wheelbase

Definition

The horizontal distance between the front and rear axles of a road or rail vehicle.

Etymology

From wheel + base.

Example Sentences

• "Beneath the snow, and after we had left it behind, the road was as greasy as vaseline, as steep as a scenic railway, and often not a yard wider than the lorry’s wheelbase."
• "The Southern acquired them because the little Class "B4" 0-4-0 tanks were finding heavy modern rolling stock more and more of a handful, and at war's end the railway had nothing of suitable power but short wheelbase on its books to take their place on the more tortuous of the dock lines."
• "He thought the types of wagons planned (short-wheelbase types) needed reassessment."