![]() If you buy a used car you might run a VIN check to verify the information you get from the seller. Since the vehicle identification number is like a social security or serial number, it’s used to track things like car accidents, repairs, and title problems. You’ll likely need those digits when you register your car at the DMV, purchase insurance, buy parts, get your car appraised, or bring your car to the shop for repairs. What would I need my vehicle identification number for?Īs a car owner, you’ll need your VIN more often than you might expect. The rest of the VIN number conveys helpful info like the year your car was manufactured, its assembly plant, manufacturing division, and other stuff like engine and transmission type, submodel, and body style. The check digit is designed to work as a fraud detector of sorts. ![]() The ninth digit is known as a check digit. “A,” for example, can be for Audi, Jaguar, or Mitsubishi. In some cases, this is straightforward, but usually, decoding is a bit more complicated. The second digit will inform you about the manufacturer of the motor vehicle. Other countries are less intuitive: S is for England, W for Germany, and on and on. Cars made in the US typically start with a 4, 5, or 1, while Japan starts with a J and South Korea a K. Cars with a VIN number that start with 2 are made in Canada, and 3 is Mexico. The country of origin or world manufacturer identifier (WMI) is determined by the first character. Oh yes! Any of the following factoids make a great introductory line when trying to chat someone up at the bar. You can use a VIN decoder to do a VIN lookup on some websites to get basic information about your vehicle.Ĭan we really nerd out about this for a sec? (We’re eagerly awaiting that new Dan Brown summer blockbuster, The VIN Code…) The VIN is a complex string of letters and numbers that all mean something. If your vehicle comes with an app, you can likely find the VIN in there as well. It can also be found listed in the documents that you receive when you purchase or register a car-paperwork like the vehicle title, registration, or car insurance details. You can also find the VIN number on the driver’s side of the car by looking through the very bottom of the windshield, on what’s known as a VIN plate. The primary location is on the VIN sticker, located on the inside of your driver’s side door in the door jamb. Your vehicle identification number could be printed in a number of locations on your car. ![]() Where can I find my car’s vehicle identification number? ![]() If your vehicle was manufactured before 1981, the VIN will most likely contain 11 characters. Every digit in the 17 digit VIN is intentional, and used to indicate something specific about the vehicle. It is also used to pull up more detailed information about your car’s model year, engine type, manufacturer, production, body style, accidents/insurance claims and more. VIN numbers are made up of a combination of 17 characters, both numbers and letters. In 1981, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) created a standardized requirement for VINs. It’s assigned by the vehicle’s manufacturer for all vehicles available for sale in the United States, and is used to track and identify detailed information about a car.
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