifer Bickford)

Many who are just starting out with hot rods can get quite confused with all the jargon.  Here’s a glossary to help you brush up on your hot rod vocabulary.

Antique: 25 years old or older, in stock, unmodified, or restored to original condition.

Appletons: Fender-mounted spotlights, named for the manufacturer.

Baby Moons: Small chromed hubcaps that only cover the center of the wheel.

Balanced: Normally used to define balancing the rotating assembly (ie: crankshaft, connecting rods, pistons, wrist pins, bearings), but can also mean matching the weights of the pistons and rods.

Beltline: The line running around a car’s body formed by the bottom edges of the side windows.

Binders: Brakes.

Blower: A belt driven air-to-fuel mixture compressor which increases atmospheric pressure in the engine, resulting in added horsepower.

Blown Gasser: A supercharged, gas burning engine.

Blueprinted: Ensuring the dimensions of the parts in the engine are more accurate and, therefore, closer to the original engine blueprint values. Can also mean the documented assembly tolerances of high precision engines (e.g. race engines).

Bullets: Chromed, bullet-shaped extensions used on bumpers, grilles, and wheels.

Business Coupe: A simple two-door coupe, without a rumble seat, built between the mid to late thirties through the fifties. Also referred to as a Businessman’s Coupe.

Carson Top: A solid, removable roof that is covered with a soft material.

Channeled: Cutting the floor so the body rests around the frame rails rather than sitting on top of the frame. This gives an overall lowered appearance.

Chopped: A hard-top car that has had its roof lowered.

Classic: A fine or unusual motorcar built between 1925 and 1948. A classic is distinguished by its fine design, high engineering standards, and superior workmanship. Only certain important automotive brands are considered “true” classics.

Convertible: An open-top car with a folding roof and side windows.

Crate Engine: Factory built, ready to run engine. Can also mean a high performance, fully pre-assembled engine that is ready to be installed and run.

Custom: A car that is modified in visual appearance through imaginative and technical methods to create a distinctive vehicle.

Dago: A dropped front-end.

Decked: Chrome details and trim removed from the trunk and smoothed over.

Deuce: 1932 Ford.

Dropped: A significantly lowered vehicle.

Dual Quad: Two four barrel carburetors.

Duval Windshield: A split V-shaped raked chrome-plated windshield designed by George DuVall.

Dutchman Panel: The metal body piece between the rear window and the trunk.

Exotic: A high-priced, two passenger roadster, coupe, or convertible, usually from Europe. A few exceptions exist such as the Dodge Viper or the original Shelby Cobra.

Fade-Aways: Fenders that taper back into the body.

Fat Fendered: Fords built between 1935 and 1948 that were wide and rounded in appearance.

Fender Skirts: Body panels that cover the rear wheel wells.

Filled Roof: One that has a welded steel panel instead of the original wood-and-fabric insert.

Flamethrowers: Igniting unburnt exhaust and shooting flames out the tailpipes.

Flathead: An L-head or side-valve engine. The most popular flathead engine was built by Ford between 1932 and 1953.

Fordor: A four-door Ford sedan.

Frame-off Restoration: A restoration project in which the entire vehicle is completely disassembled with all parts cleaned or replaced as necessary, so that the restored car meets the original factory specifications as closely as possible.

Frame-Up Restoration: Not as detailed as a frame-off, but involves restoring the paint, chrome, interior, and mechanicals to original specifications without complete disassembly of the car.

Frenched: Recessed head or tail lights that are smoothed into the body panels.

Front Clip: Either the front end sheet metal or the section of frame in front of the firewall.
Glass-packs: Loud, aftermarket mufflers.

Goat: Pontiac GTO.

Headers: Fine-tuned exhaust manifold that is more efficient than stock. Usually chromed or coated.

Hemi: An engine that has hemispherical combustion chambers in its cylinder head. Popularized by Chrysler, starting around 1951.

Highboy: Customized Model A Ford that sits at stock height. Can also refer to a 50’s era car with a modified, high leaf spring front suspension to account for the height difference of large diameter rear tires.

Hot Rod: Traditionally, an older vehicle with “low-buck” performance modifications.

Kit Car: A reproduction of an existing automotive design, sold in various stages of production to allow for completion and customization by the builder.

Lakepipes: Side-exit exhaust pipes located under the rocker panels. Also called Lakers.

Land Yacht: Large, luxury car, usually referring to the chromed, finned, oversized vehicles of the late fifties to early sixties.

Leadsled: A lowered, late-forties car with molded body seams, traditionally done with lead.

Lowboy: Customized Model A Ford that has been channeled.

Lowered: A vehicle that sits lower than stock height through suspension or frame modifications.

Lowrider: A vehicle that has been lowered by a hydraulic suspension system that can bring the ride height up in order to drive it.

Louvers: Vents or slots punched in body panels. The most commonly louvered body panel is the hood, done to increase ventilation.

Matching Numbers: A restored or original vehicle in which all serial numbers (VIN, engine, body, transmission, rear end) can be researched and identified as being 100% correct for that specific vehicle.

Molded: Body seams that have been filled in or otherwise smoothed out.

Moons: Full wheel covers that are chrome and convex-shaped.

Muscle Car: A North American intermediate or mid-sized car produced between 1964 and 1972 (with a few exceptions) with a large displacement V8 engine.

Nerf Bar: Tubular bumper.

NOS: New Old Stock. Parts purchased from the manufacturer that were made at the time of the original vehicle but never sold. Also an abbreviation for Nitrous Oxide System.

Nosed: Chrome details and trim removed from the hood and smoothed over.

OEM: Acronym for Original Equipment Manufacturer.

Original: Contains only parts originally installed on the car or NOS parts from the manufacturer with no substitute or after-market parts.

Pancaked: Hood modified to a lower profile.

Peaked: A molded accent seam on a hood.

Pinched: To narrow the front frame to match the grill shell.

Pink Slip: Before the days of automobile titles, the portion of a California car registration that conveyed ownership was colored pink. Hence the brag in the Beach Boys’ “Little Deuce Coupe” about “I got the pink slip, daddy!”

Piped: Narrow, padded pleats used to trim the interior.

Post: The pillar located between the front and rear doors of a four-door sedan.

Pro-Street: A vehicle features large rear wheels and tires tucked deeply into the rear fender area.

Project Car: One that is in restorable condition. Also, any vehicle you wrench on.

Raked: The front end has been lowered more than the back. Can also refer to a slanted windshield.

Replicar: A completed reproduction of an existing automotive design, usually sold only as a turn-key, or 100% complete, car.

Resto Rod: An original looking car with a modified chassis or powerplant.

Roadster: A convertible without side windows.

Roll Pan: Smoothed out panel that replaces the bumper and rolls back under the vehicle.

Rolled: Bumper or gas tank removed and replaced with custom panel that “rolls” under.

Rolled & Pleated: Deluxe interior sewn with padded pleats.

Rumble Seat: An open, fold up rear seat located where the trunk would be.

Running Board: The metal strip running between the fenders and below the doors of early autos and trucks used as a step or to wipe one’s feet before entering the vehicle.

Sectioned: Removing a horizontal section of bodywork to lower the overall height of the body.

Sedan Delivery: A two-door station wagon with solid body panels instead of windows on the sides at the back of the car.

Shaved: Door handles and body trim that have been removed and smoothed over.

Sidemount: A spare tire, recessed into the front fender.

Six-Pack: Three two-barrel carburetors. See also Triple Deuce.

Slammed: A significantly lowered vehicle – dropped as low as possible and still drivable.

Sleeper: A vehicle that doesn’t look as fast as it is.

Split Window: Usually referring to the rear window – one that has two planes of glass with bodywork in between. Example: the 1963 Corvette.

Street Machine: A street-legal highly modified car or truck built in 1949 or later.

Street Rod: A street-legal highly modified car or truck built in 1948 or earlier.

Suicide Door: A door that hinges at the rear.

Supercharger: A crank driven air-to-fuel mixture compressor which increases atmospheric pressure in the engine, resulting in added horsepower.

T-Bucket: Fenderless, topless, highly-modified, Ford Model T. Most T-Buckets on the road today are kit cars or replicars.

Trailer Queen: Sometimes derogatory term referring to a car that is shown frequently yet rarely driven due to being pulled on a trailer.

Triple Deuce: Three two-barrel carburetors.

Tri-Power: An engine with three two barrel carburetors.

Tubbed: Having the rear frame and body modified to allow for extra-wide wheels and tires that do not protrude past the fenders.

Tudor: A two-door Ford sedan.

Tunneled: The same as frenched, only deeper.

Turn-Key Engine: Factory built, ready to run engine. Can also mean a high performance, fully pre-assembled engine that is ready to be installed and run. See Crate Engine.

VIN: Vehicle Identification Number. The vehicle serial number that is stamped onto the vehicle, usually under the windshield post, the driver’s door post, or on the firewall.

Vintage: A vehicle built between 1915 and 1942 in stock or unmodified condition.

Wheelie Bars: Rods that extend from the back of a car and are connected to wheels that help keep the car from flipping backwards during sudden acceleration.

Woody: A vehicle that incorporates natural finished wood for structure of exposed body panels

Zoomies: Short, straight pipe exhaust headers that do not merge into a collector.

Hot Rod Classifications

A great breakdown from Red Hot Hotrods!

A breakdown of hot rod classifications would depend on whom you asked.

The broad range of old cars falls into several commonly accepted categories.
Within those, categories may be vastly different, depending upon involvement
and perspective.

Hot Rods themselves may be perceived differently, by those interested in
high performance in different eras.

Consider this beautiful 1947 Cadillac
displayed at the Seattle Hot Rod Show.

 

 

First, let’s define basic old cars

• Antique Cars – By most laws and convention, vehicles over 25 years old.
• Vintage Cars — All vehicles within the era from 1919 to about 1930, give or take.
• Hot Rods — Vehicles with engines and parts modified for greater acceleration. Often modified or embellished to enhance their appearance. Within the culture, generally considered to be older vehicles. The 1932 Ford (Deuce Coupe) is the quintessential hot rod.
• Classic Cars — High end cars manufactured within the next couple of decades after the Vintage cars. The 1949-51 Mercury coupes might be the definitive classic car.
• Muscle Cars — Medium weight, affordable, high performance vehicles manufactured in the 1960s and early 1970s.
• Dragsters and Race Cars — Vehicles of any era, modified to increase performance and efficiency for speed competitions.
• Other Fun Hot-Rodded Vehicles
  
• • Volksrods – Volkswagon beetles, modified as an
    alternative to traditional hot rods, for which are
    cheaper and easier to find bodies and parts than
    old Ford Model T’s and Model A’s.
  • Buggies – Variety a vehicles with large wheels,
    wide tires, and modified engine mounted on an
    open chassis, used mostly for off-road recreation.
    Gaining in popularity, designs include dune buggies,
    sandrails, air buggies, tube-framed buggies, and
    those used by the military.

 

Hot Rod Classifications

Most hot rodders enjoy all high performance vehicles, admiring the well preserved (and valuable) muscle cars and other souped up vehicles which are displayed at many local hot rod shows.

Dragsters and muscle cars are hot rods by many standards. Some of the newer innovations such as Volkrods and high-performance dune buggies are fun, exciting, and limited only by imagination. Eventually, we’ll discuss all of these classes of vehicle in depth. Our primary focus here, however, is vehicles that fall within the pre-1949 hot rot category.

In popular usage, in the general public so to speak, a hot rod is now often thought of as a classic and classy show car that emulates the early hot rods in style…but sports flashy paint, high-quality upholstery and generally sees little in the way of road time. Who doesn’t love seeing dozens, or hundreds, of these classy old cars on the highway, heading to a show or rally?

Within the hot rod community, definitions are much more (vaguely) specific. Let’s break it down a little farther.

	Traditional Rod “Period Correct.” Built by its owner using as many original, authentic parts as possible to re-create the original hot rod, keeping true to the vehicle’s period.
	Rat Rod Rat rods have become popular as a reaction to the professionally built, billet encrusted, high dollar street rods at car shows. The rat rod concept reverses this trend with an unfinished, jalopy-like appearance. Rat rods might have expensive, smoothly functioning mechanical parts, but make a “kustom kultur” statement with their decor and appearance. The old “beater” is a predecessor to the rat rod concept.
	Street Rod A Street Rod is an original or replica of a vehicle built in 1948 or earlier. These vehicles are meant to be driven on the streets, not raced on the drag strip. Street rods may be constructed with new parts and modern creature comforts. Their high-performance engines are built according to modern safety standards – many are powered by a Chevrolet small block engine and automatic transmissions. Street rods cost upward of $50,000 to build, and then only if the owner assembles the car and does a lot of the work.
	Show Car or Trailer Queen Technically Street Rods, some of these cars are never actually driven but exist purely for display. Under NSRA rules, all vehicles must enter the showgrounds under their own power. Thus, Trailer Queens are trailered from show to show and only driven a short distance before being displayed. As one proud owner beamed “this car is meant for polishing, not driving!”

Good Guys Nov. 14 & 15

It’s 1 am and we’re working hard to finish projects and get ready for the Good Guys Autumn get together next weekend. Don’t forget to stop by and visit us at the Swap Meet! We will have a few items to sell, and look forward to chatting about projects! See you there!

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