Know Your VIN & Get Exactly The RIGHT Auto Repair Parts Every Time

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Vehicle identification numbers (also called VINs) are critical pieces of information for identifying the exact car you have and the engine that was put into it when it was built. A car‘s vehicle identification number (VIN) is the automotive equivalent of human DNA. In this blog, we’ll discuss how VIN numbers came to be and their meanings. You’ll also learn how to read a VIN number and where the VIN number is located on a car.

History of the Vehicle Identification Number (VIN)

In the mid-1950s, American automobile manufacturers began stamping and casting identifying numbers on cars and their parts. The obvious purpose was to give an accurate description of the vehicle as mass production numbers were starting to climb to very significant numbers. Research has shown that early VINs came in all sorts of variations, depending on the car manufacturer.

In the early 1980s, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration began requiring that all road vehicles contain a 17-character VIN. This established the fixed VIN system for major vehicle manufacturers as it is known today and thus, created a unique "DNA" style number for each unique vehicle that rolled off the assembly line.

The Vehicle Identification Number (VIN) was "officially" described in ISO Standard 3779 in February 1977 and last revised in 1983.

Explanation of Unique Identifiers Within Your Car's VIN

Vehicle identification numbers are standardized - all contain 17 characters. VIN characters may be capital letters A through Z and numbers 1 through 0; however, the letters I, O and Q are never used in order to avoid mistakes of misreading. No signs or spaces are allowed in the VIN.

VIN numbers have meaning, and knowing how to read a VIN number can tell you a lot about a vehicle. The position of each letter or number in the VIN code reveals important information about where and when your car was made, the type of engine it has, the model or series of the car, various equipment/attributes and its production sequence. Each character or digit has a particular purpose as follows:

1st Character: The 1st character of your car's vehicle identification number identifies the country where it was manufactured.

2nd Character: The 2nd character in your car's VIN specifies the manufacturer, for example:

3rd Character: The 3rd character in your car's vehicle identification number indicates the vehicle type or manufacturing division. This varies among car makes and models.

4th - 8th Character: The 4th through 8th characters in your car's VIN reveals its features/attributes, such as body style, engine type, model, series, etc. Again, this varies widely among car makes, models and equipment.

9th Character: The 9th character in your car's vehicle identification number is a VIN accuracy check digit, verifying the previous numbers within the VIN. This check digit is a single number or letter "X" used to verify the accuracy of the transcription of the vehicle identification number.

There is a precise method for obtaining the check digit; however, it is not relevant to our discussion here. Suffice to say that after all other characters in the VIN have been determined by the manufacturer, the check digit is calculated by carrying out a mathematical computation. The correct numeric remainder - zero through nine (0-9) will appear. However, if the remainder is 10 the letter "X" is used to designate the check digit value.

10th Character: The 10th character in your car's VIN tells you the model year. (This varies somewhat among car manufacturers - see the chart in the "Here's How to Find Your Car's VIN" section below for specific locations by car make.)

11th Character: The 11th character in your car's vehicle identification number reveals the assembly plant for the vehicle.

12th - 17th Character: The 12th through the 17th character in your car's VIN indicate the sequence of the vehicle for production as it rolled off the manufacturer's assembly line. The last four characters are always numeric.

These last six characters are perhaps the most critical portion of the VIN for most European cars like Audi, BMW, Volvo, and other. Because of mid-year production changes by car makers, these can be extremely important in identifying the proper Audi parts numbers for ignition, fuel, emission and engine components. These types of parts you can buy for Audi, BMW, and other makes are often listed with the caveat that they fit vehicles up to a particular VIN or before/after a particular VIN sequence.

Here's How to Find Your Vehicle’s VIN Number Location

The table below will help you locate your car's unique DNA - its unique vehicle identification number. VINs are normally located in several locations on a car, but the most common places are:

• On the door frame/door post of the front doors (usually driver's but sometimes passenger's)
• On the dash near the windshield
• On the engine itself (machined pad on front of engine)
• On the car's firewall
• In the left-hand inner wheel arch
• On the steering wheel/steering column
• On the radiator support bracket
• On your car's title, registration, guarantee/maintenance book or on the declarations page of your auto insurance policy

The following chart gives further information (by car line) on both the location of the VIN plate and which character in your VIN represents your year of production and specific engine. We have limited the listings to only import cars since those are the car lines in which AutohausAZ specializes. Those shown in blue are car makes for which we have extensive parts inventories, such as our BMW parts, Jaguar parts, and Mercedes parts catalogs

* See Year Codes Chart to interpret this character

Online VIN Decoders To Help You

If you'd like to have your VIN "decoded" for you, there are several resources on the Internet that can be of assistance. These VIN decoders work for Audi and other vehicle makes. By knowing your VIN, its meaning and how to read it, these resources can tell you some very specific information about your car that can help you in your search to buy the parts you need for your Mercedes or other luxury vehicle:

VIN Power: Input your email address and your car's VIN in the boxes and complete information on your unique car will be emailed to you.

CarFax Vehicle History Reports: Enter your car's VIN in the box where it says, "Get started now with our FREE CarFax Record Check. Enter a VIN and click Search." You'll be provided online with several important pieces of information about your specific car's features.

AnalogX VIN View: AnalogX VIN View is another free online VIN decoder that allows you to see the information about your vehicle based on your car's vehicle identification number. VIN View supports decoding of any vehicle identification number that was issued after 1978. Just enter the 17-character VIN number and click decode. On the decoded page, you'll see your VIN again and the position of each character, then on the bottom portion you'll see what position and characters map to what information.

Vehicle Identification Numbers: This is another good source for information in your car's VIN. Just select the car line(s) for which you're interested in seeing VIN explanations and you'll be transferred to site(s) that can help you in your decoding quest.

Help Us to Help You Find the Exact Repair Parts You Need

Whether you’re buying Porsche parts, buying Volvo parts, buying VW parts or browsing parts for any luxury vehicle, AutohausAZ’s goal is to provide you with exactly the right part for your car as quickly and concisely as possible - the right part number and the right OE brand. Now that you know how to read a VIN number and where it is located on your car, you can help us do our job faster and more accurately by identifying your VIN and updating your vehicle data in the Members Only Area to include this information.

By providing AutohausAZ with the correct VIN for your car, you are helping us to properly identify the exact part numbers needed for your auto repairs. Without it, you may be inadvertently slowing down the process of identifying these parts numbers and/or exposing yourself to the possibility of receiving the wrong parts.

Your vehicle identification number is important in correctly identifying repair parts to buy for your Jaguar that will fit precisely! In fact, it's probably the fastest way for you and us to identify key characteristics of your car that will help us to determine the correct part numbers for all your repair jobs.

With the information provided above, there really is no reason why you wouldn't know all the relevant information about your car, right? Now that you have your car's vehicle identification number, why not Log Into Your Member Profile and select Edit Saved Vehicles from the Car Care drop-down menu so you can put this critical piece of information into your record for all your future parts requests?

While you're there, it sure would be helpful if you would also verify the other information shown for each of your cars. Remember: The more car info you provide, the more accurate our responses to your parts requests!

Don't Forget

Repair articles are added regularly. Come back often to check for new maintenance topics.

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These repair tips are designed only as a starting point. Please seek the assistance of a professional mechanic for all repair problems beyond your capabilities.