Used car shopping
Most people buy a used car at some point in their lives,
but how many do a little investigation before buying? You should know what
you're buying before laying down the cash -- or worse yet, financing. Many
dealers will now show you a CarFax data sheet. They punch in the Vehicle
Identification Number (or VIN) and the computer spits out all it knows about
that particular car. A VIN is unique to each car and can tell a lot about
the car, including make, model, body style, manufacturing plant, etc. Try
this out. Go to your car and carefully write down your VIN, then enter it
in one of the boxes below. You may be surprised at what you can learn.
Model years 1981 and later have 17-digit vehicle
identification numbers (VIN). Anyone can decode them with a few basics.
|
Digit |
Meaning |
|
1 |
Country 1-4=USA, 2=Canada, 3=Mexico, J=Japan, K=Korea, S=Great Britain, W=Germany, Z=Italy |
|
2 |
Manufacturer A=Audi or Jaguar, B=BMW, 4=Buick, 6=Cadillac, 1=Chevrolet, C=Chrysler, B=Dodge, F=Ford, 7=GM Canada, G=General Motors, H=Honda, L=Lincoln, D=Mercedes Benz, M=Mercury, N=Nissan, 3=Oldsmobile, 2 or 5=Pontiac, P=Plymouth, 8=Saturn, T=Toyota, V=VW or Volvo |
|
3 |
Vehicle type or division |
|
4 |
Body style, engine type, model,
series, etc. |
|
5 |
|
|
6 |
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|
7 |
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|
8 |
|
|
9 |
Check digit This number is used to ensure the accuracy of the whole VIN |
|
10 |
Model year V=1997, W=1998, X=1999, Y=2000, 1=2001, 2=2002, 3=2003, 4=2004 |
|
11 |
Manufacturer's Assembly Plant |
|
12 |
Serial number A sequentially assigned number as each car rolls of the assembly line. |
|
13 |
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|
14 |
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|
15 |
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|
16 |
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|
17 |
