flat spot

noun

1. engineering a region of poor acceleration over a narrow range of throttle openings, caused by a weak mixture in the carburettor
2. any narrow region of poor performance in a mechanical device

Example Sentences

After getting separated from the pair, he had expected to run into the them at “the notch,” a small, flat spot in the route where climbers often stop to rest — and breathe a deep sigh of relief — after descending a breathtakingly vertical stretch of the mountain known as “the final 400.”

From Los Angeles Times

His one-stop will be opposite to everyone else, he doesn't want to start locking up because he could pick up a flat spot and compromise your performance for that long run.

From BBC

“Not really sure why, there wasn’t a flat spot or anything, but unfortunately that made it unusable today. So we couldn’t use that set today, and I knew that meant the two middle stints on black, I was going to have to drive the wheels off.”

From Washington Times

After about 3½ hours scrambling over boulders, trudging up slopes covered in loose gravel and bushwhacking through dense brush, they reached a flat spot at 8,400 feet.

From Los Angeles Times

It’s also unclear how Sands remains came to rest in that flat spot.

From Los Angeles Times