Glossary
Parts Salesperson Terms & Vocabulary
15 essential parts salesperson terms with plain-English definitions: the vocabulary you’ll hear in training and on day one.
Key parts salesperson vocabulary
These 15 terms come up constantly in parts salesperson training, on the job and in interviews. Knowing them helps you follow instructions, document accurately and sound prepared.
- Aftermarket
- Parts made by other companies.
- Back order
- A part not yet available.
- Catalog lookup
- Finding parts by year, make and model.
- Code reader
- A tool that reads vehicle trouble codes.
- Commercial account
- A business customer such as a repair shop.
- Core charge
- A deposit refunded when an old part is returned.
- Cross-reference
- Matching part numbers between brands.
- Fitment
- Whether a part fits a vehicle.
- Interchange
- Parts that fit multiple vehicles.
- OEM
- Original equipment manufacturer parts.
- Remanufactured
- A rebuilt part.
- Special order
- A part ordered from outside inventory.
- Stock level
- How many parts are on hand.
- VIN
- Vehicle identification number.
- Warranty claim
- A request to replace a defective part.
Practice these terms
Test yourself with the free Parts Salesperson practice test: it includes vocabulary questions built from this list. For a complete course, see Parts Salesperson training.
Browse terms from every career in our career glossary.