nhtsa-vehicle-safety-mcp-server

Nhtsa Lookup Vehicles

nhtsa_lookup_vehicles

Read-only

Look up makes, models, vehicle types, and manufacturer details in NHTSA's VPIC catalog, or list the model names NHTSA's datasets file a make and model year under. VPIC names often differ from the names complaints and NCAP ratings use (Silverado vs SILVERADO 1500), and a vehicle's recalls can be split between a series name and a base name. When a recall, complaint, or rating search comes back empty or partial, call operation="dataset_models" with make and modelYear, then search under each name it lists. No list enumerates recall names, so search recalls under both the series name and the base name.

Input Schema

Name	Required	Description
`make`	No	Make name (required for "models", "vehicle_types", and "dataset_models"). VPIC matches partial names in "models" and "vehicle_types"; "dataset_models" takes the full make name (e.g., "Chevrolet").
`limit`	No	Results per page. Defaults to 100; at most 200 per page.
`offset`	No	Pagination offset into the full result list. Defaults to 0.
`modelYear`	No	Model year, a whole number. Filters "models" to that year; required for "dataset_models". Not accepted by other operations.
`operation`	Yes	"makes" (all VPIC makes), "models" (VPIC models for a make), "vehicle_types" (types for a make), "manufacturer" (manufacturer details), "dataset_models" (the model names NHTSA's complaint, NCAP, and VPIC lists carry for a make and model year; requires make and modelYear).
`manufacturer`	No	Manufacturer name or ID (for "manufacturer" operation). Partial match supported.

Output Schema

Name	Required	Description
`cap`	No	Maximum manufacturer records a single lookup retrieves.
`error`	No	Present when the call failed. Absent on success.
`limit`	No	Pagination limit used for this response
`makes`	No	Results for "makes" operation
`shown`	No	Manufacturer records retrieved before pagination, when the cap was reached.
`models`	No	Results for "models" operation
`notice`	No	Guidance when the result set is empty, the page is out of bounds, or limit was lowered to the page maximum.
`offset`	No	Pagination offset used for this response
`returned`	No	Number of results in the returned slice
`operation`	No	The operation that was performed
`truncated`	No	True when the "manufacturer" lookup stopped at its retrieval cap and further matches may exist upstream.
`totalCount`	No	Results retrieved before pagination. For "manufacturer" this is capped — check the truncated field, since VPIC reports no match total.
`vehicleTypes`	No	Results for "vehicle_types" operation
`datasetModels`	No	Results for "dataset_models" operation, sorted by name
`manufacturers`	No	Results for "manufacturer" operation
`effectiveQuery`	No	The operation with key args, e.g. "models make=Toyota year=2020".

Schema Changelog

Changes observed during successful MCP inspections.

Changed12 schema fields changedNov 4, 2026

changedInput schema / properties / limit / description

Previous value: -"Max results in the returned slice. Defaults to 100; max 200."New value: +"Results per page. Defaults to 100; at most 200 per page."

removedInput schema / properties / limit / maximum
```
Removed value: -200
```
addedInput schema / properties / limit / multipleOf
```
Added value: +1
```

changedInput schema / properties / limit / type

Previous value: -"integer"New value: +"number"

changedInput schema / properties / make / description

Previous value: -"Make name (required for \"models\" and \"vehicle_types\"). Partial match supported."New value: +"Make name (required for \"models\", \"vehicle_types\", and \"dataset_models\"). VPIC matches partial names in \"models\" and \"vehicle_types\"; \"dataset_models\" takes the full make name (e.g., \"Chevrolet\")."

changedInput schema / properties / modelYear / description

Previous value: -"Filter models to a specific year, a whole number. Only for \"models\" operation."New value: +"Model year, a whole number. Filters \"models\" to that year; required for \"dataset_models\". Not accepted by other operations."

changedInput schema / properties / operation / description

Previous value: -"\"makes\" (all NHTSA makes), \"models\" (models for a make), \"vehicle_types\" (types for a make), \"manufacturer\" (manufacturer details)."New value: +"\"makes\" (all VPIC makes), \"models\" (VPIC models for a make), \"vehicle_types\" (types for a make), \"manufacturer\" (manufacturer details), \"dataset_models\" (the model names NHTSA's complaint, NCAP, and VPIC lists carry for a make and model year; requires make and modelYear)."

changedInput schema / properties / operation / enum

Previous value: -[
-  "makes",
-  "models",
-  "vehicle_types",
-  "manufacturer"
-]New value: +[
+  "makes",
+  "models",
+  "vehicle_types",
+  "manufacturer",
+  "dataset_models"
+]

addedOutput schema / properties / datasetModels

Added value: +{
+  "description": "Results for \"dataset_models\" operation, sorted by name",
+  "items": {
+    "additionalProperties": false,
+    "description": "A model name merged across the lists",
+    "properties": {
+      "listedBy": {
+        "description": "Lists carrying this name: \"products\" (the names complaint searches match), \"ncap\" (the names NCAP rating searches match), \"vpic\" (VPIC base names, which some recall campaigns are filed under)",
+        "items": {
+          "enum": [
+            "products",
+            "ncap",
+            "vpic"
+          ],
+          "type": "string"
+        },
+        "type": "array"
+      },
+      "modelName": {
+        "description": "Model name, uppercase",
+        "type": "string"
+      }
+    },
+    "required": [
+      "modelName",
+      "listedBy"
+    ],
+    "type": "object"
+  },
+  "type": "array"
+}

changedOutput schema / properties / error / properties / data / properties / reason / description

Previous value: -"Machine-readable failure mode. Declared by this tool: `inactive_argument`: An argument is not used by the chosen operation. `missing_operation_arg`: A required argument for the chosen operation was not provided. Other values are possible when a failure originates below the handler."New value: +"Machine-readable failure mode. Declared by this tool: `inactive_argument`: An argument is not used by the chosen operation. `missing_operation_arg`: A required argument for the chosen operation was not provided. `limit_too_large`: limit exceeds the 200-row page maximum on a server set to reject an over-maximum limit rather than lower it. Other values are possible when a failure originates below the handler."

changedOutput schema / properties / error / properties / data / properties / reason / examples

Previous value: -[
-  "inactive_argument",
-  "missing_operation_arg"
-]New value: +[
+  "inactive_argument",
+  "missing_operation_arg",
+  "limit_too_large"
+]

changedOutput schema / properties / notice / description

Previous value: -"Guidance when the result set is empty or the page is out of bounds."New value: +"Guidance when the result set is empty, the page is out of bounds, or limit was lowered to the page maximum."

Changed2 schema fields changedOct 18, 2026

changedOutput schema / properties / error / properties / data / properties / reason / description

Previous value: -"Machine-readable failure mode. Declared by this tool: `missing_operation_arg`: A required argument for the chosen operation was not provided. Other values are possible when a failure originates below the handler."New value: +"Machine-readable failure mode. Declared by this tool: `inactive_argument`: An argument is not used by the chosen operation. `missing_operation_arg`: A required argument for the chosen operation was not provided. Other values are possible when a failure originates below the handler."

changedOutput schema / properties / error / properties / data / properties / reason / examples

Previous value: -[
-  "missing_operation_arg"
-]New value: +[
+  "inactive_argument",
+  "missing_operation_arg"
+]

Changed6 schema fields changedAug 21, 2026

changedInput schema / $schema

Previous value: -"http://json-schema.org/draft-07/schema#"New value: +"https://json-schema.org/draft/2020-12/schema"

addedInput schema / additionalProperties
```
Added value: +false
```

changedOutput schema / $schema

Previous value: -"http://json-schema.org/draft-07/schema#"New value: +"https://json-schema.org/draft/2020-12/schema"

addedOutput schema / anyOf

Added value: +[
+  {
+    "not": {
+      "required": [
+        "error"
+      ]
+    },
+    "required": [
+      "operation",
+      "totalCount",
+      "returned",
+      "offset",
+      "limit",
+      "effectiveQuery"
+    ]
+  },
+  {
+    "required": [
+      "error"
+    ]
+  }
+]

addedOutput schema / properties / error

Added value: +{
+  "additionalProperties": {},
+  "description": "Present when the call failed. Absent on success.",
+  "properties": {
+    "code": {
+      "description": "JSON-RPC error code for this failure.",
+      "maximum": 9007199254740991,
+      "minimum": -9007199254740991,
+      "type": "integer"
+    },
+    "data": {
+      "additionalProperties": {},
+      "properties": {
+        "reason": {
+          "description": "Machine-readable failure mode. Declared by this tool: `missing_operation_arg`: A required argument for the chosen operation was not provided. Other values are possible when a failure originates below the handler.",
+          "examples": [
+            "missing_operation_arg"
+          ],
+          "type": "string"
+        },
+        "recovery": {
+          "additionalProperties": {},
+          "description": "Actionable next step for the caller.",
+          "properties": {
+            "hint": {
+              "type": "string"
+            }
+          },
+          "required": [
+            "hint"
+          ],
+          "type": "object"
+        },
+        "retryable": {
+          "description": "Whether retrying may succeed.",
+          "type": "boolean"
+        }
+      },
+      "type": "object"
+    },
+    "message": {
+      "description": "Human-readable description of what went wrong.",
+      "type": "string"
+    }
+  },
+  "required": [
+    "code",
+    "message"
+  ],
+  "type": "object"
+}

removedOutput schema / required

Removed value: -[
-  "operation",
-  "totalCount",
-  "returned",
-  "offset",
-  "limit",
-  "effectiveQuery"
-]

Changed8 schema fields changedJul 30, 2026

changedInput schema / properties / modelYear / description

Previous value: -"Filter models to a specific year. Only for \"models\" operation."New value: +"Filter models to a specific year, a whole number. Only for \"models\" operation."

addedInput schema / properties / modelYear / maximum
```
Added value: +9007199254740991
```
addedInput schema / properties / modelYear / minimum
```
Added value: +-9007199254740991
```
changedInput schema / properties / modelYear / type
```
Previous value: -"number"New value: +"integer"
```

addedOutput schema / properties / cap

Added value: +{
+  "description": "Maximum manufacturer records a single lookup retrieves.",
+  "type": "number"
+}

addedOutput schema / properties / shown

Added value: +{
+  "description": "Manufacturer records retrieved before pagination, when the cap was reached.",
+  "type": "number"
+}

changedOutput schema / properties / totalCount / description

Previous value: -"Total results matching before pagination"New value: +"Results retrieved before pagination. For \"manufacturer\" this is capped — check the truncated field, since VPIC reports no match total."

addedOutput schema / properties / truncated

Added value: +{
+  "description": "True when the \"manufacturer\" lookup stopped at its retrieval cap and further matches may exist upstream.",
+  "type": "boolean"
+}

Changed4 schema fields changedMay 30, 2026

addedOutput schema / properties / effectiveQuery

Added value: +{
+  "description": "The operation with key args, e.g. \"models make=Toyota year=2020\".",
+  "type": "string"
+}

removedOutput schema / properties / message

Removed value: -{
-  "description": "Contextual guidance populated when the result set is empty",
-  "type": "string"
-}

addedOutput schema / properties / notice

Added value: +{
+  "description": "Guidance when the result set is empty or the page is out of bounds.",
+  "type": "string"
+}

changedOutput schema / required

Previous value: -[
-  "operation",
-  "totalCount",
-  "returned",
-  "offset",
-  "limit"
-]New value: +[
+  "operation",
+  "totalCount",
+  "returned",
+  "offset",
+  "limit",
+  "effectiveQuery"
+]

Changed5 schema fields changedApr 24, 2026
- addedOutput schema / properties / makes / items / description
```
Added value: +"A single make entry"
```
- addedOutput schema / properties / manufacturers / items / description
```
Added value: +"A single manufacturer entry"
```
- addedOutput schema / properties / manufacturers / items / properties / vehicleTypes / items / description
```
Added value: +"A single vehicle-type entry produced by this manufacturer"
```
- addedOutput schema / properties / models / items / description
```
Added value: +"A single model entry"
```
- addedOutput schema / properties / vehicleTypes / items / description
```
Added value: +"A single vehicle-type entry"
```

Changed8 schema fields changedApr 23, 2026

changedInput schema / properties / limit / description

Previous value: -"For \"makes\" only: maximum makes to return. Defaults to 100; max 200. Ignored for other operations."New value: +"Max results in the returned slice. Defaults to 100; max 200."

changedInput schema / properties / offset / description

Previous value: -"For \"makes\" only: pagination offset into the full makes list. Defaults to 0. Ignored for other operations."New value: +"Pagination offset into the full result list. Defaults to 0."

changedInput schema / properties / operation / description

Previous value: -"\"makes\" (paginated slice of all makes), \"models\" (models for a make), \"vehicle_types\" (types for a make), \"manufacturer\" (manufacturer details)."New value: +"\"makes\" (all NHTSA makes), \"models\" (models for a make), \"vehicle_types\" (types for a make), \"manufacturer\" (manufacturer details)."

removedOutput schema / properties / count

Removed value: -{
-  "description": "Number of results returned in this response",
-  "type": "number"
-}

addedOutput schema / properties / returned

Added value: +{
+  "description": "Number of results in the returned slice",
+  "type": "number"
+}

removedOutput schema / properties / totalAvailable

Removed value: -{
-  "description": "Total results available before pagination, when relevant",
-  "type": "number"
-}

addedOutput schema / properties / totalCount

Added value: +{
+  "description": "Total results matching before pagination",
+  "type": "number"
+}

changedOutput schema / required

Previous value: -[
-  "operation",
-  "count"
-]New value: +[
+  "operation",
+  "totalCount",
+  "returned",
+  "offset",
+  "limit"
+]

Changed1 schema field changedApr 19, 2026

addedOutput schema / properties / message

Added value: +{
+  "description": "Contextual guidance populated when the result set is empty",
+  "type": "string"
+}

Changed9 schema fields changedApr 15, 2026

addedInput schema / properties / limit

Added value: +{
+  "description": "For \"makes\" only: maximum makes to return. Defaults to 100; max 200. Ignored for other operations.",
+  "maximum": 200,
+  "minimum": 1,
+  "type": "integer"
+}

addedInput schema / properties / offset

Added value: +{
+  "description": "For \"makes\" only: pagination offset into the full makes list. Defaults to 0. Ignored for other operations.",
+  "maximum": 9007199254740991,
+  "minimum": 0,
+  "type": "integer"
+}

changedInput schema / properties / operation / description

Previous value: -"\"makes\" (all makes — warning: 12K+ results), \"models\" (models for a make), \"vehicle_types\" (types for a make), \"manufacturer\" (manufacturer details)."New value: +"\"makes\" (paginated slice of all makes), \"models\" (models for a make), \"vehicle_types\" (types for a make), \"manufacturer\" (manufacturer details)."

changedOutput schema / properties / count / description

Previous value: -"Number of results"New value: +"Number of results returned in this response"

addedOutput schema / properties / limit

Added value: +{
+  "description": "Pagination limit used for this response",
+  "type": "number"
+}

changedOutput schema / properties / manufacturers / items / properties / country / description
```
Previous value: -"Country of origin"New value: +"Country of origin when provided"
```

changedOutput schema / properties / manufacturers / items / required

Previous value: -[
-  "manufacturerId",
-  "manufacturerName",
-  "country",
-  "vehicleTypes"
-]New value: +[
+  "manufacturerId",
+  "manufacturerName",
+  "vehicleTypes"
+]

addedOutput schema / properties / offset

Added value: +{
+  "description": "Pagination offset used for this response",
+  "type": "number"
+}

addedOutput schema / properties / totalAvailable

Added value: +{
+  "description": "Total results available before pagination, when relevant",
+  "type": "number"
+}

First observedApr 13, 2026

TDQS

A4.4/5.0

Behavior4/5

Does the description disclose side effects, auth requirements, rate limits, or destructive behavior?

readOnlyHint=true already covers the safety profile, and the description adds real domain behavior on top: VPIC names diverge from complaint/NCAP names (Silverado vs SILVERADO 1500) and recall results can be split across a series name and a base name. It stops short of describing result shape, empty-response semantics, or pagination behavior, which the schema and output schema partly cover, so it is strong but not exhaustive.

Agents need to know what a tool does to the world before calling it. Descriptions should go beyond structured annotations to explain consequences.

Conciseness4/5

Is the description appropriately sized, front-loaded, and free of redundancy?

Four sentences, front-loaded with the capability, then the naming caveat, then the concrete recovery workflow. Every sentence carries information; the only mild cost is density, since the naming-mismatch and recall-splitting points are packed into single long clauses.

Shorter descriptions cost fewer tokens and are easier for agents to parse. Every sentence should earn its place.

Completeness5/5

Given the tool's complexity, does the description cover enough for an agent to succeed on first attempt?

For a six-parameter, five-operation lookup tool with full schema coverage, annotations, and an output schema, the description supplies exactly the missing piece: the cross-dataset naming pitfall and the follow-up search procedure. Nothing an agent needs to invoke it correctly or interpret a thin result is absent.

Complex tools with many parameters or behaviors need more documentation. Simple tools need less. This dimension scales expectations accordingly.

Parameters3/5

Does the description clarify parameter syntax, constraints, interactions, or defaults beyond what the schema provides?

Schema description coverage is 100%, including per-operation requirements for make, modelYear, and manufacturer, so the baseline is 3. The description reinforces why make and modelYear matter for dataset_models and the full-vs-partial make distinction, but it does not add syntax, defaults, or constraints beyond what the schema already documents.

Input schemas describe structure but not intent. Descriptions should explain non-obvious parameter relationships and valid value ranges.

Purpose5/5

Does the description clearly state what the tool does and how it differs from similar tools?

States a specific verb and resource set: looking up makes, models, vehicle types and manufacturer details in NHTSA's VPIC catalog, plus a second mode listing the model names NHTSA datasets use for a make/year. It also distinguishes this from the complaint and NCAP siblings by naming the naming mismatch between them, so an agent can tell which tool to reach for without opening the schema.

Agents choose between tools based on descriptions. A clear purpose with a specific verb and resource helps agents select the right tool.

Usage Guidelines5/5

Does the description explain when to use this tool, when not to, or what alternatives exist?

Gives an explicit conditional trigger: when a recall, complaint, or rating search comes back empty or partial, call operation="dataset_models" with make and modelYear, then re-search under each name returned. It also states an exclusion-like rule for recalls (search both series name and base name, since no list enumerates recall names), which is genuine when-to-use and when-not guidance.

Agents often have multiple tools that could apply. Explicit usage guidance like "use X instead of Y when Z" prevents misuse.

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Nhtsa Lookup Vehicles

Input Schema

Output Schema

Schema Changelog

TDQS

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