Orion, all of what you say is true, but you're going to have to live with the fact that we rely on idioms. Some people are going to understand the truth behind them, some aren't. Shock absorbers is another English faux pas. Dampers are what they are, as they diminish vibrations and oscillating motion, they don't ABSORB shocks. Point being: we all know WELL ENOUGH what shocks/shock absorbers are, and we all know WELL ENOUGH what an LS6/5JZ/B52, etc. motor or engine is.
Someone who drinks a beer a day and takes Aspirin for migraines can get away with saying they don't do drugs, as our modern idiom for drugs are hallucinogens and severely mind-altering, and almost always illegal, although alcohol and Aspirin are both definitive examples of drugs.
You can't expect everyone around you abide by the stricktest rules of terminology, even when they're getting technical. When someone says motor, you know what they mean and that's all that matters.