You can get the vehicle build date from the VIN, the following is the Vehicle Identification Number decoded. You should have 17 characters (on the plate on the drivers door). For example my VIN is 1FMDU35P9VUC49227
1 - Built in U.S.A.
F - By FORD MOTOR COMPANY
M - MULTI PURPOSE VEHICLE
D - HYDRAULIC BRAKE CLASS D 5000-6000LBS
U35 - Model and body type - XLT AWD
P - 5.0 V8 EFI MOTOR
9 - Check Digit for the VIN
V - Year of manufacture 1997
U - Factory that built the car LOUISEVILLE, KENTUCKY, U.S.A.
C49227 - Car number at the factory
The first three characters signify the make of the car, usually as follows: The first character of your VIN represents the country of manufacture
1 = USA J = Japan Y = Finland, Sweden
2 = Canada K = Korea
3 = Mexico W = Germany
The second character represents the manufacturer or make of the vehicle, as follows:
A = Alfa Romeo, B = Dodge, C = Chrysler, D = Daihatsu, E = Eagle, F= Ford/Eagle,
G = All General Motors vehicles (Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, Oldsmobile, Pontiac, Saturn)
H = Honda/Acura, J= Jeep, L = Lincoln, M = Mitsubishi, N = Nissan/Infiniti, P = Plymouth,
S = Subaru, T = Toyota/Lexus, V = Volkswagen
Other makes use a 3-character combination:
TRU/WAU = Audi, 4US/WBA/WBS = BMW, 2HM/KMH = Hyundai, SAJ = Jaguar,
SAL = Land Rover, 1YV/JM1 = Mazda, WDB = Mercedes-Benz, VF3 = Peugeot,
WP0 = Porsche, YK1/YS3 = Saab, YV1=Volvo, 8 = Isuzu
The fourth character is the type of restraint system or brake type:
For the Ford VIN Decoder, the R represents hydraulic brakes
The fifth, sixth & seventh characters are the car line, series and body style
This will obviously be different for all makes, but let's use the Ford VIN Decoder example above: Characters 5, 6 & 7 are X18: X18 is a Ford F150 Pickup 4WD Super Cab
The eighth character is a description of the engine:
This will be different for all makes as well, so let's use the Ford VIN Decoder example again: Character 8 is a W: W represents a 4.6 liter V-8 engine
The tenth character represents the year of the car. Pay close attention to this one:
B = 1981 F = 1985 K = 1989 P = 1993 V = 1997 1 = 2001
C = 1982 G = 1986 L = 1990 R = 1994 W = 1998 2 = 2002
D = 1983 H = 1987 M = 1991 S = 1995 X = 1999 3 = 2003
E = 1984 J = 1988 N = 1992 T = 1996 Y = 2000
The eleventh character indicates the assembly plant.
In the above Ford VIN Decoder example, the C indicates Ontario, Canada
Characters 12-17 represent the vehicle's unique fingerprint.
It is these six digits which make every single vehicle in the world different.
Please note: The letter "I" as in indigo, the letter "O" as in orange, and the letter "Q" as in queen are NOT found in any VIN Numbers.
For more recent Fords (2000-2004), they have specific decoders which can be found at
Dead Link Removed
Hope this helps.
Jason H.
