- #Understanding toyota vin numbers serial number#
- #Understanding toyota vin numbers code#
- #Understanding toyota vin numbers iso#
- #Understanding toyota vin numbers series#
Secondly, and somewhat more sinisterly, a few people purposely hide information regarding major repairs and damage to the vehicle, sometimes even hiding the fact that a car has been salvaged and suffered severe structural damage.Īs luck would have it, there are excellent free services out there, such as, that let you check official databases of any car in the world! All you need is the VIN and you’re good to go. The classic trick is rolling back the clock on the odometer to make the car appear as if it’s done fewer miles than it actually has. As anyone who has purchased a second-hand car will attest, the used car market is difficult to navigate, and there are many pitfalls to watch out for.įor starters, there are dodgy sales people out there who go out of their way to fudge the car’s metrics in an attempt to fool you into paying over the odds. While it can be interesting to discover your vehicle’s history by decoding its VIN, these handy codes prove most valuable when buying a used vehicle.
#Understanding toyota vin numbers serial number#
The remaining five numbers (12-17) is the unique serial number of the car. The 11th digit in the VIN indicates which manufacturing plant assembled the vehicle. This is so they will not be confused with similar-looking numbers/letters. It’s important to note that VINs do not include the letters I (i), O (o), Q (q), U (u) or Z (z), or the number 0. Finally, the process starts again, with the year 2010 being represented by the letter A. The numbers 1-9 signifies the years 2001-2009. The system starts with the letter A representing the year 1980, with the letter B standing for 1981, and so on. Digit 10 represents the year in which the car was made (this only applies to vehicles manufactured after 1980). The final seven digits (10 through 17) make up the VIS. The ninth digit is the vehicle security code, also referred to as the “check.” This number is in place to help detect fraudulent VIN codes. The fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh, and eighth digit describes the vehicle’s exact model, transmission type, and engine code. The VDS accounts for the digits 4 through 9. With all three digits, you can decipher the vehicle type. The subsequent two digits in the list indicate the manufacturer’s name (F stands for Ford) and the region where the vehicle was produced. Here is a list of some examples of what each number signifies: The first digit represents the country in which the vehicle was built. The first three digits of the VIN make up the World Manufacturer Identifier (WMI). As a result, all vehicles manufactured after 1981 are given VINs made up of 17 alphanumeric digits.įurthermore, each VIN can be broken down into three sections, these are:
#Understanding toyota vin numbers iso#
As you might expect, this made things pretty complicated when it came to deciphering what each digit stood for.įortunately, in 1981 the ISO 3779-1983 and ISO 3780 standards came into effect, which required all manufacturers to follow a specific set of criteria when allocating VINs to their vehicles.
#Understanding toyota vin numbers series#
VINs have existed since 1954, but back then, they weren’t standardized, and each manufacturer had its own series of sequences for the cars they produced. So, with a little bit of know-how and access to the relevant information, you can figure out some interesting bits of history about your car (or the one you’re thinking about purchasing). Contrary to what many people believe, each of the VIN sequence characters represent a key piece of information pertinent to the vehicle’s history, including the year, make, model, engine size, and manufacturer. These numbers are specific to each vehicle and cannot be changed after the final manufacturing date.
#Understanding toyota vin numbers code#
Every time a car is manufactured, it is given a unique identifying code called a VIN (vehicle identification number).