Buyer guide
What a VIN is and how to read it
What each character of a VIN means, how to tell the model year and the plant, and what a VIN can and cannot tell you about a car.
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The VIN is a car's identity: manufacturer data, titles and history records are all looked up by it. Knowing how to read it lets you spot a mistake or a mismatch in a listing before you buy.
What a VIN is
The vehicle identification number (VIN) is a 17-character code of letters and digits that identifies one vehicle. Since the 1981 model year, every vehicle sold in the US has carried a VIN in the same format, set by US federal rules (49 CFR Part 565).
It is often called the chassis or body number. The letters I, O and Q are never used, so they cannot be mistaken for 1 and 0.
What each part of the VIN means
On a vehicle made for the US market, the 17 characters are read in five groups:
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Characters 1–3: manufacturer
The world manufacturer identifier (WMI). The first character usually shows the country where the vehicle was built: for example 1, 4 or 5 for the United States, 2 for Canada, 3 for Mexico, J for Japan, K for South Korea and W for Germany.
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Characters 4–8: vehicle details
Each manufacturer decides what it encodes here, typically the model, body type, engine and restraint system.
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Character 9: check digit
A digit from 0 to 9, or the letter X, calculated from the other 16 characters. It catches most copying mistakes and some altered VINs.
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Character 10: model year
A letter or digit that stands for the model year, for example L for 2020, N for 2022, R for 2024 and T for 2026.
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Characters 11–17: plant and serial number
Character 11 identifies the assembly plant; the last six are usually the vehicle's production sequence number.
Vehicles built for other markets, such as Europe, also have 17-character VINs, but the check digit and the model-year character are not always used.
Model year and year of manufacture
The tenth character is the model year, which is a sales designation. A car of the 2021 model year can be built in 2020, so the model year and the year of manufacture can differ.
The month and year the car was actually built are printed on the manufacturer's label on the driver's door pillar or door edge.
K
2019 model year
L
2020 model year
M
2021 model year
N
2022 model year
P
2023 model year
R
2024 model year
S
2025 model year
T
2026 model year
The codes repeat every 30 years: A stood for 1980 and again for 2010. For cars, SUVs and light trucks from 2010 on, the seventh character is a letter, which tells the two cycles apart.
What the check digit catches
Each character is turned into a number, multiplied by a fixed weight for its position, and the results are added up. The remainder after dividing by 11 is the check digit; a remainder of 10 is written as X.
If the check digit does not match, the VIN was most likely copied with a mistake. Compare every character with the car and its documents. A matching check digit does not prove that the VIN is genuine or that it belongs to this car.
CarTraceAI's free check verifies the format and the check digit before it decodes the VIN.
Where to find the VIN
Check that the VIN is the same everywhere:
- On a plate at the base of the windshield on the driver's side, readable from outside.
- On the manufacturer's label on the driver's door pillar or door edge.
- In the documents: the US title or the registration certificate.
- On a Copart or IAAI lot page, with the vehicle details.
What a VIN decode can and cannot tell you
A decode reads the data the manufacturer registered for the VIN: make, model, model year, body, engine, fuel type and assembly plant. It is the quickest way to check that a listing describes the same car.
A decode shows
Factory data: make, model, model year, body, engine, fuel and plant.
A decode does not show
Accidents, mileage, title brands, owners or earlier sales. These come from a history report.
On CarTraceAI
The free VIN check is available now: it verifies the format and the check digit and decodes the VIN with the US NHTSA vPIC database. The original ClearVin PDF history report is coming soon; its price and contents are on the pricing page.
Before you check
Frequently asked questions
Is the VIN the same as the chassis number?
Usually, yes. On modern cars the VIN is stamped on the body or frame and is often called the chassis or body number.
Can two cars have the same VIN?
No. A VIN is assigned to one vehicle and is not reused within 30 years. The same VIN on two cars is a serious warning sign.
Does the VIN show accidents?
No. The VIN only identifies the car. Accidents, title brands and mileage records are looked up by VIN in a history report.
Why is the model year different from the year on the door label?
The model year is a sales designation, and production of a model year usually starts in the previous calendar year. The door label shows when the car was actually built.
Why does a car built for Europe not decode fully?
The free check uses a US database, which covers vehicles made for the US market best. Cars built for other markets may show fewer details.