Managing reference data: fuel types and motor types

Reference data defines the shared vocabulary your fleet uses for fuel types and motor types. These lists appear as choices on vehicles, so keeping them accurate keeps vehicle records consistent. This article shows how to view and manage them at /admin/reference-data.

Required permission

Viewing reference data requires vehicles:view. Creating, editing, and deactivating fuel types or motor types requires vehicles:manage.

Fuel types

A fuel type has a key (a lowercase identifier such as diesel or electric), an active flag, and a sort order that controls its position in dropdowns.

Add a fuel type

1. Open /admin/reference-data and add a fuel type.
2. Enter a key. It is trimmed and stored in lowercase, and must be unique.
3. Optionally set a sort order; if you omit it, the new entry is placed after the current maximum.
4. Save.

Note: A blank key is rejected with an "INVALID_KEY" error, and a key that already exists is rejected with a "DUPLICATE_KEY" conflict. Keys are the stable link to vehicle data, so choose them deliberately.

Motor types

A motor type has a key, an active flag, a sort order, and a list of compatible fuel type keys. Compatibility ties a motor type to the fuel types that make sense for it (for example a hybrid motor may be compatible with petrol and electric).

Add or edit a motor type

1. Add a motor type and enter a unique lowercase key.
2. Set the compatible fuel type keys using existing fuel type keys.
3. Optionally set the sort order.
4. Save. When editing, you can update the active flag, sort order, and compatible fuel keys.

Tip: Keep compatible fuel keys in sync with your fuel type list. Referencing a fuel key you later deactivate can leave a motor type pointing at an option users no longer see.

Active and inactive entries

Two views are available: the default list shows only active entries (what users pick from), while the "all" view includes inactive entries for administration. Entries are ordered by sort order.

Deactivate instead of hard delete

Deleting a fuel type or motor type is a soft operation — it sets the entry to inactive rather than removing it. Inactive entries disappear from selection lists but remain in the system, so historical vehicle records that reference them stay intact.

1. Open the entry.
2. Use the delete action, or clear its active flag and save.
3. Confirm. The entry stops appearing in active lists.

Warning: Deactivating a fuel type does not rewrite vehicles that already use it; it only removes it from new selections. Review affected vehicles before retiring a widely used type.

Related

• System configuration overview and access
• Setting the regulatory framework (HU, §57a, MFK)
• Validating configuration before publishing