VDS (Vehicle Descriptor Section)
VIN positions 4-9; manufacturer-specific encoding of model, body and engine.
The Vehicle Descriptor Section (VDS) occupies positions 4 through 9 of the VIN. Unlike the WMI, which follows a global standard, the VDS is encoded by each manufacturer using their own internal scheme — one carmaker’s "CV1" might encode an engine and trim level that means something completely different at another carmaker.
Decoding the VDS therefore requires a per-manufacturer lookup table, and even those tables get reorganised between model years. Independent decoders like our VIN Decoder surface the VDS bytes as raw text rather than pretending to translate them. For a definitive model and trim, cross-reference the VIN against the manufacturer’s build sheet or against the auction record — auction houses physically inspect the vehicle and capture the model directly.
Position 9 is the only special VDS slot: on US- and China-spec VINs it carries the check digit, a calculated value used to verify the rest of the string mathematically.