VIN Data Sources

VIN Data Sources and Third-Party Notices

Last updated: September 9, 2026

VIN Dec normally obtains vehicle information from the United States National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s Product Information Catalog Vehicle Listing API (NHTSA vPIC). If that service is unavailable, or where configured to supplement missing manufacturer-level information, VIN Dec may use a locally installed fallback database configured by the Site operator. Online values take priority where both sources provide a value.

Current configuration: No local fallback database is enabled. VIN Dec currently uses NHTSA vPIC for decoded data. This page will be updated if the configured sources change.

Vehicle and manufacturer data can be incomplete, outdated, inconsistent, or incorrect. Results are informational only and must be independently verified for safety, emissions compliance, recalls, title or ownership, insurance, diagnostics, calibration, and product fitment. NHTSA states that its information is provided as a public service without a guarantee of accuracy, completeness, or adequacy. Reference to NHTSA, a manufacturer, an open-source project, or another source does not imply endorsement of ECU5.com, VIN Dec, or any Product.

NHTSA vPIC

ECU5.com normalizes enabled fallback records into a common format for local lookup. The original authors do not operate ECU5.com and do not endorse ECU5.com or VIN Dec.

Source-control rule

Do not enable or publish data derived from another source unless the operator has retained evidence of its provenance and a licence or written permission covering the intended commercial use. A software repository’s licence does not automatically license third-party data collected from other sources.

Questions about a displayed source or correction request may be sent to ca@ecu5.com.