Help:Vehicle

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A vehicle page is a special type of article devoted to the Mattel model(s) of any given Cars character, or version thereof. They create the foundation of the diecast project and exist in their own dedicated namespace. Vehicles operate rather uniquely from regular content pages, and have their own entire set of guidelines and practices.

Overview

Vehicle pages define entries in the Mattel Disney Pixar Cars item database (infrastructure). They work with the Cargo extension to store template parameters into a site-wide database, which not only can be independently searched, but also accessible by other pages on the wiki as part of their own page output. In short, when you edit a vehicle page, the results immediately effect every type of list page it appears on, including series, castings, etc. They aim to be efficient while also staying as user-friendly, easy-to-use as possible.

Visually speaking, a vehicle page is arguably simpler than a regular page. Internally is another story. They make heavy use of the Cargo and Variables extensions to store and transport large amounts of info in as little system strain as possible.

Usage

A vehicle pages has two distinct features: The leading infobox to introduce the vehicle itself... Main image, you will always see the basic vehicle (1:55 die-cast) - ones without like Mini Racers and Color Changers should instead use their respective counterpart ...along with very basic info like what Cars media they originate from, the year (and series) of first release, and (if a "version") a link to the base character and all other versions of the character.

And then the Releases section listing every individual issue of that character (documenting an issue-by-issue history of that character's production). Both sections are edited within dedicated templates.

You'll see a loose photo depicting the final release, along with hovering the mouse (tapping on mobile) over the series cell displays the carded (e.g. boxed) image.

Classification

Vehicles are identified and categorized primarily based on the series they're from, using the wiki's own classification system.

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2010_ Final Lap Collection

1. Series type
2. Series motif
3. Series name

Series types

	Mainline
	Secondary format
	Collection
	Special series
	Exclusive
	Premium
	Other non-1:55

Series can be specified using either their ID or name - a full key (as well as the registrations themselves) can be found at the {{series index}}.

The term is familiar to Hot Wheels and the original Cars line.

Segments then, are best described as "series a within a series", or a smaller sub-set of models within the larger whole. 2013-2017 Collections and the "as seen in" of present day. Occasionally, a subseries paremeter is needed for further specificity, or if the 'segment' concept doesn't quite befit it (such as the Mini Racers and Puzzle Box's numbered series). This is excluded from the form (to avoid confusion) and must be added via source mode.

Main article: Help:Series

• Marketing presentation > raw assortment code
• Motif series (unique defines collection)
• Mainline is considered A-Z cases, note 2011-2012 and 2018-19.
• Loose variants generally separate, carded together. Renewed product code and motif switches (major theme) are counted as separate compared to Neon Racers or Glow Racers label changes, considered same. International packaging is dependent on toy code rule - separate back when it was different, together now that they're the same
• (Definitions here); these are binded automatically and will display based on the series input.

Navigation

Pages are designed to accomodate various styles of browsing, sorting.

• Click cell text to go to list/query - cast for all of same, including some that might not immediately appear so (year, toy number) - cast number/Special:VehicleQuery

Editing

To add a new vehicle, go to Special:CreatePage

Form edits

• A specialized form takes the place of the VisualEditor and displays the information it seeks more clearly.
  • 3 required parameters, there are some additional ones only configurable in source mode (simplicity/situational necessity)
  • Everything else is pre-set i.e. {{series index}} and {{segment index}} (colors, link variables + defaults for assortment, exclusivity)
• Gadgets: Form is default, you can enable/disable either in preferences
• row edits in vehicle lists; currently, the downside is that these return you to the vehicle page upon submission, not to the page of referral. As such, these are configured to open in new tabs. Better handling is in the works!

Source edits

Likewise, the standard source mode is available upon Gadgets toggle. While we encourage all users to edit using whichever tools they prefer, please be aware that the open-endedness introduced by source mode naturally invites more risk of interfering with the essential page template functions. Please be sure you have read through both this page and the {{vehicle table}} documentation thoroughly before using source mode.

There are a number of extra parameters that can be added in source mode, typically for more niche or situational reasons - these are omitted from the Form to avoid overwhelming, particularly when most of them are going to be left blank anyways.

Standards etc.

• Extra text should never be placed onto a vehicle page: navigational customs like {{distinguish}} and {{about}} are handled within the infobox (see template documentation)
• Vehicle stats (appearance and colno query Vehicles table instead of Releases)
• |character= should be the base variant i.e. Dinoco Lightning McQueen and Lightning McQueen with Cone should both point back to Lightning McQueen.
• Distinctions, each vehicle has its own page, generally based on name - exceptions typically made for NASCAR etc.
  • Comes down largely to how it impacts the identity of what the model represents
  • Variant considerations
    • Fillmore = no because expression change has remained ever since
    • Posing McQueen = yes because unique one-off model and Mack playset piece, there is official precedent with Road Trip Lightning McQueen etc.
• |sort_name=
  • Sets name for {{poster sort}} (what else?), this becomes the standard MODEL NAME for all releases
  • Can set |sort_name= within a row to change that individual release.
  • |full_name= For collector number list
• Release photo must be accurate to final release
  • Official promos > personal photos
• Key
  • Series is the backbone
  • type definitions plus {{vehicle key}}

Troubleshooting

Here are some common issues you run into, and the process for checking them

• • Releases won't store = Make sure you have {{table end}} at the very bottom
  • Won't sort properly = ensure that the input name matches the RELEASE "sort name", otherwise you need to write the exact page title

	This article is part of the Diecast Project, a PCW project that aims to report on every aspect of Mattel's Disney Pixar Cars toy line.
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