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Automotive vocabulary · Engine and Fuel Systems

Stall

Meaning in automotive, with examples

/stɔːl/verbCommon term

In automotive, stall means: For an engine to stop running suddenly while the car is in use, for example when the driver releases the clutch too fast or because of a fault.

In Turkish: stop etmek, motorun durması

How it is used

Used by drivers and technicians: the engine stalls, the car stalled at the lights, I stalled it. A customer complaint like 'stalls when coming to a stop' points to idle control, fuel supply or sensor faults.

Example sentences

  1. The engine stalls when the air conditioning is switched on at idle.

  2. Learner drivers often stall the car on hill starts.

Common collocations

  • engine stalls
  • stall the car
  • stall at idle
  • stalling problem
  • idleTo run with the engine on but the car not moving and the accelerator not pressed, at a low, steady engine speed. As a noun, idle is this state.
  • clutchThe part that connects and disconnects the engine and the gearbox, so the driver can change gear and pull away smoothly. In a manual car it is operated with the left pedal.
  • sensorA component that measures something, such as temperature, pressure, speed or position, and sends it as an electrical signal to a control unit.
  • diagnoseTo find the cause of a fault by checking the symptoms, reading data and testing parts step by step, before any repair is made.

This word in other fields

The same English word can have a different meaning in another field:

More terms: Engine and Fuel Systems

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