Most drivers are BAFFLED by car jargon and have no idea what horsepower means, study reveals
A MASSIVE 70 per cent of Brits are baffled by car jargon and have no idea what horsepower means, a study has found.
In fact, almost a quarter have walked away from buying a new or used vehicle because they didn’t understand the salesperson’s terminology.
The study of 2,000 adults revealed 54 per cent don’t have a clue what a PHEV - plug-in hybrid electric vehicle - is, with 34 per cent feeling out of their depth when asked about anything other than petrol or diesel motors.
Only 24 per cent understand the term brake horsepower, while fuel injection leaves 21 per cent of people bewildered.
Meanwhile, two in 10 don’t know what a salesperson means when they talk about transmission checks.
Just under six in 10 adults said a lack of understanding of such phrases leaves them with less confidence when it comes to buying a used vehicle.
The research was carried out by CarStore, which has created an online car jargon buster to help equip buyers to make informed, unpressured decisions.
Kim Costello, from Pendragon - which is behind the launch of CarStore - said: "We know that people can be intimidated by the used vehicle buying, selling and servicing process.
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“There are many phrases that could leave you confused – whether that’s PCH, PHEV or even something as common as an electric vehicle – and we hope that this will allow people to understand the correct terminology of cars and give them confidence when buying, selling or servicing their vehicles.
"This will give customers the flexibility to approach the process at their own pace, regardless of their level of experience, and empower them with helpful, easy-to-comprehend advice and total transparency."
The study also found 36 per cent think ABS stands for automatic braking system rather than the correct anti-lock braking system.
While one in 10 think PCP stands for permanent car purpose, when it actually means personal contract purchase.
Meanwhile, 32 per cent of adults admit they’ve pretended to understand terminology used by a car salesperson, so as not to appear clueless.
Of these, 57 per cent managed to get away with it but 23 per cent got caught out immediately by the expert.
It also emerged that eight in 10 of those polled own a car - with 17 per cent buying their vehicle within the last two years.
And more than eight in 10 would happily consider buying a second-hand car.
But 74 per cent would take a friend who knows more about cars than they do to the garage to look at the vehicles they are considering buying.
Dad was the top choice for 25 per cent of those, followed by a brother (17 per cent) and mum (12 per cent).
