▣ MODEL KIT · VERIFICATION KIT

Decode and Validate VIN API

What it does

VIN Decoder validates a vehicle identification number and returns decoded vehicle details from the VIN. Send a 17-character VIN, and get back whether it is valid, whether the check digit matches, and what vehicle data NHTSA VPIC can decode from it.

Use the GET decode endpoint when you want a single VIN checked and decoded. The response includes the VIN, a valid flag, a cached flag, the source, a validation object with checkDigitValid and warnings, and a vehicle object with fields such as make, model, modelYear, series, trim, bodyClass, vehicleType, doors, driveType, fuelType, engine, transmission, and plant. If you pass modelYear, it is applied as a query parameter for decoding.

Use the local validation endpoint when you only need structural VIN checks. It returns the VIN, valid, length, checkDigit, structure, modelYear, modelYearAmbiguous, region, errors, and warnings. That makes it useful for form validation, intake workflows, and filtering bad VINs before you call downstream systems.

For batch jobs, send up to 50 VINs in one request. The batch decode endpoint returns a count and a results array, where each item includes the VIN, valid, optional error and message, and, when available, the decoded vehicle and validation data. The recall endpoint uses a VIN to list NHTSA recall campaigns and returns recallsAvailable, count, recalls, vehicle, warnings, cached, and source.

▣ ENDPOINT 01 / 04

GET

Decode a VIN

https://api.eu.apyhub.com/corsair96/decode-and-validate-vin-api/vin/decode

QUICKSTART

GUIDE

Quickstart

Checks a VIN by sending it as a query parameter and returns the decoded vehicle details.

curl -X GET "https://api.eu.apyhub.com/corsair96/decode-and-validate-vin-api/vin/decode?vin=1HGCM82633A004352" \
  -H "apy-token: $APY_TOKEN"

What you'll get back

Returns a JSON object with vin, valid, vehicle, validation, source, and cached fields. vehicle is an object with the decoded vehicle details, and validation is an object with checkDigitValid and warnings.

{
  "vin": "1HGCM82633A004352",
  "valid": true,
  "vehicle": {
    "make": "HONDA",
    "model": "Accord",
    "modelYear": 2003,
    "series": "EX",
    "trim": "EX",
    "bodyClass": "Sedan/Saloon",
    "vehicleType": "PASSENGER CAR",
    "doors": 4,
    "driveType": "FWD/Front-Wheel Drive",
    "fuelType": "Gasoline",
    "engine": {
      "cylinders": 4,
      "displacementL": 2.4,
      "horsepower": 160
    },
    "transmission": "Automatic",
    "plant": {
      "city": "MARYSVILLE",
      "country": "UNITED STATES (USA)",
      "company": "HONDA OF AMERICA MFG., INC."
    }
  },
  "validation": {
    "checkDigitValid": true,
    "warnings": []
  },
  "source": "nhtsa-vpic",
  "cached": false
}

TRY ITLIVE · 25 ATOMS

API key

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The full key is used to call the gateway and stays in this tab — never sent to orbit or saved.

About this endpoint

What it does

Decodes a VIN and returns a JSON object with the decoded vehicle details, validation flags, and metadata about the lookup result. The request accepts the VIN as a query parameter and can optionally include a model year to refine decoding.

Query Parameter(s)

Attribute	Type	Mandatory	Description
vin	String	Yes	The 17-character VIN to decode.
modelYear	Integer	No	Optional model year hint for decoding. Minimum: 1981.

Response

Returns a JSON object with required top-level fields vin (string), valid (boolean), vehicle (object), validation (object), source (string), and cached (boolean). The source field is fixed to nhtsa-vpic.

Parameter	Type	Mandatory	Description
vin	String	Yes	The VIN that was decoded.
valid	Boolean	Yes	Indicates whether the VIN is valid.
cached	Boolean	Yes	Indicates whether the response was served from cache.
source	String	Yes	Fixed value: `nhtsa-vpic`.
vehicle	Object	Yes	Decoded vehicle details. Includes `make`, `model`, `modelYear`, `series`, `trim`, `bodyClass`, `vehicleType`, `doors`, `driveType`, `fuelType`, `engine`, `transmission`, and `plant`.
vehicle.make	String	Yes	Vehicle make. May be `null`.
vehicle.model	String	Yes	Vehicle model. May be `null`.
vehicle.modelYear	Integer	Yes	Vehicle model year. May be `null`.
vehicle.series	String	Yes	Vehicle series. May be `null`.
vehicle.trim	String	Yes	Vehicle trim. May be `null`.
vehicle.bodyClass	String	Yes	Vehicle body class. May be `null`.
vehicle.vehicleType	String	Yes	Vehicle type. May be `null`.
vehicle.doors	Integer	Yes	Number of doors. May be `null`.
vehicle.driveType	String	Yes	Drive type. May be `null`.
vehicle.fuelType	String	Yes	Fuel type. May be `null`.
vehicle.transmission	String	Yes	Transmission description. May be `null`.
vehicle.engine	Object	Yes	Engine details, or `null`. Includes `cylinders`, `displacementL`, and `horsepower`.
vehicle.engine.cylinders	Integer	Yes	Engine cylinders. May be `null`.
vehicle.engine.displacementL	Number	Yes	Engine displacement in liters. May be `null`.
vehicle.engine.horsepower	Integer	Yes	Engine horsepower. May be `null`.
vehicle.plant	Object	Yes	Plant details, or `null`. Includes `city`, `country`, and `company`.
vehicle.plant.city	String	Yes	Plant city. May be `null`.
vehicle.plant.country	String	Yes	Plant country. May be `null`.
vehicle.plant.company	String	Yes	Plant company. May be `null`.
validation	Object	Yes	Validation details. Includes `checkDigitValid` and `warnings`.
validation.checkDigitValid	Boolean	Yes	Indicates whether the VIN check digit is valid. May be `null`.
validation.warnings	String Array	Yes	Validation warnings returned by the decoder.

▣ ENDPOINT 02 / 04

GET

List NHTSA recall campaigns

https://api.eu.apyhub.com/corsair96/decode-and-validate-vin-api/vin/recalls

QUICKSTART

GUIDE

Quickstart

Look up recall information for a VIN using the required vin query parameter.

curl -X GET "https://api.eu.apyhub.com/corsair96/decode-and-validate-vin-api/vin/recalls?vin=1HGCM82633A004352" \
  -H "apy-token: $APY_TOKEN"

What you'll get back

Returns a JSON object with vin (string), vehicle (object), recallsAvailable (boolean), count (integer), recalls (array), source (string), cached (boolean), and warnings (array of strings).

{
  "vin": "1HGCM82633A004352",
  "vehicle": {
    "make": "Honda",
    "model": "Accord",
    "modelYear": 2003
  },
  "recallsAvailable": true,
  "count": 1,
  "recalls": [],
  "source": "nhtsa-recalls",
  "cached": false,
  "warnings": []
}

TRY ITLIVE · 35 ATOMS

API key

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About this endpoint

What it does

Returns NHTSA recall campaign data for the VIN you provide, along with basic vehicle details, a recall count, source metadata, cache status, and any warnings. The VIN is supplied as a query parameter.

Query Parameter(s)

Attribute	Type	Mandatory	Description
vin	String	Yes	VIN to look up. Must be exactly 17 characters long (`minLength: 17`, `maxLength: 17`).

Response

Returns a JSON object with vin as a string, vehicle as an object, recallsAvailable as a boolean, count as an integer, recalls as an array of objects, source as a string, cached as a boolean, and warnings as an array of strings. The source field is fixed to nhtsa-recalls.

Attribute	Type	Mandatory	Description
vin	String	Yes	VIN returned by the service.
vehicle	Object	Yes	Vehicle details object containing `make`, `model`, and `modelYear`.
vehicle.make	String	Yes	Vehicle make, or `null` if not available.
vehicle.model	String	Yes	Vehicle model, or `null` if not available.
vehicle.modelYear	Integer	Yes	Vehicle model year, or `null` if not available.
recallsAvailable	Boolean	Yes	Indicates whether recall data was available from the upstream source. If this is `false`, do not interpret an empty `recalls` array as meaning there are no recalls.
count	Integer	Yes	Number of recall records returned.
recalls	Object Array	Yes	Array of recall campaign objects. Each item includes `campaignNumber`, `component`, `summary`, `consequence`, `remedy`, `reportDate`, and `manufacturer`.
recalls[].campaignNumber	String	Yes	Recall campaign number, or `null` if not available.
recalls[].component	String	Yes	Recall component, or `null` if not available.
recalls[].summary	String	Yes	Recall summary, or `null` if not available.
recalls[].consequence	String	Yes	Recall consequence, or `null` if not available.
recalls[].remedy	String	Yes	Recall remedy, or `null` if not available.
recalls[].reportDate	String	Yes	Report date in ISO format (`YYYY-MM-DD`) when parsable; otherwise the upstream value. May be `null`.
recalls[].manufacturer	String	Yes	Recall manufacturer, or `null` if not available.
source	String	Yes	Fixed value: `nhtsa-recalls`.
cached	Boolean	Yes	Indicates whether the response was served from cache.
warnings	String Array	Yes	Warning messages returned by the service.

▣ ENDPOINT 03 / 04

POST

Decode up to 50 VINs

https://api.eu.apyhub.com/corsair96/decode-and-validate-vin-api/vin/batch

QUICKSTART

GUIDE

Quickstart

Decode and validate one or more VINs with the required vins array.

curl -X POST "https://api.eu.apyhub.com/corsair96/decode-and-validate-vin-api/vin/batch" \
  -H "apy-token: $APY_TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"vins":["1HGCM82633A004352"]}'

What you'll get back

Returns a JSON object with count as an integer, source as the string nhtsa-vpic, and results as an array of per-VIN validation results. Each result includes the vin string, valid boolean, and may also include error, message, vehicle, and validation.

{
  "count": 1,
  "source": "nhtsa-vpic",
  "results": [
    {
      "vin": "1HGCM82633A004352",
      "valid": true
    }
  ]
}

TRY ITLIVE · 150 ATOMS

API key

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The full key is used to call the gateway and stays in this tab — never sent to orbit or saved.

About this endpoint

What it does

Decodes up to 50 VINs in a single request and returns a per-VIN validation result plus any decoded vehicle data available from the nhtsa-vpic source.

Request Body

Parameter	Type	Mandatory	Description
vins	String Array	Yes	VIN strings to decode. Minimum 1 item, maximum 50 items.
modelYear	Integer	No	Optional model year applied to every VIN. Must be 1981 or later.

Response

Returns a JSON object with count integer, results array, and source string fields. count is the number of VINs processed, results contains one object per VIN, and source is fixed to nhtsa-vpic.

Parameter	Type	Mandatory	Description
count	Integer	Yes	Number of VINs processed.
results	Object Array	Yes	Per-VIN decode results. Each item includes `vin` and `valid`, and may include `error`, `message`, `vehicle`, and `validation`.
source	String	Yes	Data source identifier. The schema constrains this to `nhtsa-vpic`.

Notes

The results array items are always keyed by vin and valid. When present, vehicle and validation may be null; the validation.checkDigitValid field itself may also be null.

▣ ENDPOINT 04 / 04

GET

Validate a VIN locally

https://api.eu.apyhub.com/corsair96/decode-and-validate-vin-api/vin/validate

QUICKSTART

GUIDE

Quickstart

Check a VIN by passing it as a query parameter.

curl -X GET "https://api.eu.apyhub.com/corsair96/decode-and-validate-vin-api/vin/validate?vin=1HGCM82633A004352" \
  -H "apy-token: $APY_TOKEN"

What you'll get back

Returns a JSON object with these top-level fields: vin (string), valid (boolean), errors (array of strings), length (integer), region (string or null), warnings (array of strings), modelYear (integer or null), structure (object or null), checkDigit (object), and modelYearAmbiguous (boolean).

The checkDigit object includes computed, provided, valid, and applicable. The structure object, when present, includes wmi, vds, checkDigit, modelYearCode, plantCode, and serial.

{
  "vin": "1HGCM82633A004352",
  "valid": true,
  "errors": [],
  "length": 17,
  "region": "north-america",
  "warnings": [],
  "modelYear": 2003,
  "structure": {
    "wmi": "1HG",
    "vds": "CM826",
    "checkDigit": "3",
    "modelYearCode": "3",
    "plantCode": "A",
    "serial": "004352"
  },
  "checkDigit": {
    "computed": "3",
    "provided": "3",
    "valid": true,
    "applicable": true
  },
  "modelYearAmbiguous": false
}

TRY ITLIVE · 5 ATOMS

API key

Loading your default key…

The full key is used to call the gateway and stays in this tab — never sent to orbit or saved.

About this endpoint

What it does

Validates a VIN locally and returns a JSON object describing whether it is valid, along with the VIN length, region, warnings and errors, model year information, structure breakdown, and check-digit details.

Query Parameter(s)

Attribute	Type	Mandatory	Description
vin	String	Yes	VIN to validate locally. Must be exactly 17 characters long.

Response

Returns a JSON object with required top-level fields for the VIN, validity, length, check-digit data, structural breakdown, model year, region, errors, and warnings. The response shape is a single object, with structure either containing decoded VIN sections or null.

Parameter	Type	Mandatory	Description
vin	String	Yes	The VIN that was validated.
valid	Boolean	Yes	Whether the VIN is valid.
length	Integer	Yes	Length of the VIN.
checkDigit	Object	Yes	Check-digit validation details. Contains `computed`, `provided`, `valid`, and `applicable`.
checkDigit.computed	String	Yes	Check digit computed from the VIN, or `null` if unavailable.
checkDigit.provided	String	Yes	Check digit present at position 9, or `null` if unavailable.
checkDigit.valid	Boolean	Yes	Whether the provided check digit is valid, or `null` when the check digit does not apply to the VIN region.
checkDigit.applicable	Boolean	Yes	Whether the check digit rule applies to the VIN region.
structure	Object	Yes	VIN structure breakdown, or `null`. When present, contains `wmi`, `vds`, `checkDigit`, `modelYearCode`, `plantCode`, and `serial`.
structure.wmi	String	Yes	World Manufacturer Identifier (positions 1-3).
structure.vds	String	Yes	Vehicle Descriptor Section (positions 4-8).
structure.checkDigit	String	Yes	Check digit (position 9).
structure.modelYearCode	String	Yes	Model year code (position 10).
structure.plantCode	String	Yes	Plant code (position 11).
structure.serial	String	Yes	Serial number (positions 12-17).
modelYear	Integer	Yes	Decoded model year, or `null` if it cannot be determined.
modelYearAmbiguous	Boolean	Yes	Whether the model year code is ambiguous because it repeats every 30 years and an older occurrence exists.
region	ENUM	Yes	VIN region. Allowed values: `north-america`, `south-america`, `europe`, `asia`, `africa`, `oceania`, `null`.
errors	String Array	Yes	Validation errors returned by the decoder.
warnings	String Array	Yes	Validation warnings returned by the decoder.

▣ COMMON ERRORS

Errors any endpoint can return

400bad_request

Required parameter missing or malformed body.

401unauthorized

API key missing, revoked, or not authorized for this service.

429rate_limited

Your plan's per-second rate exceeded. Retry with exponential backoff.

503upstream_busy

Backend temporarily unavailable. Try again in a few seconds.

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