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Caner Karaca edited this page Oct 21, 2026 · 5 revisions

⚠️ EXPERIMENTAL FEATURE (IN-DEVELOPMENT / TEST ONLY)

Important Notice: This feature set is currently experimental and exclusively available on the feat/active-dashboard-replacement branch for testing and backward compatibility evaluation. It has NOT been merged into the official release builds of ModelExtras yet.

🕹️ Active Dashboard Adaptation Guide

This guide provides the complete 3D hierarchy structure, dummy node naming conventions, local pivot placement rules, and calibration parameters required to adapt vehicle models for Active Dashboard features in ModelExtras.

📋 Node Reference & Transformation Specifications

The following table lists all supported node names, their expected types, local transformation axes, and in-game mechanical behaviors:

Vehicle System Node Name(s) Type Transformation Axis / Mode Modeling & In-Game Behavior
Cardan / Driveshaft kardan1 .. kardan4
kardan_m1 .. kardan_m4
kardan_f1 .. kardan_f4
kardan_pered, cardan*, f_cardan* 		Frame / Mesh Local Y-axis spin + X/Z pitch/yaw tilt Spins synchronously with wheel RPM while dynamically tilting pitch and yaw to track suspension compression (simulating U-joints).
Brake Caliper brake_fl, brake_fr
brake_rl, brake_rr
f_caliper* 		Frame / Mesh Local Z-axis steer (Roll locked) Steers in sync with the wheel but stays upright; wheel rolling rotation is isolated so the caliper never spins with the wheel.
Suspension Springs prush1 .. prush4
spring1 .. spring4 		Frame / Mesh Local Z-axis scale (RwV3d) Scales dynamically along the vertical Z-axis matching wheel suspension compression and rebound.
Multi-Axle Steering wheel_rf_dummy2
wheel_lf_dummy2
wheel_rm_dummy
wheel_lm_dummy 		Dummy Frame Local Z-axis steer + X-axis roll Extra front steering axle (twin-steer) or rear tag steering axle. Steer ratios calibrated in vehsets.dat.
Lift / Lazy Axles leniv1, leniv2 Dummy Frame Local Z-axis translation Retractable lazy axle ("Ленивцы") for heavy trucks and trailers. Toggled via [ key.
Tipper / Dump Bed samosval
gidro1, gidro2, gidro3 		Frame / Mesh samosval: Local X-axis tilt
gidro*: Local Z-axis slide + tilt		 Dump truck bed tilts upward with Num8 / Num2. Hydraulic cylinders (gidro1..3) automatically calculate tilt angle and telescopic extension to stay linked.
Mobile Crane osnova
strela1
strela2
opora_l, opora_r
hook_kr_dummy 		Frame / Mesh osnova: Z-axis yaw (Num4/Num6)
strela1: X-axis pitch (Num8/Num2)
strela2: Z-axis extension (Num7/Num1)
opora_*: Outrigger deployment (Num0/Num.)		 Full hydraulic truck crane: rotating turntable base, elevating primary boom, telescopic boom extension, stabilizer outriggers, and hoist hook.
Articulated Bus povrama, garmoshka Frame / Mesh Local Z-axis yaw rotation Articulated bus turntable disc. Rotates exactly 50% of the relative yaw angle between the bus tractor and trailer for realistic bellows joint deformation.
Articulated Tractor dozer_dummy Dummy Frame Local Z-axis yaw rotation Heavy industrial tractor / loader chassis pivot joint (e.g. Kirovets K-700). Breaks chassis angle according to steering input.
KamAZ Cab Tilt kabina, podkabin Frame / Mesh Local X-axis tilt When vehicle is stationary, tilts entire cab forward over its front hinge via Num8 / Num2 to reveal the engine bay.
Cargo Barn Doors doorbuda_lr
doorbuda_rr 		Frame / Mesh Local Z-axis swing Cargo van / box truck rear barn doors. Toggled via Num5 or opened on player proximity.
Power Windows okno_l, okno_r Frame / Mesh Local Z-axis vertical slide Functional electric power windows. Left window controlled by Insert / Delete, right window controlled by PageUp / PageDown.
Drivetrain Modes (Handling-based) N/A Real-time transmission shift Transfer case switching: 0 (FWD), - (AWD), = (RWD), 9 (4WD Low crawler gear with 2.2x torque and 10 km/h crawl ceiling).
Trailer Hitch trhook, f_hitch Dummy Frame Distance check & hitch opcode Universal trailer hitching: press P to attach a nearby trailer or unhitch an existing one.
Diesel Smoke Puff diesel_exh Dummy Frame Particle system spawn Spawns thick black diesel soot puffs whenever the engine accelerates under load.
Auxiliary Gauges oil, roil
temperature, rtemperature
volts
ampers 		Frame / Mesh Local Y-axis rotation Dynamic analog gauge needles: engine oil pressure, coolant temperature (warms up/cools down), voltmeter (12V–14V), and battery ammeter.
Analog Clock hour, minute
chas, min 		Frame / Mesh Local Y-axis rotation Analog clock hands rotating in exact sync with GTA San Andreas game world time.
Odometer Drums odometr1 .. odometr10 Frame / Mesh Local X-axis decade roll Ten mechanical rolling decade cylinders/drums rotating realistically as vehicle accumulates mileage.
Digital Displays dsp_speedo
dsp_odo
dsp_clock 		Frame / Mesh Character texture/atomic toggle Digital dashboard displays for current speed, total odometer distance, and digital clock.
Light Mesh Swapping llighton, llightoff
rlighton, rlightoff
backlion, backlioff
1povorot, 2povorot, 3povorot, rearlight 		Frame / Mesh Atomic visibility toggle Mesh-swapping turn signals and reverse lights for classic models authored without ImVehFt material colors.

🏗️ 3D Model Hierarchy Examples

1. Heavy Dump Truck (Tipper + Cab Tilt + Cardan + Springs + Calipers + Diesel Smoke)

chassis
 ├── chassis_dummy
 │    ├── kabina               <-- Cab Tilt (Pivots forward around front hinge on X-axis)
 │    │    ├── okno_l          <-- Driver Power Window (Translates along local Z-axis)
 │    │    ├── okno_r          <-- Passenger Power Window
 │    │    ├── oil             <-- Oil Pressure Needle (Rotates around Y-axis)
 │    │    ├── temperature     <-- Water Temp Needle (Rotates around Y-axis)
 │    │    ├── volts           <-- Voltmeter Needle
 │    │    ├── ampers          <-- Ammeter Needle
 │    │    ├── hour            <-- Analog Clock Hour Hand
 │    │    ├── minute          <-- Analog Clock Minute Hand
 │    │    └── odometr1..6     <-- Rolling Odometer Decade Drums
 │    ├── samosval             <-- Dump Bed (Pivots upward around rear chassis hinge on X-axis)
 │    │    ├── doorbuda_lr     <-- Left Cargo Barn Door (Swings open on Z-axis)
 │    │    └── doorbuda_rr     <-- Right Cargo Barn Door (Swings open on Z-axis)
 │    ├── gidro1               <-- Main Hydraulic Ram Cylinder (Hinged to chassis)
 │    │    ├── gidro2          <-- Telescopic Stage 1 (Slides along local Z-axis)
 │    │    └── gidro3          <-- Telescopic Stage 2 (Slides along local Z-axis)
 │    ├── kardan1              <-- Front Cardan Shaft (Spins with wheel RPM, tilts with suspension)
 │    ├── kardan2              <-- Rear Cardan Shaft
 │    ├── prush1 .. prush4     <-- Coil Springs (Scale along local Z-axis with suspension)
 │    ├── brake_fl             <-- Front Left Brake Caliper (Turns with steer, does not roll)
 │    ├── brake_fr             <-- Front Right Brake Caliper
 │    ├── wheel_rf_dummy2      <-- Twin Front Steer Wheel (Extra steer axle)
 │    ├── wheel_lf_dummy2      <-- Twin Front Steer Wheel
 │    ├── leniv1               <-- Retractable Lift Axle (Moves up/down on local Z-axis)
 │    ├── diesel_exh           <-- Black Diesel Smoke Dummy (Placed at exhaust pipe tip)
 │    └── trhook               <-- Trailer Hitch Hook Dummy

2. Mobile Crane Truck

chassis
 ├── chassis_dummy
 │    ├── osnova               <-- Crane Turntable Base (Rotates 360° horizontally on Z-axis)
 │    │    └── strela1         <-- Primary Crane Boom (Pivots vertically up/down on X-axis)
 │    │         └── strela2    <-- Telescopic Extension Arm (Slides outward on local Z-axis)
 │    │              └── hook_kr_dummy  <-- Crane Hook / Winch Cable Dummy
 │    ├── opora_l              <-- Left Stabilizer Outrigger (Deploys downward on local Z-axis)
 │    └── opora_r              <-- Right Stabilizer Outrigger (Deploys downward on local Z-axis)

3. Articulated Bus (e.g. Ikarus 280)

chassis (Tractor)
 ├── chassis_dummy
 │    ├── povrama              <-- Accordion Joint Disc (Rotates by 50% trailer yaw on Z-axis)
 │    │    └── garmoshka       <-- Bellows Mesh
 │    └── ...

📐 3D Modeling & Local Pivot Rules

📌 Pivot Placement & Axis Orientations:

  • Cardan Shafts (kardan1..4): Place the pivot at the gearbox/transfer case U-joint flange. The local Y-axis points along the length of the shaft towards the differential.
  • Brake Calipers (brake_fl..rr): Place the pivot in the exact center of the wheel hub (matching the wheel dummy position).
  • Suspension Springs (prush1..4): Place the pivot at the base of the spring cup. The local Z-axis must point straight upward along the compression travel.
  • Dump Bed (samosval): Place the pivot at the rear hinge pins around which the bed tilts.
  • Hydraulic Cylinders (gidro1..3): Place the pivot of gidro1 at its bottom chassis mount. Align its local Z-axis pointing up the cylinder bore towards the bed mount.
  • Crane Turntable (osnova): Place the pivot in the exact rotational center of the turntable with local Z-axis pointing straight up.
  • Crane Boom (strela1): Place the pivot at the boom base hinge with local X-axis serving as the elevation pitch axis.
  • Cab Tilt (kabina): Place the pivot at the front bumper / frame cab hinge. Local X-axis is the tilt axis.

⚙️ Configuration Files: VEHSETS.DAT & CONTROL_KEYS.CFG

ModelExtras parses legacy Active Dashboard data files located in GTA San Andreas/DATA/:

1. DATA/VEHSETS.DAT

Calibrates individual multipliers for every vehicle model ID. If a vehicle ID is omitted from VEHSETS.DAT, ModelExtras automatically falls back to balanced default values.

# Format:
# ID  Steer  Speedo  RPM  Wipers  Tipper  Oil  Temp  Volts  Crane  TwinSteer  RearSteer  CardanTilt
455   1.0    1.0     1.0  1.0     1.0     1.0  1.0   1.0    1.0    1.0        -0.5       1.0
  • Steer: Legacy column (Steering wheels are handled natively by VehFuncs f_steer).
  • Speedo: Speedometer sweep multiplier (default 1.0).
  • RPM: Tachometer needle sweep multiplier (default 1.0).
  • Wipers: Legacy column (Windshield wipers are handled natively by VehFuncs f_wiper).
  • Tipper: Dump bed tilt speed (default 1.0).
  • Oil: Oil pressure gauge responsiveness (default 1.0).
  • Temp: Water temperature gauge multiplier (default 1.0).
  • Volts: Voltmeter gauge multiplier (default 1.0).
  • Crane: Crane rotation and elevation speed (default 1.0).
  • TwinSteer: Ratio for second front steer axle (default 1.0).
  • RearSteer: Ratio for rear steer axle (negative for counter-steer, e.g. -0.5).
  • CardanTilt: Driveshaft suspension pitch/yaw tilt multiplier (default 1.0).

2. DATA/CONTROL_KEYS.CFG

Assigns custom virtual-key codes (decimal or hex).

🎮 In-Game Controls & Keybindings

System Action Default Key Virtual-Key Code
Lift / Lazy Axles Lift / Lower retractable axle [ 0xDB (219)
Dump Truck Bed Raise Bed / Lower Bed Num 8 / Num 2 VK_NUMPAD8 / VK_NUMPAD2
KamAZ Cab Tilt Tilt Cab Forward / Lower Cab Num 8 / Num 2 VK_NUMPAD8 / VK_NUMPAD2
Crane Turntable Rotate Left / Right Num 4 / Num 6 VK_NUMPAD4 / VK_NUMPAD6
Crane Boom Raise Boom / Lower Boom Num 8 / Num 2 VK_NUMPAD8 / VK_NUMPAD2
Crane Telescopic Arm Extend Arm / Retract Arm Num 7 / Num 1 VK_NUMPAD7 / VK_NUMPAD1
Crane Outriggers Deploy / Retract Stabilizers Num 0 / Num . VK_NUMPAD0 / VK_DECIMAL
Cargo Barn Doors Open / Close Rear Van Doors Num 5 VK_NUMPAD5 (101)
Driver Power Window Roll Up / Roll Down Insert / Delete VK_INSERT / VK_DELETE
Passenger Power Window Roll Up / Roll Down Page Up / Page Down VK_PRIOR / VK_NEXT
Trailer Hitch Hitch / Unhitch Nearby Trailer P 0x50 (80)
Transfer Case (4WD High) All-Wheel Drive - VK_OEM_MINUS (189)
Transfer Case (RWD) Rear-Wheel Drive = VK_OEM_PLUS (187)
Transfer Case (FWD) Front-Wheel Drive 0 0x30 (48)
Transfer Case (4WD Low) Crawler Gear (Speed <= 10 km/h) 9 0x39 (57)

Core

Vehicles

Peds

Deprecated

Experimental

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