Key points
- Global production below 500 vehicles per year uses 9 as the third WMI character.
- The competent authority assigns the third, fourth and fifth VIS characters.
- Those assigned VIS characters must be preserved in the production profile.
- The remaining serial sequence must still maintain VIN uniqueness.
Why the third WMI character is 9
Annex II specifies that the third WMI character is always 9 when the manufacturer’s global production is below 500 vehicles per year.
Manufacturers with 9 in the third WMI position do not share the same complete identity. Additional VIS characters assigned by the competent authority distinguish them.
The authority-assigned VIS characters
For these manufacturers, the competent authority assigns the third, fourth and fifth characters of the VIS. Since VIS starts at VIN position 10, these correspond to VIN positions 12, 13 and 14.
VIN position 14 is also the first of the final four positions that must be numeric, so the fifth authority-assigned VIS character must be a digit. A reusable profile should lock all three assigned characters during batch generation.
Available serial-number range
Once the assigned VIS identity is included, fewer positions remain for the serial number than in the usual four-digit structure. Production software must use the serial-number length defined by the approved structure.
Before saving a series, verify the first and last VIN, the position-9 result and the absence of duplicates in the intended range.
Keep the approval evidence outside the calculator
ManageVIN can store a type-approval reference and structured profile information, but it does not accept or archive approval documents in the beta.
Keep the authoritative approval and WMI assignment evidence in the manufacturer’s controlled document system, and use the profile only as an operational production definition.
ManageVIN is a calculation and record-management aid. It does not assign WMI codes and does not replace an approval authority or professional compliance review.
