VIN check by make — 25 European car brands
Different manufacturers encode different things into the VIN. A Volkswagen VIN is laid out differently from a BMW VIN, which is different again from a Renault VIN. Picking the right per-make decoder pulls more out of the same 17 characters — and tells you straight away whether the listing in front of you actually matches the car the VIN was issued for.
Browse by manufacturer
Pick a brand to open its dedicated VIN check page. Each one explains where to find the VIN on that make, what the WMI prefix means, which models are most commonly traded across the EU, and which fraud patterns are most worth checking for that brand.
BMW
Germany
Decode Any BMW Vehicle
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Mercedes-Benz
Germany
Decode Any Mercedes Vehicle
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Audi
Germany
Decode Any Audi Vehicle
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Volkswagen
Germany
Decode Any VW Vehicle
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Toyota
Japan
Decode Any Toyota Vehicle
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Honda
Japan
Decode Any Honda Vehicle
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Nissan
Japan
Decode Any Nissan Vehicle
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Ford
United States
Decode Any Ford Vehicle
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Hyundai
South Korea
Decode Any Hyundai Vehicle
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Kia
South Korea
Decode Any Kia Vehicle
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Volvo
Sweden
Decode Any Volvo Vehicle
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Mazda
Japan
Decode Any Mazda Vehicle
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Peugeot
France
Decode Any Peugeot Vehicle
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Renault
France
Decode Any Renault Vehicle
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Opel
Germany
Decode Any Opel Vehicle
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Skoda
Czech Republic
Decode Any Skoda Vehicle
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SEAT / Cupra
Spain
Decode Any SEAT or Cupra Vehicle
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Fiat
Italy
Decode Any Fiat Vehicle
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Citroen
France
Decode Any Citroen Vehicle
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Porsche
Germany
Decode Any Porsche Vehicle
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Land Rover
United Kingdom
Decode Any Land Rover Vehicle
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Jaguar
United Kingdom
Decode Any Jaguar Vehicle
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MINI
United Kingdom
Decode Any MINI Vehicle
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Subaru
Japan
Decode Any Subaru Vehicle
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Lexus
Japan
Decode Any Lexus Vehicle
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Frequently asked questions
Why does the brand of the car matter for a VIN check?
The middle six characters of the VIN — the Vehicle Descriptor Section — are encoded differently by each manufacturer. A BMW VDS tells you the model, body type, restraint system and engine; a Renault VDS tells you the model family and trim band; a Tesla VDS tells you the battery and motor configuration. A generic VIN decoder misses most of this. The per-make pages here use brand-specific decoding so the free preview already reflects the actual specifications of the car you're looking at.
Do all brands have the same kind of recall and stolen-vehicle data?
Roughly yes for the EU — recall data is harmonised through EU Safety Gate, and stolen-vehicle queries route through the same European databases regardless of manufacturer. What varies between brands is the depth of the build-record data and the popular failure points. Each per-make page surfaces the brand-specific recall and reliability angles that are worth checking before buying.
Which brands are most often involved in cross-border odometer fraud?
Premium German brands — BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Audi, Porsche — are the most frequent targets because they retain value well, so the financial incentive to roll back the mileage is highest. Volume brands like Volkswagen, Ford, Opel and Renault see fewer cases but a higher rate of cosmetic rebuilds after accident damage. The per-make pages call out the dominant fraud pattern for each brand.
What if my brand isn't listed?
Use the main search form on the homepage. The base decoder handles any valid 17-character VIN — the per-make pages just add a layer of brand-specific context on top of the same engine. We cover 25 makes on dedicated pages because they account for the great majority of European used-car volume; less common brands still get a full report, just without the curated brand-specific landing page.
Is the brand VIN check free?
The decoder portion — make, model family, year, engine, fuel, transmission, factory, active recalls — is free for every brand. The full history report with cross-border mileage, theft check, accident hints and market-value framing is EUR 8.90 regardless of brand.
Where do you find the VIN on a [brand] car?
Each per-make page documents the exact locations for that brand — the windshield plate location varies between makes, and stamped chassis numbers can be on a strut tower, in the engine bay, in the boot or under a seat depending on the model. The brand-specific page is the right place to start because the layouts genuinely differ.