Vehicle Data Generator

Anatomy of a Brazilian vehicle record

A complete vehicle fixture in Brazil bundles brand, model, model year, colour, licence plate, RENAVAM and chassis (VIN). The chassis follows the international standard ISO 3779 — VIN (Vehicle Identification Number): 17 alphanumeric characters split into three blocks. The first block is the WMI (World Manufacturer Identifier), three characters that identify the maker; vehicles built in Brazil start with 9, e.g. 9BF (Toyota BR), 9BG (GM BR), 9BD (Fiat BR), 9BW (VW BR), 9BR (Hyundai HMB).

The next 6 characters form the VDS (Vehicle Descriptor Section) — body type, engine, restraint system. The 9th character is the check digit, computed by transliterating letters to numbers and applying weights 8,7,6,5,4,3,2,10,0,9,8,7,6,5,4,3,2 across the 17 positions, summing, taking mod 11 and writing X when the result is 10. The final 8 characters form the VIS (Vehicle Identifier Section), a sequential serial number tied to the production order.

The RENAVAM (Registro Nacional de Veículos Automotores) is an independent 11-digit number maintained by SENATRAN (formerly DENATRAN). It is the federal-level vehicle identifier and is unique nationwide — the licence plate may change when the vehicle is sold between states, but RENAVAM does not.

Licence plate: old vs Mercosul

Until 2018 Brazilian plates followed the pattern ABC-1234 (three letters + four digits). The Mercosul format, adopted across the bloc, swaps the fifth character for a letter: ABC1D23. The mapping from old to Mercosul follows a deterministic table — the fourth digit of the old plate becomes a letter (0→A, 1→B, … 9→J).

Categories, fuels and the Brazilian market

• Categories: passenger car (passeio), light commercial, truck, motorcycle, bus.
• Fuel types: flex (ethanol + gasoline), pure ethanol, gasoline, diesel, CNG (GNV), full-electric, hybrid.
• Best-selling models in Brazil: Fiat Strada, VW Polo, Hyundai HB20, Chevrolet Onix, Fiat Mobi, VW T-Cross, Jeep Compass, Toyota Corolla Cross.
• FIPE table: price reference published by Fundação Instituto de Pesquisas Econômicas; used by insurers, banks and dealers to set asset values.

Use cases

Mock vehicle records power QA suites in insurance pricing engines, leasing platforms, fleet-management SaaS, garage management systems, parking apps and automotive fintechs. They let teams test edge cases (vintage cars, prefix changes, electric vs combustion) without seeding real customer data into staging.

FAQ

Does the tool produce a valid VIN? Yes — the chassis passes ISO 3779 check-digit math, but it is not linked to any real vehicle. SENATRAN, DETRANs and insurers will not find it in any registry.

Can I look up a generated record on the FIPE table? No. FIPE searches by brand + model + model year, not by VIN or plate. The generated brand/model/year combination, however, can be used to drive FIPE integration tests against the real public API.

Is it acceptable to use the data in an insurance sandbox? Generally yes — most insurer sandboxes accept synthetic VINs and plates. Always check the partner contract; some require specific test ranges.

Why is the brand sometimes mismatched with the WMI? WMIs are tied to the country and the manufacturer's local subsidiary, so a "Toyota" record produced abroad would not start with 9BF. The generator focuses on Brazilian-built variants to keep brand and WMI consistent.