VIN Decode – explanation and example
First digit: Country of manufacture
| 1|4|5 | USA | L | China |
| 2 | Canada | M | India | Indonesia | Thailand |
| 3 | Mexico | Cayman Islands | N | Pakistan | Turkey |
| 6 | Australia | P | Philippines | Singapore | Malaysia |
| 7 | New Zinland | R | Taiwan | Vietnam |
| 8 | Argentina | Chile | Ecuador | Peru | S | United Kingdom | Germany |
| 9 | Brazil | Colombia | Paraguay | T | Switzerland | Hungary | Portugal |
| A | South Africa | Ivory Coast | U | Denmark | Ireland| Romania |
| B | Angola | Kenya | Tanzania | V | Austria | France | Spain | Croatia |
| C | Benin | Madagascar | Tunisia | W | Germany |
| D | Egypt | Morocco| Zambia | X | Bulgaria | Greece | Russia |
| F | Ghana | Nigeria | Y | Belgium | Sweden | Norway |
| J | Japan | Z | Italy | Slovenia |
| K | Sri Lanka | Israel | Korea |
Second Digit: Manufacturer
| A | Audi, Jaguar, or Mitsubishi Hyundai | N | Nissan Kia |
| B | BMW or Dodge | M | Mitsubishi Chevrolet |
| C | Chrysler | R | Audi |
| D | Mercedes-Benz | T | Toyota or Lexus |
| F | Ford or Subaru | V | Volkswagen (VW) or Volvo |
| G | General Motors | 1 | Chevrolet |
| H | Honda or Acura | 4 | Buick |
| J | Jeep | 6 | Cadillac |
Third Digit: Vehicle Type.
The third digit indicates manufacture division.
Digits 1-3 together complete the “World Manufacturer Identifier”, which indicates which division of what manufacturer built this vehicle and where.
example: 8AJ – Toyota Argentina.
Digit 4-9: Vehicle Description Section
4th-8th – Model and body type:
Digits 4-8 indicate the vehicle model, body type, transmission, engine type, and more.
9th – Check digit:
Department of transportation developed a formula to check invalid VIN by the 9th check digit.
10th Digit – Year
| Code | Year | Code | Year | Code | Year | Code | Year |
| A | 1980 | L | 1990 | Y | 2000 | A | 2010 |
| B | 1981 | M | 1991 | 1 | 2001 | B | 2011 |
| C | 1982 | N | 1992 | 2 | 2002 | C | 2012 |
| D | 1983 | P | 1993 | 3 | 2003 | D | 2013 |
| E | 1984 | R | 1994 | 4 | 2004 | E | 2014 |
| F | 1985 | S | 1995 | 5 | 2005 | F | 2015 |
| G | 1986 | T | 1996 | 6 | 2006 | G | 2016 |
| H | 1987 | V | 1997 | 7 | 2007 | H | 2017 |
| J | 1988 | W | 1998 | 8 | 2008 | J | 2018 |
| K | 1989 | X | 1999 | 9 | 2009 | K | 2019 |
11th Digit – Plant Code:
Another indication that encodes the factory of manufacture of the vehicle.
12th-17th Digit – Serial Number:
A unique set of numbers to identify a specific vehicle that left the manufacturing floor. These are the numbers used to follow the vehicle history, parts and any other unique information.