Decode a 3-character World Manufacturer Identifier (the first three characters of a VIN) to the assigning manufacturer. Returns full manufacturer legal name, common short name, make, vehicle type, and the date NHTSA published the assignment. Useful for partial-VIN analysis — crash reports, damaged-vehicle photos, fleet records — where only the WMI is recoverable. Backed by NHTSA.gov vPIC; data is public-domain US government records.