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Landing Gear

Retractable supports for a semi-trailer to keep the trailer level when the tractor/truck is detached from it.

Lands

Areas of a spool valve that control the opening and closing of hydraulic passages.

Lap

1. A complete trip around an oval track or road course. 2. To gain a full lap over the second place competitor.

Lap Joint

A joint between two overlapping members in parallel planes.

Lap Weld

A welding process between two overlapping members in parallel planes.

Lapping

A valve-grinding process using a paste-like grit on the face of the valve.

Lapping Compound

A paste-like grit used for lapping valves.

Laser

1. An acronym for light amplification by stimulated emissions of radiation. 2 .A device that produces a concentrated, coherent light beam by stimulated electronic or molecular transitions to lower energy levels.

Lash

The clearance between two parts.

Lash-pad Adjusters

Small round metal pieces of various thickness used to adjust valve clearance.

Late Apex

Getting to the inside of a turn later than ususal due to a late entry into the corner.

Latent Heat

The amount of heat required to cause a change of state of a substance without changing its temperature.

Latent Heat Of Condensation

The quantity of heat given off while changing a substance from a vapor to a liquid.

Latent Heat Of Evaporation

The quantity of heat required to change a liquid into a vapor without rasing the temperature of the vapor above that of the original liquid. Also known as latent heat of vaporization.

Latent Heat Of Fusion

The amount of heat that must be removed from ta liquid to cause it to change to a solid without causing a change of temperature.

Latent Heat Of Vaporization

A term used for latent heat of evaporation.

Lateral Acceleration

The centrifugal force that tends to push a vehicle sideways toward the outside of a turn.

Lateral Link

A suspension component used to reduce side-to-side movement of a wheel.

Lateral Runout

1. A tire that has excessive variations in width 2.the measured amount of sideways wobble on a rotating tire.

Lateral Weight Transfer

The momentary shift of a vehicle weight from the inside tires to the outside tires, or outside to inside, due to cornering forces.