Table of Contents
Introduction
Buying a used car? For most people purchasing a used vehicle instead of a new vehicle is a fabulous financial move. You save money on the purchase price, experience less post-purchase depreciation, pay lower insurance rates, can buy a “nicer” car for the same price, and often still qualify for great financing options. However, buying a used car can be a scary proposition for some buyers because a used car comes with some risk. How did the previous owner treat the car, and does it have some problems that are not easy to detect from a visual inspection? You can find out the answers to those questions by running a Vehicle Identification Number (VIN) number lookup.
A VIN number can provide you with information about a car’s origins, who owns it, and its history. VINs are used to help identify automobiles in the case of recalls, to track repairs or accident histories of vehicles, and to help track down stolen cars. With a VIN, you can get an automobile’s history before you make a purchase, helping you avoid stolen vehicles or vehicles with known problems. The process starts with a basic VIN number lookup, which not only lets you know if there are possible reports on a car, but also gives you enough information to let you check to see if the vehicle you are looking at matches the vehicle VIN number.
What Is a VIN?
While they may seem like random letters and numbers to you, the numbers in a VIN actually give specific information about a vehicle. In the United States, VINs are 17-digit numbers. The numbers are read in a specific order with each number providing a distinct piece of information. The information provided includes the manufacturer (make) of the car, the model, some of the car’s features, the model year, which factory built the car, a check digit that says whether the VIN is valid, and a unique serial number for the automobile. You use a VIN number decoder that is specific to the manufacture to read the code, but the digits all reveal the same information, at least if the vehicle was manufactured after 1981, when 17 digits became the US industry standard.
VINs are read from left to right. The first character in the VIN says where the vehicle was manufactured. The second and third characters indicate the manufacturer. The fourth through eighth characters give more identifying information about the vehicle including model, make, and engine type. The ninth character is a security code that verifies the VIN is authorized and can help prevent counterfeit VINs. The tenth character indicates the model year. The eleventh character names the plant where the vehicle was built. The twelfth through seventeenth numbers indicate the serial number for the vehicle.
Understanding that VIN numbers have a particular meaning is important because it gives you a tool to help detect fraud. If you run a VIN number lookup and the vehicle description does not match the “clean” car report that comes with the vehicle, you have a good reason to suspect fraud and to avoid purchasing that vehicle.
What Do the Numbers in the VIN mean?
While they may seem like random letters and numbers to you, the numbers in a VIN actually give specific information about a vehicle. VINs are read from left to right. The first character in the VIN says where the vehicle was manufactured. The second and third characters indicate the manufacturer. The fourth through eighth characters give more identifying information about the vehicle including model, make, and engine type. The ninth character is a security code that verifies the VIN is authorized and can help prevent counterfeit VINs. The tenth character indicates the model year. The eleventh character names the plant where the vehicle was built. The twelfth through seventeenth numbers indicate the serial number for the vehicle.
Understanding that VIN numbers have a particular meaning is important because it gives you a tool to help detect fraud. If you run a VIN number lookup and the vehicle description does not match the “clean” car report that comes with the vehicle, you have a good reason to suspect fraud and to avoid purchasing that vehicle.
How Do I Located the VIN?
Usually, VINs are located on a little metal plate at the top of the driver’s side of the dashboard area, close to where the windshield and dashboard meet. It is visible from outside of the car. However, VINS may also be located in other places, such as on the driver’s side window, on the driver’s side door, underneath the spare tire, or on the engine block.
Other vehicles like campers, RVs, and trailers also have VIN numbers. You can locate those VIN numbers on the side of trailer hitches, in dashboards, or sometimes in interior cabinets. If you are struggling to locate a VIN in one of these other vehicles, you can Google to find out where they are located.
Information a VIN Can Convey
A VIN is the key to telling you more than a car’s manufacturing history. Automobile service providers of all kinds use VINs to track a car’s history. A VIN can tell you if a vehicle has been in an accident and, if so, what type of damage it received, if a car was ever flooded or in a fire, if a care has been stolen and recovered, if a car was totaled or salvaged, vehicle inspection records, warranty information, and even safety ratings.
VIN Number Lookup
Before you buy a used car, do more than look under the hood by running a VIN number lookup. The VIN number lookup will explain what all of the numbers in the code mean, giving you a description of the vehicle you should be seeing. Make, model, year it was manufactured, and engine type are all available on a basic VIN report. In addition, it will tell you how many vehicle histories are available for the car, giving indications about how many owners the car may have had or if it has been in for any substantial repairs.
A basic VIN number lookup is not a detailed report about the vehicle’s history. It will not tell you if a car has been in a wreck or what type of service work has been done on the vehicle. However, by telling you whether or not the vehicle has any associated vehicle history records, it can give you an indication of whether you need to see a detailed history report before making your purchase.
Conclusion
A VIN number lookup is one of the steps you can take to protect yourself if you are purchasing a previously owned vehicle. It provides you with information that a seller may be reluctant to share, ensuring that you are purchasing a car with a clear title and that you are paying a fair amount for the vehicle.
The more information consumers have, the better able they are to make informed decisions. Make your next used car purchase a wise one by using our Vin number lookup to find out information about the vehicle you are contemplating purchasing.