In addition to the DVSA's standard make/model/fuel/colour, you might want to capture richer per-vehicle detail: engine code, gearbox, paint code, key reference, tyre size. Workshop Settings → Vehicle specs lets you define those fields once and Pistonlog surfaces them on every vehicle record in the garage.
Adding a field
Open Workshop Settings → Vehicle specs
From the admin sidebar.
Add a new field
Set the label (e.g. "Engine code") and a placeholder (the hint text shown in the input).
Set the requirement mode
Pick whether the field is optional or required at vehicle save time. Required fields block save until filled — use sparingly.
Show previous entry
Toggle this on to suggest the most recent value entered for this vehicle when filling the field on a new jobcard. Handy for things you usually re-enter the same way.
How values are stored
Spec values are saved as a JSON specValues map on each vehicle, keyed by the spec field's stable id (not its label). They're free text — there's no per-field type picker (no text vs. number vs. dropdown vs. yes/no input). Because the key is the id, renaming a label doesn't lose previously-entered values.
Where these fields appear
On every vehicle record's detail page and on the jobcard's vehicle panel for context. There's no per-field "technician-visible" toggle today — if a spec field is on the vehicle, it shows wherever vehicle details are surfaced.
Common configurations
Most garages set 3–6 spec fields. A typical starter set:
- Engine code
- Gearbox type
- Tyre size
- Key code
- Paint code