Final engineering pilot

A final engineering pilot (FEP) is one of the final stages of Hot Wheels development.
This is the car as decorated per the e-sheets by the company and is given to the graphics team for review; this allows the team to control production quality, making comments on specific fit, finish and execution or reject items if not up to par. Graphics, engineering, planning and marketing will each receive a copy of FEP models. FEPs are sourced from all four major Hot Wheels plants in Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia and China; models from the Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia plants will typically feature a date code and a four-digit tracking number stamped onto the car itself. FEPs from the China plant are tracked differently, being labeled "FEP1, FEP2 etc." depending on revisions and a three-digit code laser-etched onto the car.
FEPs are usually shown off as "sneak peeks" for models at conventions and are manufactured weeks or months before the full production run of the vehicle starts. FEPs will never be made during mass production of any given model. Vehicles that appear to be FEPs featuring FEP-like codes and not clearly sourced from a Mattel staff member are likely to have been illegally obtained. 
Category:Definitions