# NHTSA VIN Listing Identity Check (`jpmarketdata/nhtsa-vin-listing-identity-check`) Actor

Compare claimed vehicle listing year, make and model against official NHTSA VIN decoding; return exact mismatch fields without exposing VINs in the dataset.

- **URL**: https://apify.com/jpmarketdata/nhtsa-vin-listing-identity-check.md
- **Developed by:** [h ichi](https://apify.com/jpmarketdata) (community)
- **Categories:** Automation, Developer tools
- **Stats:** 2 total users, 1 monthly users, 100.0% runs succeeded, 0 bookmarks
- **User rating**: No ratings yet

## Pricing

$1.00 / 1,000 listing identity checkeds

This Actor is paid per event. You are not charged for the Apify platform usage, but only a fixed price for specific events.

Learn more: https://docs.apify.com/actors/running/actors-in-store.md#pay-per-event

## What's an Apify Actor?

An Actor is a serverless cloud program that runs on the Apify platform. It has two run modes.
In Batch mode, an Actor accepts a well-defined JSON input, performs an action which can take anything from a few seconds to a few hours,
and optionally produces a well-defined JSON output, datasets with results, or files in key-value store.
In Standby mode, an Actor provides a web server which can be used as a website, API, or an MCP server.

Apify vocabulary and the platform model are defined once, in the agent quickstart at https://apify.com/agents.md.

## How to integrate an Actor?

If asked about integration, you help developers integrate Actors into their projects.
You adapt to their stack and deliver integrations that are safe, well-documented, and production-ready.

Do not guess an integration path. Every one of them is in the agent quickstart at https://apify.com/agents.md: the Apify MCP server, Agent Skills with the Apify CLI, the JavaScript and Python clients, the REST API, and the account-free path for an agent with no human to sign in. It also carries the rule on stating cost before the first paid run.

For examples already wired to this Actor's own input schema, see the [API](#api) section below.

Each client library has reference documentation the quickstart does not restate: [JavaScript/TypeScript](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs.md) (`npm install apify-client`) and [Python](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs.md) (`pip install apify-client`).

# README

## NHTSA VIN Listing Identity Check

Compare a vehicle listing's claimed model year, make and model with the official NHTSA vPIC VIN decode. This independent Actor helps vehicle inventory teams route inconsistent imports for manual review; it is not endorsed by NHTSA.

### Input

Provide 1–10 objects containing distinct 17-character VINs and claimedYear, claimedMake and claimedModel for 2010–2027 US passenger/light vehicles. Alphabetic VIN position 7 is required to bound the model-year cycle; source and VIN year code must agree. Duplicate VINs fail before requests. The default uses two constructed, valid-check-digit test VINs (not known actual vehicles; collision cannot be excluded): one mismatched 2022 Honda Passport year and one matching 2023 Honda Passport. Full VINs appear only in your private input and the request to NHTSA; they are never in dataset rows or logs.

### Output

One row per cleanly decoded VIN: zero-based inputIndex, claimed and decoded year/make/model, status match or review_mismatch, the exact mismatchFields, source and observedAt. The index maps results to your original input without disclosing a full VIN. A mismatch calls for manual checking; it is not proof of fraud, ownership, a physical vehicle, trim, safety, or listing truth. Missing source identity or nonzero decoder error fails the run instead of producing a misleading match.

### Price

$0.001 per delivered listing-identity-checked row on FREE, with no start charge. Default two rows cost $0.002; maximum ten cost $0.01. No source failure, invalid VIN, empty output or duplicate event is charged.

### Limits

Official public vPIC DecodeVinValues only, 1–10 sequential requests at least two seconds apart, 2 MiB response cap, 15 second request timeout, 120 second Actor timeout, 256 MB, no paid API/proxy/browser. vPIC traffic limits or source errors fail explicitly. The Actor rechecks robots and obeys applicable Disallow. Caller-claimed year is not supplied to NHTSA, so a year mismatch can be assessed independently; unsupported/ambiguous vehicles fail without charge.

### Privacy

VINs are unique vehicle identifiers and may be linkable to a person; inputIndex, not the VIN or a VIN-bearing URL, appears in output. No owner, driver, address, contact, raw source body or cookies are retained.

# Actor input Schema

## `vehicles` (type: `array`):

One to ten unique full 17-character VINs for 2010–2027 US passenger/light vehicles, with claimed year, make and model. Alphabetic VIN position 7 required.

## Actor input object example

```json
{
  "vehicles": [
    {
      "vin": "5FNYF8H04NB000001",
      "claimedYear": 2023,
      "claimedMake": "HONDA",
      "claimedModel": "Passport"
    },
    {
      "vin": "5FNYF8H00PB000001",
      "claimedYear": 2023,
      "claimedMake": "HONDA",
      "claimedModel": "Passport"
    }
  ]
}
```

# Actor output Schema

## `results` (type: `string`):

No description

# API

You can run this Actor programmatically using our API. Below are code examples in JavaScript, Python, and CLI, as well as the OpenAPI specification and MCP server setup.

## JavaScript example

```javascript
import { ApifyClient } from 'apify-client';

// Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
// Replace the '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token
const client = new ApifyClient({
    token: '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>',
});

// Prepare Actor input
const input = {
    "vehicles": [
        {
            "vin": "5FNYF8H04NB000001",
            "claimedYear": 2023,
            "claimedMake": "HONDA",
            "claimedModel": "Passport"
        },
        {
            "vin": "5FNYF8H00PB000001",
            "claimedYear": 2023,
            "claimedMake": "HONDA",
            "claimedModel": "Passport"
        }
    ]
};

// Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
const run = await client.actor("jpmarketdata/nhtsa-vin-listing-identity-check").call(input);

// Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if any)
console.log('Results from dataset');
console.log(`💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/${run.defaultDatasetId}`);
const { items } = await client.dataset(run.defaultDatasetId).listItems();
items.forEach((item) => {
    console.dir(item);
});

// 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs

```

## Python example

```python
from apify_client import ApifyClient

# Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
# Replace '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token.
client = ApifyClient("<YOUR_API_TOKEN>")

# Prepare the Actor input
run_input = { "vehicles": [
        {
            "vin": "5FNYF8H04NB000001",
            "claimedYear": 2023,
            "claimedMake": "HONDA",
            "claimedModel": "Passport",
        },
        {
            "vin": "5FNYF8H00PB000001",
            "claimedYear": 2023,
            "claimedMake": "HONDA",
            "claimedModel": "Passport",
        },
    ] }

# Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
run = client.actor("jpmarketdata/nhtsa-vin-listing-identity-check").call(run_input=run_input)

# Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if there are any)
print(f"💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/{run.default_dataset_id}")
for item in client.dataset(run.default_dataset_id).iterate_items():
    print(item)

# 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs/quick-start

```

## CLI example

```bash
echo '{
  "vehicles": [
    {
      "vin": "5FNYF8H04NB000001",
      "claimedYear": 2023,
      "claimedMake": "HONDA",
      "claimedModel": "Passport"
    },
    {
      "vin": "5FNYF8H00PB000001",
      "claimedYear": 2023,
      "claimedMake": "HONDA",
      "claimedModel": "Passport"
    }
  ]
}' |
apify call jpmarketdata/nhtsa-vin-listing-identity-check --silent --output-dataset

```

## MCP server setup

```json
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "apify": {
            "type": "http",
            "url": "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=fetch-actor-details,jpmarketdata/nhtsa-vin-listing-identity-check"
        }
    }
}
```

The hosted server signs you in with OAuth on first connect, so no API token belongs in this config. Clients without OAuth support can send an `Authorization: Bearer <APIFY_API_TOKEN>` header instead, using a token from API & Integrations in Apify Console (https://console.apify.com/settings/integrations).

## OpenAPI specification

Download the OpenAPI definition: https://api.apify.com/v2/actors/SzlmzRd2ayzSJ2Gqa/builds/Dfp9LvmzTKJ4b1tzu/openapi.json