DICTIONARY OF AUTOMOTIVE TERMS - "Ne"

Neader-pattern:

A motorcycle frame and fork design by Neader using pressed steel or Duralumin

Nearside:

(n/s) the side of a vehicle nearest the curb (when driving)

NEC:

Acronym for National Electrical Code

Neck:

See:
filler neck
fuel filler neck

Necking:

When ductile test specimens are subjected to a tensile test, they exhibit necking when the tensile force exceeds the yield strength of the material; necking results in a reduction of area, measured in percent after break of the specimen

Needle:

1. An indicator on a dial, instrument, or gauge.
2. A thin rod or small tapered rod used to open or close a hole.

Also See:
bury the needle
float needle
jet needle
metering rod
needle and seat
needle bearing
needle cage.

Needle and seat:

A pair of items in a carburetor. The seat is usually a brass plug with a specially shaped hole to accommodate the needle which is a shaft with a pointed end. When the needle is fully seated in the seat, no gasoline can enter the float bowl. As the needle is lifted off the seat some gas pours into the float bowl. The needle moves when the float in the float bowl drops below a set height.

Needle bearing:

A roller type bearing in which the many rollers have a very narrow diameter in relation to their length. The design makes them particularly useful in situations where there is limited space such as the rod bearings on some pistons. Also called "Quill-type bearing."

Needle cage:

In a needle bearing, there are many rollers within a holder or cage.

Needle-flame test:

A test to assess fire hazard by simulating the effect of small flames, which may result from faults within the equipment

Needle-nose pliers:

See:
long-nose pliers
thin needle-nose pliers

Needle point valve:

Type of valve having a needle point plug and a small seat orifice for low-flow metering.

Needle valve:

1. A valve with a needle-shaped pin that can be moved to control the flow of a fluid.
2. The valve, in a carburetor, which controls the amount of gasoline flowing from the pump to the float chamber

Neg:

Abbreviation for "negotiable," as in the price is neg. Also it may refer to the negative terminal of a battery, or negative ground.

Negative back pressure valve:

See EGR negative transducer EGR valve

Negative back pressure modulated valve:

See EGR negative transducer EGR valve

Negative camber:

See camber.

Negative caster:

See caster.

Negative connections:

Connections in an electric circuit through which the current flows back to its source.

Negative electrode:

See negative plate

Negative ground:

An electrical system where the chassis is the negative side of the circuit and a separate wire to each component is the positive (hot) line.
Also See:
ground
positive ground

Negative load base:

If the center of the payload is behind the rear axle, it is negative and takes load off the front axle. See load base.

Negative offset:

1. A steering geometry layout where the steering axis cuts the wheel axis above the wheel center plane. Compare center point steering, positive offset, and scrub radius.
2. The distance between the mounting face of the disc and the rim centerline; the offset is referred to as negative when the inner attachment face of the wheel disc is shifted towards the inner side of the wheel. Opposite to positive offset.

Negative offset steering:

A steering system which indicates the placement of the wheels. From the back of the vehicle, it appears as though the tires are tucked in where they contact the road. Although this system may appear strange, it actually does provide the benefit of helping a vehicle to stop in a straight line when the brakes are weak or the road friction is different on one side than the other.

Negative plate:

The grey plate which acts as anode during battery discharge. Opposite of positive plate

Negative pole:

The point toward which an electrical current flows through the circuit. It is designated by a minus sign (-).

Negative spark:

A spark that jumps from the negative center electrode to the positive ground electrode of the spark plug, allowing a reduction in the high voltage required

Negative spring:

A small spring in a bicycle suspension fork/shock that works against the main spring. It makes the fork respond better to small bumps, while not hurting large bump performance. It can be non-adjustable coil or adjustable air.

Negative suction head:

See suction lift

Negative temperature coefficient:

(NTC) a special type of thermistor whose resistance decreases as the temperature increases. Nearly all coolant temperature sensors are NTC thermistors

Negative temperature coefficient thermistor:

(NTC) Electronic thermistor which decreases in resistance as temperature increases.

Negative terminal:

That terminal (such as that on the battery) from which the current flows on its path to the positive terminal. It is usually marked with a minus symbol and is attached with the black cable.

Negative transducer EGR valve:

A valve used on engines with a relatively low back pressure to provide the desired opening point and exhaust gas recycling rate

Negative travel:

The measurement of the distance that a bicycle fork can travel past its maximum travel when rebounding from a bump. The negative travel allows the fork to top out without clunking, and can allow the fork to follow rough terrain better.

Negative wheel dish:

See negative offset

Negative wheel dishing:

See negative offset

Negative wheel offset:

See negative offset

Nelson:

See Piquet, Nelson

NEMA:

Acronym for the National Electrical Manufacturers Association which establishes certain voluntary industry standards relating to electric motors. These standards refer to the operating characteristics, terminology, basic dimension, ratings, and testing

Neon light:

See timing light

Neon tube:

An electric "bulb" or tube filled with a rare gas, used on ignition test instruments like timing lights.

Neoprene:

1. A hard plastic like substance.
2. Synthetic rubber which is resistant to hydrocarbon oil and gas.

Neoprene rubber:

Is used as an adhesive base. commonly used where oil and gasoline resistance is required. Resistance also to swelling action of pure aromatic chemicals, and to fuels

Neoprene synthetic rubber:

Soft resilient material made of a synthetic chemical compound.

Nerf bar:

A type of front bumper guard, typically made of chrome-plated steel tubing; extends horizontally from below front end and is curved upward; a pair of nerf bars is usually braced by a horizontal crossbar. In Australia it is called a roo bar.
Also See:
bull bar

Nernst equation:

A relationship showing that the electromotive force developed by a dry cell is determined by the activities of the reacting species, the temperature of the reaction, and the standard free-energy change of the overall reaction

Net:

See:
bungee net
cargo net
tonnage net

Net bhp:

See sae net bhp

Net capacity:

The weight of cargo which a vessel can carry when loaded in salt water to her summer freeboard marks. Also called cargo carrying capacity, cargo deadweight, useful deadweight.

Net cap cost:

The price of the vehicle after deducting any dealer participation, manufacturer discounts, and cap cost reduction ("down payment") from the MSRP.

Net capitalized cost:

The price of the vehicle after deducting any dealer participation, manufacturer discounts, and cap cost reduction ("down payment") from the MSRP.

Net horsepower:

See SAE net horsepower.

Net interest rate:

The total interest rate for the lease. It represents the lease's true cost, similar to an APR for a bank or credit union loan. The lower the net interest rate, the lower the cost of the lease.

Net sales value:

The selling price received by the manufacturer for the vehicle including the cost of transporting the vehicle in Canada (includes mark-up).

Net tonnage:

See tonnage, net

Neutral:

1. (N) The neutral position of a transmission is the gear position where the engine is unable to drive the wheels. It is usually placed between reverse and one of the forward gears in automatic transmissions; and is located centrally in manual transmissions.
2. Something that does not have any distinctive characteristics.
3. A charactristic of handling where both front and rear wheels have the same amount of traction so that neither one has a tendency to slide.
4. Something that is neither an alkaline nor acid, usually with a pH of 7.

Neutral drive switch:

(NDS) a sensor that provides information on transmission status to the computer

Neutral flame:

Flame which results from combustion of perfect proportions of oxygen and the welding gas.

Neutral handling:

A vehicle with neither oversteer nor understeer

Neutralizer:

Substance used to counteract acids in refrigeration system.

See rust neutralizer

Neutral safety switch:

A switch which allows the starter to be engaged only when the automatic shift lever is in either park or neutral

Neutral steer:

The characteristic of a vehicle's slip angles where both front and rear are the same. In slippery conditions, both the front and rear tires will break loose at the same time so that the vehicle slides sideways rather than the rear end swinging around (oversteer) or the front end wanting to move to the rear (understeer). A cornering condition in which the front and rear slip angles are roughly the same. Although seemingly an ideal state of balance, perfect neutral steer is not as stable as slight understeer.

Neutron:

1. A neutral charge particle forming part of an atom.
2. That part of an atom core which has no electrical potential; electrically neutral.

New car dealer:

Major car dealership with a parts and service operation.

New-old-stock:

(NOS) New genuine parts for older models, referring mostly to spare parts that are normally no longer produced

New-old-stock part:

(NOS) New genuine parts for older models, referring mostly to spare parts that are normally no longer produced

Newton: (N)

1. A unit of force. One newton is the force which acts on a mass of 1 kilogram to produce an acceleration of 1 metre per second per second.
2. Force exerted on an object that has mass of 1 kilogram and gravitational acceleration of 1 m/sec².

Newton meter:

See newton metre as the standard spelling.

Newton metre:

(Nm) A unit of torque. One pounds-force feet (lb-ft) equals 1.356 Newton metres. One Newton metre equals 0.7375 lb-ft.

Newton's law:

For every action there is an equal, and opposite reaction.

New tread:

A term used by some tire companies to denote a retreaded tire. Also called "nu-tread."

New Werner frame:

A motorcycle frame design first used on the 1901 Werner, the engine was mounted between the front downtube and the bottom bracket

Nexus:

A type of Shimano bicycle hub that has four or seven internal gears and an internal brake

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