Wikipedia:WikiProject Automobiles/Conventions
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The following conventions will be followed for all automobile-related articles.
Contents |
[edit] Names
[edit] Titles
Article titles should bear the name used in the original market and that by the original manufacturer, regardless of sales. So a car designed in Japan primarily for the United States market would bear the name used in Japan. For example, the Japanese Mazda Atenza, while sold internationally as the Mazda 6 will be titled "Mazda Atenza".
[edit] Model variants
We will use the emphasize strongly markup for model names within the first paragraph of 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 forgo this rule when a name appears prominently in two distant sections of the article, or to maintain consistency across a list.
- This guideline 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 Astra had various trim levels available, including the LXi, SRi and GTE. Another car from Vauxhall, the Cavalier, also had an SRi variant.
- it should look like this:
[edit] Units
[edit] Localization
We will use the local standard first when making judgments on localized units and terms:
- Unit order follows a car's major market. For example, American-market cars will use "horsepower" (hp) with "kilowatts" (kW) in parentheses. In Europe and Asia cars will use kilowatts (kW) and metric horsepower, with the general Wikipedia standard suggesting German Pferdestärke (PS) as metric horsepower. British cars will use brake horsepower (bhp) and kilowatts (kW).
- We will follow similar rules for differing terms (bonnet/hood, boot/trunk). In pages that are not location-specific (e.g.: 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] Conventions
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: ;nbsp;
- We will NOT use commas or spaces in numbers used as measurements, and will separate decimals from whole numbers with a "full stop"/period. That is, rather than "1,796 cc", we will use "1796 cc".
Specifically, the following standards will be used:
- Power: 75 kW
- 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 automobile engines where this is standard - i.e., 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) See:Template:mpg to include US and Imp mpg
- 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 3.0 liter engine" in a sentence, but it is not proper to say "the 3.0 L engine". The former is prose, the latter is a metric.
Note that many of these units are supported by the auto-specific conversion templates at Category:Automotive conversion templates.
[edit] Images
[edit] Minimum image standards
We will strive to illustrate our articles with quality images. We agree to the following general standards:
- Images should enhance the article in which they are placed and must feature the subject of the article section near which they are placed.
- The image subject (automobile, engine, component) must be the center of the image's composition.
- The caption must clearly identify the vehicle — we will use the "thumbnail" option for all images other than those inside infoboxes.
- Free images, preferably uploaded to the Commons, should always be used. It is rarely, if ever, that a photograph of a car is not replaceable. Do not use "fair use" promotional images of vehicles.
- The image selected for an article's top (lead) infobox does not need to show any particular version or generation — e.g., the newest, the last, the first, the best-selling, etc. — of the subject vehicle. Vehicle production date is not a factor when determining the quality of an image and its suitability to illustrate the lead infobox. Regardless of the ages of the vehicle shown, pick a clear, high-quality image according to the image quality guidelines; one that clearly shows a vehicle relevant to the article without photoflash glare or other photographic faults, against a simple and contrasting background. Such an image is always to be preferred over a lower-quality image, such as one that shows photoflash glare or a distracting background. Low-volume, unusual, or otherwise unrepresentative variants are generally not preferred for the lead infobox image.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- The year or 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.
- Pictures should be uploaded to the Commons instead of Wikipedia and should include copyright tags and categories.
- Pictures for the infobox should depict the front ¾ view from the height of an ordinary person.
- 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.
- 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:
- The front ¾ view from the height of an ordinary person is normally the best angle for a single picture of a car.
- 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. Make sure the sun is behind you—do not shoot into the sun.
- Make sure the car is entirely in frame and is not obscured with objects, people, mud, snow, etc.
- Crop out distracting elements like parking lots, objects, or other cars.
- Do not take photos through window glass, fog, or with poor focus.
[edit] Trivia and popular culture sections
Wikipedia does not (in general) support the addition of trivia and pop-culture sections within articles. For automotive subjects there is a tendancy for such sections to degenerate into long lists of movie and TV show appearances. Similarly, lists of celebrity owners of cars tend to grow to inappropriate length. The guideline that has been widely accepted for automotive subjects is that mention of pop-culture references should be strictly limited to cases where the fact of that reference influenced the sales, design or other tangible aspect of the vehicle. It is not sufficient to note that the vehicle had a major influence on its owner or some movie or TV show—such facts belong in the article about owner, movie or TV show.
For example, the Koenigsegg CCX article mentions the appearance of the car on Top Gear because the relatively poor initial performance (and crash! of the car on their test lap directly resulted in the provision of an optional rear spoiler. The addition of that spoiler and its critical effect on the handling capabilities of the car are notable facts. On the other hand, a mention of the film Redline in which the Koenigsegg is prominently featured would not be appropriate, because that movie had no noticable impact on the design, operation or sales of the car.
