How to read VIN number?
Origin If a VIN begins with a 1, 4 or 5, that means it’s a vehicle assembled in the U. S. Many other countries have their own unique identifier. A 2, for example, means the vehicle was made in Canada; a J stands for Japan. Manufacturer The second and third characters indicate the manufacturer. Within the standard 17 digit VIN, each digit or group of digits identifies certain aspects of the make, model, manufacturing plant, and the order it was manufactured. It also includes a “check-digit”, which is a mathematical formula, created to determine the legitimacy of a VIN.
What makes a VIN invalid?
You may have entered a VIN with invalid characters. A VIN can only contain certain letters and numbers. For example, VINs do not use the letters I, O or Q. If your VIN contains one of these, try using the number 1, the letter L, or the number 0 instead. If the PVIN on the vehicle does not match the VIN on the documents or if the model year digit of the VIN does not reflect the model year stated on the documents or by the applicant/owner, it may indicate an altered VIN.
Is a VIN lookup free?
While VINCheck is a useful free tool, it is not a comprehensive vehicle history report and should not be relied upon when purchasing a vehicle. NICB’s VINCheck is a free lookup service provided to the public to assist in determining if a vehicle may have a record of an insurance theft claim, and has not been recovered, or has ever been reported as a salvage vehicle by participating NICB member insurance companies.