4 Matic — Automatic 4 Wheel Drive (Mercedes)
4WD — 4 Wheel Drive
ABS — Anti-lock Braking System
AWD — All Wheel Drive
BMS — Battery Monitoring System (Electric Vehicles)
Black Box — The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has been using them to collect car accident data since early in the 2000s. If your car is from 2013 or later, you are almost guaranteed to have a black box. Less than 5 percent of new cars came without one in 2013, and they are mandated in all new vehicles since 2014.
Buyback — A lemon law buyback is a vehicle that has been repurchased by the manufacturer after a lemon law dispute and that is now being put up for sale once again. The details of past repairs cannot be discussed/shared with anyone except the original owner.
Cabriolet — Convertible
CARB — California Air Resources Board
CP — Customer Pay
CPE — Coupe
CPO — Certified Pre-Owned
DEF — Diesel Exhaust Fluid
DMS — Dealer Management System
DOT — Department of Transportation
DTC — Diagnostic Trouble Code
Dually truck (DRW) — dual rear-wheel vehicle, allows for more road contact and width for greater stability, balance, and traction
ECM — Engine Control Module
EFI — Electronic Fuel Injection
EV — Electric Vehicle
FWD — Front Wheel Drive
Gap Insurance — Gap insurance is an optional car insurance coverage that helps pay off your auto loan if your car is totaled or stolen and you owe more than the car's depreciated value. Gap insurance may also be called "loan/lease gap coverage." This type of coverage is only available if you're the original loan- or leaseholder on a new vehicle. Gap insurance helps pay the gap between the depreciated value of your car and what you still owe on the car.
GPS — Global Positioning System
GPS Systems are typically used by vehicle manufactures to provide the vehicle location to Emergency Services in the event of an accident. Known as the eCall or SOS button/app. They are also used for integrated navigation or connected services, if available, like remote start or locating a stolen vehicle.
GT — Grand Touring
H — denotes model as a Hybrid
HMU — Hydrogen storage Management Unit
HVAC — Heating and Air Conditioning
IEB — Intelligent Emergency Braking
IP — Internal Pay (generally seen for due bills, PDIs, etc.)
IID — Ignition Interlock Device, essentially an in-car breathalyzer that prevents a user from starting a vehicle until a breath alcohol test is taken. (Client must be present in order to service the vehicle)
IVT — Intelligent Variable Transmission
Labor Rate — Flat rate for one hour of labor
Labor Time — Average time it takes for an experienced technician to perform a given service/repair
MIL — Malfunction Indicator Lamp (Check Engine light)
MPG — Miles Per Gallon
MPH — Miles Per Hour
MPI/MPVI — Multi-Point Inspection / Multi-Point Visual Inspection
MY — Model Year
NHTSA — National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
NAV — Navigation System
OBD — On-board Diagnostic System
ODC — Occupant Detection System
OEM — Original Equipment Manufacturer
PDI — Pre-Delivery Inspection
PODS — Passenger Occupant Detection System
PPM — Prepaid Maintenance
PSI — Pounds per square inch (generally refers to level of tire inflation)
Quattro — All Wheel Drive (Audi)
R&R — Remove and Replace (typically seen on ROs)
RPM — Revolutions per minute
RWD — Rear Wheel Drive
Salvage Title — A salvage title indicates that a car has suffered some kind of significant damage in the past. Vehicle could be scrapped, deemed a total loss and/or repaired. (Vehicles with salvage titles are not excluded from recall campaigns, but may be from other warranty work.)
SRS — Supplemental Restraint System (airbags, seatbelt pretensioners, etc.)
TCM — Transmission Control Module
TDI — Turbo Diesel Injection
Tiptronic — A transmission that can operate in the same manner as a conventional type of automatic transmission, but also allows the driver to use paddle shifters to shift up or down like a manual transmission.
TPMS — Tire Pressure Monitoring System
TSB — Technical Service Bulletin (issued by automakers when certain problems/defects are reported by shops or car owners and is a diagnostic procedure for repairing a vehicle)
TCU — Telematics Control Unit
TU — Time units (minutes)
VSC — Vehicle Stability Control
WP — Warranty Pay