Wikipedia:WikiProject Automobiles/Conventions

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The following conventions will be followed for all automobile-related articles.

[edit] Units

General conventions for metrics:

• We will use the standard SI units when describing automobiles, and will generally follow the SI writing style
• We will separate all units from numbers with a non-breaking space:  
• We will NOT use commas or spaces in numbers used as measurements, and will separate decimals from whole numbers with a "full stop"/period. ie, rather than "1,796 cc", we will use "1796 cc".
• If the original manufacturer's official value for a unit is not one of the standards below, we will use that unit first and will then list the other two. We should also linkify the unusual unit and perhaps the others for ease of comprehension. For example: 1001 PS (987 hp/736 kW)

Specifically, the following standards will be used:

• Power: 75 kW
  • Note 1: If metric horsepower is the original unit (as for all North American, European, Asian ans Australian vehicles), we will use the unambiguous PS instead of the ambiguous "bhp" or "hp" and will translate as per above.
• Torque: 100 N·m
• Displacement: 4.6 L (4567 cc)
  • Note 1: We use the automotive-standard "cc" rather than the SI standard "cm³" (or milliliter) for engine displacement.
  • Note 2: We will use in³ only for automibile engines where this is standard - ie, pre-1980s American engines.
  • Note 3: For displacements, there should be no comma for the cubic centimetre capacity: 4567 cc, not 4,567 cc.
• Economy: 20 mpg (11.8 L/100 km)
  • Note 1: Google will translate between these standards [1].
• Dimensions: "38.6 in (980 mm) wheelbase" or "77.6 mm (3.06 in) bore"
• Weight: 2300 lb (1043 kg)

These conventions may not apply in prose text. In other words, it is proper to say "the 3-liter engine class" in a sentence, but it is not proper to say "the 3.1 L engine class" - the former is prose, the latter is a metric. Instead, the second sentence is properly "has a 3.1 L engine".

[edit] Localization

We will use the local standard first when making judgements on localized units and terms:

• Unit order follows a car's major market. For example, American-market cars will use "hp" with "kW" in parentheses, while Japan-market cars will reverse this.
• We will follow similar rules for differing terms (bonnet/hood, boot/trunk). In pages that are not location-specific (eg: Automobile), we will attempt to disambiguate through links or in prose.

We will also defer to a manufacturer's convention when using terms that might appear improperly spelled or used. For example, Ferrari convertibles are "spiders", not "spyders", and Mazda Wankel engines are "rotary engines".

[edit] Names of variants and other models

We will use the emphasize strongly markup for model names within articles. For example, '''Ford Mondeo''' (triple apostrophes) would result in Ford Mondeo.

• We may not embed links in these names, such as Ford Mondeo. We will instead link to the appropriate manufacturer or division in the opening sentence of the article: The Ford Mondeo is an automobile manufactured by the Ford Motor Company.* We will only emphasize trim levels and names that officially appeared as identifiers. Emphasis on Z06 would be appropriate when describing a Corvette; however, strong emphasis on base model or top of the line would not.

• Generally, only the first instance of the name will be emphasized. We may forego this rule when a name appears prominently in two distant sections of the article, or to maintain consistency across a list.

• This policy does not dictate when to use the complete model name instead of just a variant tag; this is determined primarily by context. However, we will bold the entire name, but not standalone variants, as presented. Thus, the following usage is entirely correct: The all wheel drive Mitsubishi Eclipse (the Eclipse GSX) shares components with the Galant VR4 but is also a rebadged Eagle Talon TSi AWD. The Eclipse was available in base, RS, GS, GS-T, and GSX trims.

• It is especially important to bold (and list in the first sentence of the article) the names of any models that are redirected to the page in question. In other words, since Mercury LN7 is a redirect to Ford EXP, then the EXP article mentions "(and the similar Mercury LN7)" in the first sentence.

• We may not bold or italicize option packages, trim levels, or other vehicle names within the body of the article beyond the first paragraph. Instead of this:

[paragraph(s) of preceding text]

The Wangdoodle had various trim levels available, including the GT, WD and TZ. Another car from Manufacturer XYZ, the Flotsam Bugaboo, also had a TZ variant.

it should look like this:

[paragraph(s) of preceding text]

The Wangdoodle had various trim levels available, including the GT, WD and TZ. Another car from Manufacturer XYZ, the Flotsam Bugaboo, also had a TZ variant.

[edit] Images

an example of a high quality self-made image from the GMC Denali article. This illustrates the "front ¾ view" mentioned.

[edit] Minimum image standards

We will strive to illustrate our articles with quality images. We agree to the following general standards:

1. Images should enhance the article in which they are placed and must feature the subject of the article section near which they are placed
2. The image subject (automobile, engine, component) must be the center of the image's composition
3. The caption must clearly identify the vehicle — we will use the "thumbnail" option for all images other than those inside infoboxes.
4. Free images (preferably uploaded to commons) will be preferred over "fair use" promotional images, provided the image quality meets the standards outlined here
5. Images of complete cars in good original condition should be used whenever possible — they should include all original parts and represent vehicles in reasonably good condition. Cars should be reasonably clean in most cases.
6. The quality of an image is always more important than the quantity of images included — a gallery or a link to the Commons is preferable to flooding an article with images.
7. Pictures of private cars should be avoided especially if they display private home addresses, license plates, or people unless they are of high quality or extreme rarity. License plates, if any, should be blurred out of respect. If you are photographing your own vehicle, you should remove the front plate.
8. The model year and trim level should be added to the image caption if they are available. If not available, leave blank or use "1997-2002" or "Third generation" to refer to a certain generation or style of the car.
9. Pictures should be uploaded to the Commons instead of Wikipedia and should include copyright tags and categories.
10. Pictures for the infobox should depict the front ¾ view from the height of an ordinary person.
11. Avoid taking pictures of heavily customized cars as they may not be very representative of the vehicles most common appearance, unless the text in context to the picture is dealing with the customization of the vehicle.
12. When taking a picture of an older car, make sure that it is in somewhat good condition, does not have a lot of rust, does not have mismatched body panels, and is not missing parts.

[edit] Image quality tips

Here are some things to keep in mind for creating an image of a car:

1. The front ¾ view from the height of an ordinary person is normally the best angle for a single picture of a car.
2. The lighting of a car is critical to obtaining a good image. Try to take pictures in the middle of the day or under bright but indirect lights.
3. Make sure the car is entirely in frame and is not obscured with objects, people, mud, snow, etc.
4. Crop out distracting elements like parking lots, objects, or other cars.
5. Do not take photos through window glass, fog, or with poor focus.