Ridicarea vehiculului este o sancțiune.

It comes from the verb a ridica, which basically means to raise / to lift / to pick up. As a noun, ridicarea means the lifting or the removal.

In traffic or parking language, ridicarea vehiculului usually refers to the removal/towing away of the vehicle, not just physically lifting it in a general sense.

Because Romanian usually puts the definite article at the end of the noun.

• ridicare = a lifting / a removal
• ridicarea = the lifting / the removal

So ridicarea vehiculului means the removal of the vehicle.

Because Romanian is expressing of the vehicle, and that requires the genitive form.

• vehicul = vehicle
• vehiculul = the vehicle
• vehiculului = of the vehicle / to the vehicle

So ridicarea vehiculului literally means the removal of the vehicle.

Because Romanian often uses noun endings instead of a separate preposition.

In English:

• the removal of the vehicle

In Romanian:

• ridicarea vehiculului

The ending -ului already shows that vehiculului means of the vehicle. So Romanian does not need a separate word like of here.

Because sancțiune is a feminine singular noun, and o is the feminine singular indefinite article, meaning a.

• sancțiune = penalty / sanction
• o sancțiune = a penalty / a sanction
• sancțiunea = the penalty / the sanction

So este o sancțiune means is a penalty.

Yes. In this sentence, sancțiune is best understood as penalty or punitive measure.

That is important because English sanction can sometimes mean approval/authorization, but Romanian sancțiune in this kind of legal or administrative context means a punishment, penalty, or disciplinary measure.

So the natural sense here is:

• The removal of the vehicle is a penalty.

It is singular.

• vehiculului = of the vehicle / to the vehicle
• vehiculelor = of the vehicles / to the vehicles

So this sentence refers to one vehicle in a general legal sense.

Yes. That would be very common if you specifically mean the car rather than the vehicle.

• vehiculului is more formal, official, or legal
• mașinii is more everyday and usually means the car

So:

• Ridicarea vehiculului este o sancțiune. = formal/administrative
• Ridicarea mașinii este o sancțiune. = more everyday

This is the most neutral word order:

• Ridicarea vehiculului este o sancțiune.

Romanian word order is somewhat flexible, but changing it changes the emphasis. For example:

• O sancțiune este ridicarea vehiculului.

This is possible, but it sounds more like a definition or a classification: One penalty is the removal of the vehicle.

So the original version is the most natural if you simply want to state the idea.

No. In everyday speech, Romanians often use e instead of este.

So both are possible:

• Ridicarea vehiculului este o sancțiune.
• Ridicarea vehiculului e o sancțiune.

The version with este sounds a bit more formal or careful, which fits a legal or official statement very well.

A rough guide:

• sancțiune ≈ sank-TSYU-ne
• vehiculului ≈ ve-hi-KU-lu-luy

A few useful points:

• ț sounds like ts in cats
• ciu here sounds roughly like tsyu
• the ending -ului is very common in Romanian and often sounds roughly like -luy

You do not need a perfect English-based spelling, but noticing ț = ts is especially helpful.