ACRISS Fuel Type Codes & Definitions
The following fuel type codes and industry recognised abbreviations are used within the ACRISS Car Code Lists to identify the fuel type and Electric Vehicle/Hybrid variant of a specific vehicle model. These standards have become increasingly important with the rapid growth of Hybrid and EV technologies and the expanding range of electrified vehicle options available across the mobility industry.
These fuel types and definitions work alongside:
- ACRISS Car Classification Codes
- EV Battery Range information
- CO₂ g/km emissions data
- Environmental and efficiency coding standards
The fuel type also determines the appropriate 4th character used within the ACRISS Car Classification Matrix under the Fuel / Air Conditioning category.
P — Petrol
Standard petrol-powered vehicles with no additional electric-drive technology.
- Available with manual or automatic transmission
- Traditional internal combustion engine (ICE)
D — Diesel
Standard diesel-powered vehicles with no additional electric-drive technology.
- Available with manual or automatic transmission
- Traditional diesel internal combustion engine (ICE)
MHEV — Mild Hybrid Electric Vehicle
Mild Hybrid Electric Vehicles combine a petrol or diesel engine (ICE) with a small electric motor and typically a 48V battery system.
Features include:
- Improved fuel efficiency
- Enhanced stop-start functionality
- Extended “engine-off” operation at low speeds
- No plug-in charging required
- Cannot operate solely on electric power
- Internal Combustion Engine with small electric motor
HEV — Hybrid Electric Vehicle
Hybrid Electric Vehicles combine a combustion engine with an electric motor and battery system.
Features include:
- Short-range pure electric driving capability
- Increased low-speed electric operation in urban environments (usually a mile or so up to 50% EV run time)
- Regenerative self-charging battery technology
- No external charging required
- Dual Combustion Engine vehicle with an electric motor
Most HEVs are petrol-powered, although some diesel hybrid models are also available.
PHEV — Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle
Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicles use larger rechargeable batteries to provide extended electric-only driving capability.
Features include:
- Pure electric driving range typically exceeding 30 miles
- External plug-in charging required
- Lower CO₂ emissions during electric operation
- Combination of electric motor and combustion engine for extended range
PHEVs are most commonly petrol-powered, although diesel variants may also exist.
BEV — Battery Electric Vehicle
Battery Electric Vehicles are fully electric vehicles powered entirely by rechargeable battery technology and electric motors.
Features include:
- 100% electric operation
- Zero tailpipe CO₂ emissions
- Automatic transmission
- Air conditioning generally fitted as standard
- Battery capacity measured in kWh
- Driving range measured in miles or kilometres
BEVs are currently the only vehicle category considered fully zero-emission during operation.
These classifications continue to evolve alongside advances in vehicle technology, electrification, and future mobility solutions, helping provide greater transparency and more accurate vehicle comparisons across booking and distribution systems worldwide.
The above fuel types can be used with the 4th letter of the Car Classification code matrix “Fuel/AirCon”
| Fuel Type code | 4th letter Matrix code |
| P: Petrol | R, N |
| D: Diesel | R, N, D, Q |
| MHEV: Mild hybrid electric vehicle | H |
| HEV: Hybrid electric vehicle | H |
| FHEV: Full Hybrid electric vehicle | H |
| PHEV: Plug-in hybrid vehicle | I |
| BEV: Battery electric vehicle | E or C |
For further information on hybrid and electric cars and codes see Hybrid and Electric
Downloadable version: ACRISS Fuel Type Guide