Guide · 7 min read
VIN Number Decoded
A VIN isn't random. The first three letters tell you the country and manufacturer; the tenth is the model year. Here's the full map.
A VIN is 17 characters, and every position means something specific. Here's the full map.
Positions 1 to 3: manufacturer
First character is country (1, 4, or 5 for USA, J for Japan, W for Germany). Characters two and three narrow to manufacturer and region.
Positions 4 to 8: vehicle attributes
Manufacturer-specific. Encodes model, body style, engine, transmission, and restraint system. Decoding needs the manufacturer's key. Our free VIN decoder handles the common ones.
Position 9: check digit
A single character that validates the rest mathematically. If any other position was tampered with, this stops matching.
Position 10: model year
A letter or number. A is 1980 or 2010, B is 1981 or 2011, and so on. Cycle repeats every 30 years.
Position 11: assembly plant
One character for the plant where the car was built.
Positions 12 to 17: serial number
The vehicle's sequential number at that plant for that model year.
Common WMI codes
- 1G1: Chevrolet (US)
- 1FA: Ford (US)
- JHM: Honda (Japan)
- JT: Toyota / Lexus (Japan)
- 5YJ: Tesla (US)
- WAU: Audi (Germany)
- WBA: BMW (Germany)
- WDB: Mercedes-Benz (Germany)
Decoded? Grab a cheap Carfax report for $9.99.