Parts of a Race Car – Open-Wheel and Stock Car Labeled

All 16 parts on the diagram

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Open-wheel car 10

Front wing An aerofoil made of several elements, fixed to the nose.
Nose (nose cone) The front wing is fixed to it. It steers air toward the floor.
Halo It protects the driver's head. The rule book calls it the secondary roll structure.
Air box It feeds air to the engine.
Rear wing A main plane across the car with flaps. It is held between two end plates.
Tires On an open-wheel car nothing covers them.
Suspension It is the only thing between the body and a wheel.
Cockpit Just big enough for the driver, and open at the top.
Survival cell (monocoque) One closed structure that holds the cockpit and the fuel tank.
Sidepods Air flows into them to cool the engine.

Stock-type car 6

Window net It keeps the driver's arms inside the car.
Spoiler A fixed blade that controls the air flowing over the car's back.
Fuel cell A rigid shell with a flexible lining, filled with foam.
Roll cage It protects the driver, above all if the car rolls over.
Seat It wraps round the driver's ribs, and on newer seats the shoulders.
Harness Shoulder and lap belts that meet at one buckle.

How this list was compiled: Part names checked on 2026-09-30, a name kept only when two independent sources use it. Open-wheel car: (1) FIA, 2024 Formula 1 Technical Regulations, issue 1, https://www.fia.com/sites/default/files/fia_2024_formula_1_technical_regulations_-_issue_1_-_2023-04-25.pdf (front wing, rear wing, nose, cockpit, survival cell, secondary roll structure or halo, sidepod, air boxes, suspension, tyres); (2) Wikipedia, Formula One car, Open-wheel car, Halo (safety device) and Monocoque (front and rear wings, nose cone, cockpit, monocoque, halo, sidepods, air boxes, suspension, tyres). Stock-type car: (3) NASCAR, 2024 Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series Rule Book, https://archive.org/details/24-naapws-rule-book (roll cage, window net, rear spoiler, fuel cell, seat, seat belts and harness); (4) Wikipedia, Safety in NASCAR, Roll cage, Spoiler (car), Fuel tank (roll cage, window nets, spoiler, racing fuel cell, seats, seat belts and harnesses). The wording of every label, hint and fact is our own. Licence: own work

The drawing: Drawn for this site on 2026-09-30 from plain geometry: two composite cars with no series, team, maker, number or sponsor. Licence: own work

How it works

An open-wheel car has its wheels outside the body and a wing at each end. A stock-type car looks like a road car, and the parts that make it a race car are mostly inside.

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Four drawings, two cars

Views 1 and 2 show an open-wheel car from the side and from above: the wings, the nose, the halo over the cockpit, the sidepods, and the suspension arms reaching out to each wheel. Views 3 and 4 show a stock-type car, first closed, with its window net up and the rear cut away over the fuel cell, then with the side cut away to show the roll cage, the seat and the harness.

Air outside, safety inside

On the open-wheel car most of the named parts shape the air: the wings are aerofoils, the sidepods take air in for cooling and the air box feeds the engine. On the stock-type car most of them protect the driver.

The window net goes in the driver's side window opening.

Questions and answers

What are the main parts of a race car?

On an open-wheel car: front wing, nose, survival cell with its cockpit, halo, sidepods, air box, rear wing, suspension and tires. On a stock-type car: roll cage, seat, harness, window net, fuel cell and spoiler.

What is the bar over the driver's head called?

The halo: a curved bar above the cockpit of an open-wheel car that protects the driver's head. The top open-wheel championship has required it since the 2018 season.

What is a roll cage?

A frame built inside the car, round the driver's compartment, to protect the driver, above all if the car rolls over. Racing bodies set their own rules for how it is built.

What is a fuel cell in a race car?

A racing fuel tank with a rigid outer shell and a flexible inner lining, filled with foam. The lining makes a puncture less likely and the foam keeps the fuel from sloshing.