I’m trying to find an automatic car that isn’t too expensive so that I don’t have to take the train to work anymore. Comprehending car ads in French is no easy task. And thanks a lot, paruvendu.fr, for recently removing the search function that specifies boîte automatique instead of boîte manuelle. ::sigh:: I am not looking forward to going back to work without a car. And there’s no way I’ll be ready to drive a manual car anytime soon, especially not for an hour through the mountains.
Ok, let’s try to decode some ads. First, you have to choose what type of car: Berline, Coupé, Monospace, Break, etc. I have no idea what these mean. Let’s just leave it on Berline. Type in maximum price and location. Don’t care which marque or modèle, and voilà:
R19 ESS AN 92 TBE 122.600km CT OK pneus neige. Hmm. What does R19 mean? I understand ESS means essence (gas) instead of diesel, and the year (AN for année) is 1992. Uh, TBE??? 122,600 km – I still can’t think in kilometers… The CT is OK, that’s good to know, if only I knew what CT meant. Ah, comes with snow tires. And now I have a headache. But it doesn’t matter anyway because it’s a boîte manuelle!
Plan B. Let’s try looking at Top Annonces that came in the mail today. The cars are sorted according to the make, which means nothing to me since I have no idea if a Twingo is better than a Clio or a Renault or a Fiat. Most don’t even list the prices. I realize this will be waste of time as the abbreviations are even worse (more confusing) than online ads, and I cannot find any that specify boîte automatique.
Attempt 3. Ebay is my last hope. Score! I can search for automatique and have mostly boîte auto in my results! Wish me luck!
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Automobile abbreviations & vocabulary:
AN – année (year)
AV – à vendre (for sale)
bosse – dent
carrosserie – body of car
carte grise – registration
clim – climatisation (air conditioning)
CT OK – contrôle technique OK (vehicle inspection OK)
CV – chevaux (horsepower)
ESS- essence (gasoline)
MEC – mis en circulation (put into service)
moteur HS – moteur hors service (motor doesn’t work)
p – portes (doors)
pr pce – pour pièces (for pieces)
px à déb – prix à débattre (price to debate / or best offer)
TBE – très bon état (very good condition)
vdue en l’état – vendue en l’état (sold as is)
vitre – window of car
And my favorite driving words:
dos d’âne – bump (donkey’s back)
nid-de-poule – pothole (chicken’s nest)
