68 car parts: Essential vocabulary in Spanish
If you’re a car geek, then car parts in Spanish will be a snap. If you’re like everyone else, car parts are just something you have to know because you drive a car. You might even have to learn the names of some things in English before you can memorize the word in Spanish. Whether you’re renting a car to drive one of GQ’s coastal road trips in Mexico or trying to repair your vehicle in a Spanish-speaking country, vocabulary about car parts in Spanish is a useful word set to have ready.
Not all countries use the same words for car parts in Spanish. A car in Spain is called coche, but in Chile, it’s called auto, and in Mexico the word is carro. In Colombia, a windshield wiper is a plumilla but in Mexico, it’s a limpiaparabrisas. Our list of car parts in Spanish will give you a strong foundation in general words for car parts in English and Spanish.
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External car parts in Spanish
Let’s start with the outside parts of the car.
| Spanish | English | |
| 1 | parabrisas | windshield |
| 2 | espejos laterales/retrovisores | side mirrors |
| 3 | limpiaparabrisas/plumillas | windshield wipers |
| 4 | rejilla delantera | grill |
| 5 | parachoques/paragolpes delantero | front bumper |
| 6 | parachoques/paragolpes trasero | rear bumper |
| 7 | llanta/cubierta | tire |
| 8 | rueda | wheel |
| 9 | rines/llanta | rims |
| 10 | carrocería | car body |
| 11 | manija exterior | door handle |
| 12 | puerta delantera lado conductor | driver door |
| 13 | puerta delantera lado pasajero | passenger door |
| 14 | puerta trasera lado conductor | rear driver-side door |
| 15 | puerta trasera lado pasajero | rear passenger-side door |
| 16 | luz trasera | tail light |
| 17 | luz delantera | headlight |
| 18 | luz direccional/señalero | turn signal |
| 19 | faros/luces niebla | fog lights |
| 20 | cajuela/baúl/valija | trunk |
| 21 | cofre/capó | hood |
| 22 | techo solar/techo panorámico | sun roof |
| 23 | techo descapotable/convertible/cabriolé | convertible top |
| 24 | techo | roof |
| 25 | portaequipaje | rack |
| 26 | antena | antenna |
| 27 | placa/matrícula/chapa | license plate |
| 28 | pintura automotriz | auto paint |
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Internal car parts in Spanish
Let’s move on to the internal car parts in Spanish.
| Spanish | English | |
| 29 | asiento delantero | front seat |
| 30 | asiento trasero | rear seat |
| 31 | volante | steering wheel |
| 32 | velocímetro | speedometer |
| 33 | cuentakilómetros | odometer |
| 34 | filtro de aire | air filter |
| 35 | filtro de aceite | oil filter |
| 36 | batería | battery |
| 37 | distribuidor | distributor |
| 38 | radiador | radiator |
| 39 | alternador | alternator |
| 40 | frenos de disco | disk brake |
| 41 | transmisión | transmission |
| 42 | mofle/rumble silenciador | muffler |
| 43 | aceite | oil |
| 44 | gasolina | gas |
| 45 | bujía | spark plug |
| 46 | cinturón | seatbelt |
| 47 | palanca de cambios | gear shifter |
| 48 | acelerador | gas pedal |
| 49 | pedal de freno | brake pedal |
| 50 | pedal de clutch/embrague | clutch pedal |
| 51 | guantera | glove compartment |
| 52 | soporte de taza | cup holder |
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Verbs to talk about car parts in Spanish
Buying/fixing car parts
| Spanish | English | |
| 53 | Busco… | I’m looking for… |
| 54 | Me puede arreglar… | Can you fix… |
| 55 | Se falló/rompió [algo]… | [Something] broke… (how to use “se” in Spanish) |
Driving or riding in the car
| Spanish | English | |
| 56 | ¡alto!/¡para! | stop! |
| 57 | avance | go |
| 58 | tenga cuidado | be careful |
| 59 | modere su velocidad | slow down |
| 60 | acelerar | to accelerate |
| 61 | abroche su cinturón | fasten your seatbelt |
| 62 | gire a la derecha/izquierda | turn right/left |
| 63 | no invada la ciclovía por favor | don’t invade the bike lane please (imperative tense for a command) |
| 64 | subir al coche | to get in the car |
| 65 | bajar del coche | to get out of the car |
| 66 | apagar el coche | turn off the engine |
| 67 | encender el coche | start the car |
| 68 | Me atropelló el coche | The car ran me over/hit me (past tense in Spanish) |
Final tip to find car parts in Spanish online
This list of car parts in Spanish is a good starting place for anything automotive-related. As with other vocabulary, the words may change depending on the country. Not to worry. My best tip to check for local vocabulary of car parts in Spanish is this: go to the website of a local online retailer and search one of these terms above. When I need to talk about car parts in Spanish in Mexico, I use the local mercadolibre.com.mx website. Mercado Libre is also the most popular site in Chile, but it uses the mercadolibre.cl domain; Argentina uses .ar, Colombia .co and the list keeps going. This is important to keep in mind because adjusting the domain for each Latin American country is what will get you the right terms for the items you’re looking for, even if the website has the same name. Find your national online retailer using the domain of the country you’re in!
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Alison Maciejewski Cortez
Alison Maciejewski Cortez is Chilean-American, born and raised in California. She studied abroad in Spain, has lived in multiple countries, and now calls Mexico home. She believes that learning how to order a beer in a new language reveals a lot about local culture. Alison speaks English, Spanish, and Thai fluently and studies Czech and Turkish. Her tech copywriting business takes her around the world and she is excited to share language tips as part of the Lingoda team. Follow her culinary and cultural experiences on X.
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