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VIN decoder

Paste any 17-character VIN — get year, make, model, trim, engine, drivetrain, plant of manufacture, and any open safety recalls. Free, no signup.

How this works. Every U.S.-market vehicle built since 1981 has a 17-character VIN encoded with the year, manufacturer, plant, and (partially) the model + trim + engine. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration publishes a free lookup API called vPIC that decodes it. That’s what this tool calls.

Where to find the VIN. Look at the driver-side dashboard through the windshield, or on the door jamb sticker, or on the vehicle title. Motorcycles use the same 17-digit format on the frame near the steering head. Older vehicles (pre-1981) use manufacturer-specific serial numbers and don’t decode with this tool.

Why an auctioneer cares. Cataloging a farm sale full of trucks, tractors, and titled vehicles — VIN decoding fills in half the fields before you touch the description box. Read Why VIN decoding matters more than you think for farm auctions.

Auctioneer?

Hammerwerks runs this decode automatically inside your catalog.

Type or scan a VIN on a lot — year, make, model, trim, engine, drivetrain, plant, and any active safety recalls populate before you finish the description.

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