# Vehicle Identification Number(VIN



## هشام بشير (21 يناير 2012)

​*[FONT=&quot]Vehicle Identification Number(VIN)[/FONT]**[FONT=&quot][/FONT]*​

*[FONT=&quot]What is a VIN?[/FONT]*[FONT=&quot]
VIN is short for _Vehicle Identification Number_. All vehicles are assigned a VIN when they are manufactured. They are used to uniquely identify all vehicles. VINs are recorded in accidents, insurance records, and when work is done on a vehicle by a body shop, dealership or mechanic.[/FONT]*[FONT=&quot]Why should I add my VIN to my listing?[/FONT]**[FONT=&quot]
[/FONT]*[FONT=&quot]Prospective car buyers can use the VIN to get a [/FONT][FONT=&quot]Vehicle History Report[/FONT][FONT=&quot] on your vehicle. It ensures them of the vehicle's history. This can help you sell your vehicle faster, because it can reduce questions/concerns of the buyer.

*What does the VIN look like?*[/FONT] [FONT=&quot]Sample VIN :[/FONT]*[FONT=&quot] 1 G 1 F P 2 2 P X S 2 1 0 0 0 0 1[/FONT]*[FONT=&quot][/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]What these numbers mean:*
1 = *Country it was produced in (1 USA, 2 CAN)
* G = *Motor Company (General Motors)
*1 = *Make (Chevrolet)
* F = *Carline Code (F-Body)
* P = *Carline Series (Camaro) 
* 2 = *Body Type (2 Door-Coupe Hatchback)
* 2 = *Restraint System (Manual belts (driv+pass inflatable))
*P = *Engine Code (5.7L V8 (LT1) (1993-present))
*X = *Check Digit (most likely "X")
* S = *Model Year (1995)
*2 = *Assembly Plant ( St.Therese)
*100001 = *Production Sequence

[/FONT] [FONT=&quot]• Vehicles from 1981 to present have 17 character VINs. Before 1981 may be shorter.[/FONT] [FONT=&quot]• VINs do not use the letter *"I"* or *"O"*. These characters are numbers *"1"* and *"0"*[/FONT] [FONT=&quot]• 1969 and newer vehicles should have VIN on the driver dash.[/FONT] [FONT=&quot]• You may find your VIN on Insurance and Title records.[/FONT]

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*[FONT=&quot]History of the VIN[/FONT]*

The roots of this coding and tracking system can be traced back to the mid 1950's. It is then that Detroit automobile manufacturers began stamping and casting identification numbers into cars and their independent parts. This practice began in an effort to accurately describe vehicles as they began to be produced on a large scale.

In the early 1980's the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration effectively required all automobile manufacturers to provide a 17 digit identification number for every auto produced. This resulted in the modern 17 character VIN in which we are familiar with today, giving every individual vehicle a unique "fingerprint".

*[FONT=&quot]VIN Meaning
[/FONT]*
The VIN on your vehicle is not just a random set of characters, nor are VINs simply sequential. Rather, each individual digit of the VIN has a specific purpose. For example, the first character of the VIN identifies which country the car was manufactured in. If the means of transportation were produced in the United States, the first digit would be a 1 or 4. Japanese cars' VINs begin with a J, Korea with a K, Germany with a G, and so on.

The second character of the VIN identifies the manufacturer. As with the manufacturing country, each manufacturer has a specific character symbolizing it. Chevrolet uses a 1, Chrysler-C, Ford-F, General Motors-G, and Pontiac is identified by a 2 or 5, etc.

The third digit refers to the vehicle type or manufacturing division, and digits 4-8 are known as the Vehicle Descriptor Section, or VDS. This section describes individual attributes of the auto, such as body style, engine type, model, etc.

Each of the 17 VIN characters describes yet another aspect of the automobile it is found on. It is these codes that provide the vehicle identification number, giving your car, truck, motorcycle, or moped its own unique fingerprint.[FONT=&quot][/FONT]

*[FONT=&quot]How to Find Your VIN Number[/FONT]*

Your vehicle’s 17-character identification code is also the manufacturer’s serial number. The VIN becomes important every time you get your car registered, buy car insurance, have an accident or sell your car.

But where do you find the VIN? It’s not always located in same spot in every vehicle. So, here’s where you can check to find it:​[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]​


[FONT=&quot]On the interior dash just below the windshield[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]On the driver’s side of the front wheel arch[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]On the steering column just below the steering wheel[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]On the driver or front passenger inner door panel in what is known as the “firewall”[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Under the hood along a radiator support bracket or on the engine’s frame[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Inside the vehicle’s maintenance book[/FONT]
 


A vehicle’s identification number (VIN) tells the story of the car in 17 “characters” (either numbers or letters), including:













*First Character:* The first three characters together are called the *World Manufacturer’s Identification* or WMI. The first character of the WMI denotes the country in which the vehicle was manufactured. For example, VINs with the first character of 1 were built in America.

*Second and Third Characters:* These two characters denote the manufacturer and make as in GM’s Chevrolet brand.

*Fourth through Eighth Characters:* The next five characters are called the *Vehicle Description Section* (VDS) and identify specific equipment such as engine type, restraint system, body style and braking system.

*Ninth Character:* The *Check Digit* is a mathematical algorithm developed by the Department of Transportation (DOT) to check the accuracy of the previous VIN numbers.

*Tenth Character:* This identifies the year of the vehicle. For example, a 7 may indicated the car was built in 2007. Vehicles built before 1991 are identified by a letter starting with A for 1980.

*Eleventh Character:* This character identifies the manufacturing plant in which the vehicle was assembled.

*Last Six Characters:* The last six characters of the VIN are the vehicle’s actual serial number. This is a unique identifier by each manufacturer.

Still confused? Don’t be. Your VIN number also shows up on your DMV registration and your insurance card. Just keep both documents in your glove compartment and a copy of each in your files at home.​ *[FONT=&quot]A–H = [/FONT]**[FONT=&quot]Africa[/FONT]**[FONT=&quot][/FONT]*​ *[FONT=&quot]J–R = [/FONT]**[FONT=&quot]Asia[/FONT]**[FONT=&quot][/FONT]*​ *[FONT=&quot]S–Z = [/FONT]**[FONT=&quot]Europe[/FONT]**[FONT=&quot][/FONT]*​ *[FONT=&quot]1–5 = [/FONT]**[FONT=&quot]North America[/FONT]**[FONT=&quot][/FONT]*​ *[FONT=&quot]6–7 = [/FONT]**[FONT=&quot]Oceania[/FONT]**[FONT=&quot][/FONT]*​ *[FONT=&quot]8–9 = [/FONT]**[FONT=&quot]South America[/FONT]**[FONT=&quot][/FONT]*​ *[FONT=&quot]AA-AH[/FONT]*[FONT=&quot] South Africa
*AJ-AN* Ivory Coast
*AP-A0* not assigned
*BA-BE* Angola
*BF-BK* Kenya
*BL-BR* Tanzania
*BS-B0* not assigned
*CA-CE* Benin
*CF-CK* Madagascar
*CL-CR* Tunisia
*CS-C0* not assigned
*DA-DE* Egypt
*DF-DK* Morocco
*DL-DR* Zambia
*DS-D0* not assigned
*EA-EE* Ethiopia
*EF-EK* Mozambique
*EL-E0* not assigned
*FA-FE* Ghana
*FF-FK* Nigeria
*FL-F0* not assigned
*GA-G0* not assigned
*HA-H0* not assigned[/FONT]
*[FONT=&quot]JA-JT[/FONT]*[FONT=&quot] Japan
*KA-KE* Sri Lanka
*KF-KK* Israel
*KL-KR* Korea (South)
*KS-K0* not assigned
*LA-L0* China
*MA-ME* India
*MF-MK* Indonesia
*ML-MR* Thailand
*MS-M0* not assigned
*NF-NK* Pakistan
*NL-NR* Turkey
*NS-N0* not assigned
*PA-PE* Philippines
*PF-PK* Singapore
*PL-PR* Malaysia
*PS-P0* not assigned
*RA-RE* United Arab Emirates
*RF-RK* Taiwan
*RL-RR* Vietnam
*RS-R0* Saudi Arabia[/FONT]
*[FONT=&quot]SA-SM[/FONT]*[FONT=&quot] United Kingdom
*SN-ST* Germany
*SU-SZ* Poland
*S1-S4* Latvia
*TA-TH* Switzerland
*TJ-TP* Czech Republic
*TR-TV* Hungary
*TW-T1* Portugal
*T2-T0* not assigned
*UA-UG* not assigned
*UH-UM* Denmark
*UN-UT* Ireland
*UU-UZ* Romania
*U1-U4* not assigned
*U5-U7* Slovakia
*U8-U0* not assigned
*VA-VE* Austria
*VF-VR* France
*VS-VW* Spain
*VX-V2* Serbia
*V3-V5* Croatia
*V6-V0* Estonia
*WA-W0* Germany
*XA-XE* Bulgaria
*XF-XK* Greece
*XL-XR* Netherlands
*XS-XW* USSR
*XX-X2* Luxembourg
*X3-X0* Russia
*YA-YE* Belgium
*YF-YK* Finland
*YL-YR* Malta
*YS-YW* Sweden
*YX-Y2* Norway
*Y3-Y5* Belarus
*Y6-Y0* Ukraine
*ZA-ZR* Italy
*ZS-ZW* not assigned
*ZX-Z2* Slovenia
*Z3-Z5* Lithuania
*Z6-Z0* not assigned[/FONT]
*[FONT=&quot]1A-10[/FONT]*[FONT=&quot] United States
*2A-20* Canada
*3A-3W* Mexico
*3X-37* Costa Rica
*38-30* Cayman Islands
*4A-40* United States
*5A-50* United States[/FONT]
*[FONT=&quot]6A-6W[/FONT]*[FONT=&quot] Australia
*6X-60* not assigned
*7A-7E* New Zealand
*7F-70* not assigned[/FONT]
*[FONT=&quot]8A-8E[/FONT]*[FONT=&quot] Argentina
*8F-8K* Chile
*8L-8R* Ecuador
*8S-8W* Peru
*8X-82* Venezuela
*83-80* not assigned
*9A-9E* Brazil
*9F-9K* Colombia
*9L-9R* Paraguay
*9S-9W* Uruguay
*9X-92* Trinidad & Tobago
*93–99* Brazil
*90* not assigned[/FONT]

​*Model year encoding*


One consistent element of the VIS is the 10th digit, which is required worldwide 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. Note that the year code is the model year for the vehicle.

The year 1980 was encoded by some manufacturers, especially General Motors and Chrysler, as "A" (since the 17-digit VIN wasn't mandatory until 1981, and the "A" or zero was in the manufacturer's pre-1981 placement in the VIN), yet Ford and AMC still used a zero for 1980. Subsequent years increment through the allowed letters, so that "Y" represents the year 2000. 2001 to 2009 are encoded as the digits 1 to 9, and subsequent years are encoded as "A", "B", "C", etc.

On April 30, 2008, the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration adopted a final rule amending 49 CFR Part 565, "so that the current 17 character vehicle identification number (VIN) system, which has been in place for almost 30 years, can continue in use for at least another 30 years", in the process making several changes to the VIN requirements applicable to all motor vehicles manufactured for sale in the United States. There are three notable changes to the VIN structure that affect VIN deciphering systems:

[FONT=&quot]1. [/FONT][FONT=&quot]The make may only be identified after looking at positions 1–3 and another position, as determined by the manufacturer in the second section or 4–8 segment of the VIN.[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]2. [/FONT][FONT=&quot]In order to identify exact year in passenger cars and multipurpose passenger vehicles with a GVWR of 10,000 or less, one must read position 7 as well as position 10. For passenger cars, and for multipurpose passenger vehicles and trucks with a gross vehicle weight rating of 10,000 lb (4,500 kg) or less, if position 7 is numeric, the model year in position 10 of the VIN refers to a year in the range 1980–2009. If position 7 is alphabetic, the model year in position 10 of VIN refers to a year in the range 2010–2039.[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]3. [/FONT][FONT=&quot]The model year for vehicles with a GVWR greater than 10,000 lb (4,500 kg), as well as buses, motorcycles, trailers and low speed vehicles may no longer be identified within a 30-year range. VIN characters 1–8 and 10 that were assigned from 1980–2009 can be repeated beginning with the 2010 model year.[/FONT]

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*[FONT=&quot]Plant Code[/FONT]*

[FONT=&quot]Another consistently-used element (which is compulsory in North America) is the use of the 11th character to encode the factory of manufacture of the vehicle. Although each manufacturer has its own set of plant codes, the location in the VIN is standardized.[/FONT]
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