Technical Vocabulary:
Disc Brakes: A type of brake that consists of a disc that rotates at wheel speed, straddled by
a caliper that can squeeze the surfaces of the disc near the edges. Disc brakes are more consitent than drum brakes, and
they also operate better at higher tempera2qtures. Upgrading to Sports Brakes in GT3 is one the first upgrades you should
make.
Drum Brakes: A type of brake that has an iron casting shaped like a drum that rotates with the
wheel. Curved brake shoes are forced into contact with the inner section to provide braking force.
Headers: Fine-tuned exhaust pipes that route exhaust gases away from your engine. These are the
high-performance replacement for conventional cast metal exhaust manifolds, and along with a better flowing exhaust and
air cleaner, they bring a new meaning to the phrase "bolt-on-horsepower."
Lifters: This is the metal piece that rides on the individual cam lobes inside the engine.
There are three primary types: roller, hydraulic, and solid.
Pushrods: In some types of valvetrain, pushrods are used to transfer reciprocating motion from
the lifters to the rocker arms. The Dodge Viper uses pushrods for its V10.
Camshaft: A shaft (or shafts) fitted with several cams,whose lobes push on valve lifters to
convert rotary motion into linear motion. The opening and closing of the valves in all piston engines is regualted by this.
Catalytic Converter: A steal canister fitted to a car's exhaust system that contains a thin
layer of catalytic material. The material that is used is a combination of platinum, rhodium, and palladium. These fibers
cause chemical reactions that convert exhaust gas emissions into less harmful products.
Crankshaft: The rotating shaft within the engine that delivers the power from the pistons to the
flywheel. A shaft with one or more cranks, or "throws," that are coupled by connecting rods to the engine's pistons.
Together, the crankshaft and the rods transform the pistons' reciprocating motion into rotarty motion.
Cylinder Head: Made of aluminum (or on older cars, cast iron), it is bolted to the top of each side
of the engine block. Cylinder heads hold the valves and spark plugs, and also play home to the the intake and exhaust ports.
Driveshaft: The steel tube that connects the transmission to the rear-end housing. These endure
serious strain during high HP application.
Intake Manifold: The housing that directs the air/fuel mixture through the port openings in the
cylinder heads. All engines have an intake manifold.
Alternator: A belt-driven device mounted on the front of the engine that recharges the battery
while the engine is running.
Brake Caliper: The part of a brake system that, when applied by the driver, clamps the brake
disc/rotor to slow down the car. In GT3, you can actually see these if you look through the side of the wheels. Sometimes
they even glow red.
Intercooler: A heat exchanger that cools the air that has been heated by compression in any
type of supercharger. An intercooler resembles a radiator; it house large passagees for the intake flow, and uses either
outside air or water directed over it to lower the temperature of the intake flow inside.
Torque Converter: These are used to help increase torque while minimizing the amount of power lost
through the drivertrain. Inside is an element that redirects the (transmission) fluid against the output turbine,
increasing the torque. Torque converters are often rated in stall speeds, which is how many RPM's it takes before the
converter actually begins to turn you transmission.
Supercharger: A crank-driven air/fuel compressor, known as blower. Superchargers raise
atmospheric pressure (compression) in the engine resulting in lots of "always on" horsepower.
Turbocharger: A supercharger powered by an exhaust-driven turbine, used to increase HP.
Turbochargers use centrifulgal-flow compressors, which will operate well at the high speeds produced by the exhaust turbine.
Coil Spring: A bar of strengthened steel wound into a spiral that may be compressed or extended
without permanant deformation. Coil springs have many automotive applications but are important as suspension springs.
Control Arm: A suspension element that has one joint at one end and two joints at the other,
typically the chassis side. Also known as a wishbone or an A-arm.
Connecting Rod: This is the metal or aluminum rod that connects the piston to the crankshaft.
In a four-cylinder engine, you'd have four connecting rods, in an eight-cylinder engine, you'd have eight connecting
rods, and so on and so forth.
Flywheel: A heavy metal rotating wheel that is an essential part of the clutch system. It's used
to keep elements such as the crankshaft turning steadily. In GT3, there are several high-performance version of this part.
Harmonic Balance: This is one of the most important things to maintaining a long-lasting racing
engine, even though it isn't directly related to horsepower in any way. Basically, it's a small disc-shaped object that
mounts on the front of the crankshaft, helping to reduce crankshaft vibration at very high RPM's.
Piston: A circular forging that moves up and down in the cylinder compressing the air/fuel mixture
in the top of the chamber, helping to produce horsepower. In most cars, they are made of either steel or aluminum.
Technical Vocabulary /
Racing Vocabulary /
Rally Vocabulary /
Rally Classifications /
The Realm of GT3 /
GT3 Car Lineup /
GT3 Race Tracks /
GT3 Arcade & Simulation Mode /
GT3 Extra Info Center
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Differential: A special gearbox designed so that the torque fed into it is split and delivered
to two outputs that can turn at different speeds. The Limited Slip Differential is the high-performance upgrade for your
cars in Gran Turismo 3.
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Apricot Hill Raceway /
Complex String /
Cote D'Azur /
Deep Forest Raceway /
Grand Valley Speedway /
Laguna Seca Raceway /
Mid-Field Raceway /
Rome Circuit /
Seattle Circuit /
Smokey Mountain /
Special Stage R11 /
Special Stage R5 /
Super Speedway /
Swiss Alps /
Tahiti Circuit /
Tahiti Maze /
Test Course /
Tokyo R246 /
Trial Mountain /