THE VEHICLE IDENTIFICATION [VIN] NUMBER
The VIN, or Vehicle Identification Number, can be considered to be a vehicle’s
birth certificate, with each component of the 17-digit encrypted alphanumeric
sequence representing something significant about the vehicle’s origin:
where and when it was made, the manufacturer, model, assembly plant, and other
important authentication information. Playing a key role in validating the authenticity
of a vehicle - car, truck, van, SUV, motorcycle - the VIN not only
provides critical information for investigative purposes and data that an astute
buyer of a used vehicle can employ to trace its history, from the assembly line
to the scrap yard.
Background
Since 1981 every vehicle manufactured for use in the U.S. was given a unique
I.D. number, much like a fingerprint. The Vehicle Identification Number [VIN]
is usually found on the lower right corner of the dashboard, as seen through
the front windshield. In addition to this location the VIN can also be easily
found on the driver side door post as part of the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety
Certification Standard Label, also known as the EPA Label. VINs may also appear
in other less obvious locations.
Although the exact locations of vehicle identification numbers may vary between
different vehicles, the following locations are most frequently used:
Late Model Vehicles
Lower
left corner of dashboard on driver’s side
Left side of instrument panel
Driver’s
side door or door post [on EPA Label]
Possible Locations For Additional Vehicle Identification Numbers
Radiator support bracket
Engine firewall
Inner wheel arch
Steering column
Owner’s
maintenance manual
Although
U.S. auto manufacturers began the process of providing vehicle
identification numbers, or chassis numbers as they
were earlier called, in the mid-1950's, by
stamping or casting the identifying numbers on both vehicles and certain
parts, the identification process was left mostly to the
initiatives of manufacturers.
The program didn’t become standardized and integrated into a viable
national system until the early 1980's, when the National Highway Traffic
Safety Administration
[NHTSA], part of the U.S. Department of Transportation, ruled that all
vehicles used “on the road” must contain a standardized 17-character
Vehicle Identification Number. With this action, NHTSA set in motion the
VIN system that
is in use today by all major vehicle manufacturers for vehicles coming
off the assembly line.
As an investigative tool, the VIN opens a window to the history of any vehicle,
allowing an investigator or even a party purchasing a vehicle to learn a
great deal about the origin of the vehicle. Included in the information that
can be
decoded from the specially encrypted 17-digit VIN is information including
specifications related to the vehicle such as its year and place of manufacture,
model, body
style, engine type, and much more.
