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Vehicle Identification Number

A Vehicle Identification Number, commonly abbreviated to VIN, is a unique serial number used by the automotive industry to identify individual motor vehicles. Prior to 1980, there was not an accepted standard for these numbers, so different manufacturers used different formats Modern day VINs consist of 17 characters which do not include the letters I, O or Q. At present, Vehicle Identification Number systems are based on two related standards, originally issued by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) in 1979 and 1980; ISO 3779 and ISO 3780, respectively. Compatible but somewhat different implementations of these ISO standards have been adopted by the European Union and the United States of America. It specifies the content and structure of VIN in order to establish, on a world-wide basis, a uniform identification numbering system for road vehicles. ISO 3779: Road Vehicles – VIN – Content & Structure. ISO 3780: Road Vehicles – WMI Code.

Field of Application (As per ISO 3833)

  1. Motors Vehicles
  2. Trailers
  3. Motor-cycles
  4. Mopeds

Manufacturer

A person, firm, or Corporation under whose responsibility a vehicle has been assembled to form a unit which is ready for operation. The manufacturer is responsible for the uniqueness of the VIN.

Components of VIN

VIN contains 17 digits

1-3 digits = World Manufacturer Identifier Number (WMI)

4-9 digits = Vehicle Descriptor Section (VDS)

10-17 digits = Vehicle Indicator Section (VIS)

Standard 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17
ISO 3779 WMI VDS VIS

World Manufacturer Identifier

The first three characters uniquely identify the manufacturer of the vehicle using the World Manufacturer Identifier or WMI code. A manufacturer who builds fewer than 500 vehicles per year uses a 9 as the third digit and the 12th, 13th and 14th position of the VIN for a second part of the identification.

Registration Authority of WMI

The Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) in the US assigns/registers WMIs to countries and manufacturers. The first character of the WMI is the region in which the manufacturer is located. In practice, each is assigned to a country of manufacture.

Coding of WMI Number

1 to 5 North America
S to Z Europe
A to H Africa
J to R Asia(MA-ME = India)
6 and 7 Oceania
8 and 9 South America

Vehicle Descriptor Section

The 4th through 9th positions in the VIN are the Vehicle Descriptor Section or VDS. Used according to local regulations to identify the vehicle type and may include information on the platform used, the model, and the body style. Each manufacturer has a unique system for using this field. Most manufacturers since the 1980s have used the 8th digit to identify the engine type whenever there is more than one engine choice for the vehicle.

Vehicle Identifier Section

The 10th through 17th positions are used as the Vehicle Identifier Section or VIS. This is used by the manufacturer to identify the individual vehicle in question. This may include information on options installed or engine and transmission choices, but often is a simple sequential number. The last five digits shall be numeric.

Model year encoding

One consistent element of the VIS is the 10th digit, which is required to encode the model year of the vehicle. Besides the three letters that are not allowed in the VIN itself (I, O and Q), the letters U and Z and the digit 0 are not used for the model year code.

Plant Code

The 11th character encodes the factory of manufacture of the vehicle. Although each manufacturer has their own set of plant codes, their location in the VIN is standardized. The 11th character encodes the factory of manufacture of the vehicle. Although each manufacturer has their own set of plant codes, their location in the VIN is standardized.

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