- B -
Billet Crankshaft
A crankshaft machined from a billet of steel, usually used for racing applications.
Billet Grille
A grille insert made from billet aluminum that replaces the original equipment insert. A restyling accessory that is available for many pickups, vans, SUVs and even luxury cars.
Bimetal
A temperature-sensitive strip made up of two metals having different heat expansion rates.
Bimetal Engine
A power plant with block and head made of different metals, such as a cast iron block and an aluminum head.
Bimetal Spring
A spring made of bimetal, such as a choke spring.
Bimetal Strip
A temperature regulating or indicating device that works on the principle that two dissimilar metals with unequal expansion rates, welded together, will bend as temperature changes.
Bimetallic
Two dissimilar metals fused together; these metals expand and contract at different temperatures to cause a bending effect.
Bimetallic Drum
A composite brake drum made of cast iron and aluminum.
Bimetallic Sensing Element
Another term used for bimetallic sensor.
Bimetallic Sensor
A sensing element having a bimetallic strip or coil.
Bimetallic Temperature Sensor
A bimetallic thermostat.
Bimetallic Thermostat
A thermostat that used a bimetallic strip instead of a bellows or diaphragm for making or breaking electrical contact points.
Binary
A system in which numbers are represented as sequences of zeros and ones, which is the basis of digital computing.
Binary Digit
A character that represents one of the two digits in the number system that has a radix of two.
Binary Numeral
The binary representation of a number.
Binder
1. The paint material that forms the film, so called because it binds the pigment and additives into a solid, durable film. 2. Adhesive or glue used in brake linings to bond all the other materials together.
Binders
A term used for brakes. See hard on the binders.
Binnacle
A console, separate from the dashboard, for switches, instruments, and controls, on or near the steering column.
BIOS
An acronym for Basic Input Output System; pronounced "bye-ose" The BIOS is the built-in software that determines what a computer can do without accessing programs from disks or drives.
Bipolar Plates
Conductive plate in a fuel cell stack that acts as an anode for one cell and a cathode for the adjacent cell.