Alfa Romeo VIN decoder

An Alfa Romeo VIN decoder reads the code guides Alfa Romeo files with NHTSA, and those guides pack a lot into positions 5 to 7: one three-letter code stands for the model, trim series, drive, steering side and body. The chart walks through ZARFAMAN8T7000001, a test VIN we built from the 2026 Giulia guide with a computed check digit. It shows the pattern; it isn't a specific car.

Positions 5 to 7 identify the model, trim series and drive in a single code. Read them with the first three characters: the Giulia uses ZAR, the Stelvio and Tonale use ZAS.

No. Alfa Romeo gives the Tonale one code, ATA, for the Sprint, the Veloce and the Sport Speciale, so the VIN can't separate them. When we ran Tonale test VINs through vPIC, the trim came back as "Sprint, Veloce, Sport Speciale", all three at once.

Position 8 does tell you the powertrain:

• N: 2.0L turbocharged four-cylinder, gasoline, 200 kW (268 hp).
• W: 1.3L turbocharged four-cylinder plug-in hybrid, 213 kW (285 hp).

Our test VIN ZASPATAW1T3000001 decoded as a 2026 Tonale plug-in hybrid with all-wheel drive, built in Pomigliano. For the trim, go by the badges, the equipment or the original paperwork.

This 2024 Tonale went through an NHTSA crash test (test 15382), and the test record lists its VIN. NHTSA's vPIC database returns this for ZASPATCW0R3039314:

It depends on the body. On the Giulia, a passenger car, position 4 is the restraint system alone, lettered A to F: A has front airbags without side airbags, E adds side and head airbags for the front seats, and F adds knee airbags on top. On the Stelvio and Tonale, which NHTSA classes as multipurpose vehicles, position 4 is one letter from a grid that crosses the GVWR range with the restraint system, and vPIC reads the weight class from it. Four test VINs show how:

Two codes, both registered to Alfa Romeo S.p.A. in Italy: ZAR for passenger cars and ZAS for multipurpose vehicles. Both decode as Alfa Romeo. Fiat, a sister Stellantis brand, builds its 500e under ZFA; that VIN belongs on the Fiat VIN decoder.

vPIC knows 9 Alfa Romeo model names: 164, 4C, 8C Competizione Spider, GTV6, Giulia (952), Milano, Spider, Stelvio and Tonale. Its 2025 and 2026 lists hold the Giulia (952), Stelvio and Tonale, and "Giulia (952)" is the model name a current Giulia decodes as. The decoder reads 17-character VINs, the format used from the 1981 model year on; an older Alfa's chassis number belongs on the classic car VIN page.

Three places, and they should all agree:

• The windshield, lower left. Federal rules require the VIN to be readable through the glass next to the left windshield pillar, in characters at least 4 mm tall (49 CFR 565.13).
• The certification label in the driver's door opening, which also shows the month and year of manufacture (49 CFR 567.4).
• The title and registration.

The paint code isn't part of the VIN; where to find the paint code shows the label to look for.

Options, colors and the Tonale's trim aren't coded, and neither is anything that happened after the car left Cassino or Pomigliano: the VIN isn't a history report. The decoder shows Alfa Romeo's coding from NHTSA's database and the recalls NHTSA lists for that model and year. If it rejects a VIN, look for a misread character; I, O and Q never appear. Selling yours? How to sell a car covers the steps.