dead cat hole

n.— «The space between wheel and surrounding fender or wheel well suggests the jounce of the car. The intervening space between tire and wheel well is sometimes called the dead cat hole, according to Peter Davis, director of interior design for global compact utility vehicles at G.M.» —“Body Language: How to Talk the Designers’ Talk” by Phil Patton New York Times Apr. 1, 2007. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)