No VIN? Click Here Decode your VIN ’ mho year, make, model, pare, Carfax records and more .

What Is a VIN?

A vehicle identification issue ( VIN ) is a alone, 17-character code given to each car sold in the United States. A VIN decoder lets owners or shoppers unlock critical information about the vehicle ’ second creation and its complete history .
Because each car has a unique VIN, it ’ south easier to track when that car is bought, sold, or serviced. Auto shops use VIN checks to record service visits, manufacturers and the federal government uses VINs to issue safety recalls, and state agencies use VIN searches to identify vehicles when they ’ re registered, sold, or even stolen .

How to Decode a VIN

Characters in a VIN bespeak a vehicle ’ s make, model, when it was built – and at which plant – and more .

Manufacturer & Country

The first three characters of the VIN are the World Manufacturer Identifier or WMI code. It identifies the manufacturer ’ s area of lineage .
The first quality of the WMI is the region in which the manufacturer is located or the final charge of assembly. normally this is the country where the cable car was made, but in some european countries, it may be the area where the car manufacturer is headquartered .
The second VIN character indicates the manufacturer and the region where the vehicle was produced .
The third VIN character indicates the vehicle type or fabrication division .

Make, Model, Trim, Engine & More

Characters 4 through 8 are the Vehicle Descriptor Section ( VDS ). They identify the vehicle post, model, body style, locomotive type, transmission and more. Service centers normally use this data to identify an car manufacturer ’ sulfur systems so that they can properly service a car. When you use the VIN decoder instrument at the top of this foliate, we are decoding this data .

Check Digit

The one-ninth character, or check digit, is used to detect disable VINs based on a numerical formula that was developed by the U.S. Department of Transportation .

Model Year

The one-tenth finger indicates the class. The adopt graph shows which letter represents which model year. Certain letters and numbers are not used because they can be confused with others. VINs do not include the letters I ( one ), O ( o ), Q ( q ), U ( uranium ) or Z ( z ), or the count 0 .

VIN Year Chart: How to Determine Your Car’s Model Year

Assembly Plant

The 11th character identifies the fabrication plant where the vehicle was assembled. Each manufacturer has its own plant codes .

Production or Serial Number

Characters 12 through 17 indicate the consecutive number. This number frequently indicates the sequence in which a vehicle came off the forum line. Since there is no fixed standard for this number, a manufacturer can use this issue differently.

Taken together, characters 10 through 17 make up the Vehicle Identifier Section ( VIS ) .

How Many Numbers and Letters Are in a VIN?

VINs on modern cars have 17 characters, while VINs on older vehicles may have equally many as 16 characters .

Where Is the VIN Number on a Car?

The two most coarse places to find the VIN are the dashboard at the base of the windshield and the driver ’ s door-jamb poser. early places include on the engine, stamped on the frame inside the hood and sometimes in the trunk on a poser near where the spare bore is stored .

Where Can I Find the VIN in My Vehicle’s Paperwork?

The VIN can be found on vehicle style documents and state registration forms. It ’ sulfur besides typically on a spine in the owner ’ s manual, on policy policies, or service records. New cars have the VIN on the window stickers .

VIN Numbers on Older Cars

Since 1981, each new cable car has been given a standardized 17-digit code, which includes a serial number. Older cars may have VINs excessively, although they don ’ t follow the exchangeable formula .
The history of the VIN began in the 1950s as automakers began stamping designation numbers on key parts and automobiles themselves .
however, standardization did not come until the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration ( NHTSA ) finalized the current method acting of tracking every car that rolls off an assembly argumentation in the early 1980s .

What Other Types of Vehicles Have a VIN?

Do Motorcycles Have VINs?

Yes, and you can normally find them on the vehicle frame. NHTSA requires all motorcycles and all-terrain vehicles ( ATVs ), or “ four-wheelers ” and “ three-wheelers, ” to display their 17-digit unique vehicle identification issue on the frame. Check your owner ’ mho manual for the demand localization .

Do Bicycles Have a VIN?

No. Bikes are not motorized and don ’ t have to be registered with department of state department of motor vehicles. They should have a manufacturer ’ s serial number which can be used to register a bicycle with a local anesthetic municipality or on the home bicycle register .

Ways to Get a Free VIN Check With CARFAX

Get a Free CARFAX Report With Our Used Car Listings

Using CARFAX Used Car Listings is the lone way to get a free, complete CARFAX Report. You can besides take advantage of CARFAX data to find cars that are reported accident-free, have only one owner, and more .

Sign Up for CARFAX Car Care and Get a Free VIN Number Check

Create a absolve CARFAX Car Care account and view your car ’ south serve history, get alerts for approaching service, determine entrust service shops, and be the first to know about afford recalls.

Use CARFAX’s Free VIN Number Lookup Tools for Specific Issues

Use a VIN to Get a Car’s History-Based Value

Most car evaluation tools use general information to estimate a cable car ’ s prize, including the model ’ sulfur sword and class. CARFAX ’ s History-Based Value Tool includes VIN-specific information, such as serve and accident history, and number of owners, to provide a more complete painting of what it ’ s truly worth .

Why a CARFAX Vehicle History Report Is Important

When you decree a CARFAX Vehicle History Report, you can unlock the follow authoritative data about the cable car :

• Reported accidents
• Frame or structural damage
• Total loss accident history
• Ownership history
• Service History
• Open recalls
• Vehicle usage (taxi, rental, lease, etc.)
• Title information, including salvage or junk titles
• Odometer rollbacks
• Flood damage
• Airbag safety

This information can help you uncover any potential safety issues and, ultimately, avail you decide if a cable car you ’ re considering is right field for you and. You can have a look at a sample CARFAX report and see where CARFAX gets the datum it includes in its Vehicle History Reports .