Glossary — Help Center

Term	Definition
VIN	The 17-character Vehicle Identification Number — a car's fingerprint. It pins your report to one exact vehicle.
Trim	The feature level of a model (e.g., Model 3 Long Range). Trim can change value by thousands.
Drivetrain	Which wheels the engine powers (FWD/RWD/AWD) — a pricing-relevant part of identity.
Window sticker (Monroney)	The factory label listing MSRP, packages, and options. Uploading it strengthens identity.
Case	One deal analysis in Carlarity: a vehicle plus your worksheet numbers plus the report.
Worksheet	The form where you describe the deal — price, fees, trade-in, financing.
OTD (out-the-door)	The true total: price + tax + title + registration + fees. The number that actually leaves your pocket.
Doc fee	The dealer's documentation charge. Varies widely by state and dealer — Carlarity flags outliers.
Add-ons	Dealer-installed extras (protection packages, etch, nitrogen). Often optional; frequently negotiable.
APR	Annual Percentage Rate — the yearly cost of borrowing. Small APR changes move the total cost a lot.
Term	Loan length in months. Longer terms lower the payment but raise total cost and slow your equity.
Trade-in payoff	What you still owe on the car you're trading. Owing more than it's worth rolls debt into the new loan.
Negative equity / underwater	Owing more on the loan than the car is worth.
Equity timeline	The report section showing when you cross break-even on the loan.
Depreciation	How a vehicle loses value over time — modeled year-by-year in your Ownership forecast.
Comp	A comparable listing — a similar vehicle currently on the market, used as pricing evidence.
Fair price range	The evidence-backed range your report scores the asking price against.
Confidence grade	Carlarity's honest score of its own evidence: HIGH / MEDIUM / LOW / INSUFFICIENT (Part 6).
Verdict	The report's bottom line: BUY, NEGOTIATE, WALK, or INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE — plus confidence-modulated variants like VERIFY FIRST.
Deal rating	The report's scored assessment of the whole structure — price, fees, financing together.
Recall (NHTSA campaign)	A federal safety fix, issued at year/make/model level. Free to remedy at a dealer; verify VIN-specific applicability.
Garage	Carlarity's ownership tracker: value, equity, and signals for the vehicles you keep.
Signal	A Garage alert that conditions changed — e.g., a favorable selling window. Steady means steady.
Fee load	The combined weight of all fees and add-ons on the deal — itemized in your report.
Single-source estimate	A pricing figure backed by one provider rather than corroborated consensus — always labeled, never inflated.