The VIN stands for the Vehicle Identification Number. Each vehicle registered for use on the roads will have a unique VIN which will differentiate it from other vehicles of the same make, model and age. In the USA, the VIN is standardised by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), which requires all road vehicles to be sold containing a 17 character Vehicle Identification Number which will not include the letters I (i), O (o) or Q (q) as these are letters that can often be confused with the numbers one (1) and zero (0).
Each of the numbers and letters in the code has a meaning; the position of the character shows the following information:
1st character: Continent in which the car manufacturer is located
1st and 2nd characters: Country where the car manufacturer is located
2nd and 3rd characters: Car manufacturer's name
4th to 8th characters: These are used to determine the vehicle's attributes; each manufacturer uses a different system for this
9th character: This is (necessarily so in USA) often used as a checking digit to ensure that the VIN is valid, this can be calculated using modular arithmetic. There is a very good demonstration on the VIN Wikipedia page to show how this is done
10th character: Denotes the year that the vehicle was manufactured
11th character: The plant code, showing where the car was assembled
12th to 17th characters: The vehicle's individual serial number
The VIN system is constantly being updated, with new regulations being put in place quite frequently. These regulations are necessary to ensure that the authenticity of all cars and other road going vehicles is maintained.
One particular website that can give you a breakdown of a VIN if supplied is www.analogx.com/contents/vinview.htm Here it is possible to input a VIN and the website will break it down, telling you the continent, country, make, validity of the VIN, year manufactured and the plant code. Other websites also have algorithms to check VIN details, however before utilising another website, it is a good idea to check that it the algorithm used is correct. To do this the VIN 11111111111111111 can be entered and the following attributes obtained:
Region: North America
Country: U.S.A.
Manufacturer: Unknown
Model Specific Details: Unknown
Check Digit: Valid
Year: 2001
Assembly Plant: 1
Serial Number: 111111
References:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vehicle_Identification_Number, www.analogx.com/contents/vinview.htm
Each of the numbers and letters in the code has a meaning; the position of the character shows the following information:
1st character: Continent in which the car manufacturer is located
1st and 2nd characters: Country where the car manufacturer is located
2nd and 3rd characters: Car manufacturer's name
4th to 8th characters: These are used to determine the vehicle's attributes; each manufacturer uses a different system for this
9th character: This is (necessarily so in USA) often used as a checking digit to ensure that the VIN is valid, this can be calculated using modular arithmetic. There is a very good demonstration on the VIN Wikipedia page to show how this is done
10th character: Denotes the year that the vehicle was manufactured
11th character: The plant code, showing where the car was assembled
12th to 17th characters: The vehicle's individual serial number
The VIN system is constantly being updated, with new regulations being put in place quite frequently. These regulations are necessary to ensure that the authenticity of all cars and other road going vehicles is maintained.
One particular website that can give you a breakdown of a VIN if supplied is www.analogx.com/contents/vinview.htm Here it is possible to input a VIN and the website will break it down, telling you the continent, country, make, validity of the VIN, year manufactured and the plant code. Other websites also have algorithms to check VIN details, however before utilising another website, it is a good idea to check that it the algorithm used is correct. To do this the VIN 11111111111111111 can be entered and the following attributes obtained:
Region: North America
Country: U.S.A.
Manufacturer: Unknown
Model Specific Details: Unknown
Check Digit: Valid
Year: 2001
Assembly Plant: 1
Serial Number: 111111
References:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vehicle_Identification_Number, www.analogx.com/contents/vinview.htm