Turning radius

This article has multiple issues. Please help improve it or discuss these issues on the talk page. (Learn how and when to remove these messages) This article may require cleanup to meet Wikipedia's quality standards. The specific problem is: Needs better sectioning, needs better examples, and clarity in prose. Please help improve this article if you can. (April 2021) (Learn how and when to remove this message) This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources: "Turning radius" – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (April 2021) (Learn how and when to remove this message) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

The turning radius (alternatively, turning diameter or turning circle) of a vehicle defines the minimum dimension (typically the radius or diameter) of available space required for that vehicle to make a semi-circular U-turn without skidding. The Oxford English Dictionary describes turning circle as "the smallest circle within which a ship, motor vehicle, etc., can be turned round completely".^[1] The term thus refers to a theoretical minimal circle in which for example an aeroplane, a ground vehicle or a watercraft can be turned around.

The terms (radius, diameter, or circle) can have different meanings; refer to the § Alternative nomenclature section.