Volvo VIN Decoder

What Does Each Character of the VIN Mean?

In this section, we will explain what each character of the Volvo 17-digit VIN number means. For the full breakdown, consult the Volvo VIN codes book.

1st – 3rd Characters:

The first three characters represent the country and manufacturer. Some of the characters include:

• 4V2, 4V4, 4V5, 4VG and 4VH Volvo USA
• YB1, YB2 and YB3 Volvo Europa (Belgium)
• YV1, YV2, YV4, YV5 and YVZ Volvo Sweden

4th Character:

This provides information about the vehicle series. Some of the characters include:

• A – 240
• C – XC90
• F – 740
• G – 760
• H – 780 Bertone Coupe
• J – 940
• K – 960, S90 and V90
• L – 850, S70 and V70 from 1991 to 2000
• M – S40, V50 and C70 after 2004
• N – C70
• R – S60
• S – V70 and VC70 after 2000
• T – S80
• V – S40 and V40 from 1994 to 2004

5th Character:

This represents the body type and safety system. Some of the characters include:

• C – Convertible
• H – AWD sedan
• J – AWD station wagon
• K – Coupe with airbags
• M – 4WD XC90
• N – 2WD XC90
• S – Sedan with airbags
• T – AWD sedan
• W – Wagon or 5 door hatchback with airbags
• V – AWD wagon or 5 door hatchback
• Y – XC90 with three row seating

6th & 7th Characters:

This represents the Volvo engine. A few of the characters include:

• 69 – 2.5 L
• 79 – 2.5 L
• 80-84 – 2.3 L
• 85 – 4.4 L
• 86-89 – 2.3 L turbo
• 90 – 2.8 L turbo
• 92 – 2.4 L
• 93 – 2.5 L
• 95, 96 – 3.0 L
• 98 – 3.2 L
• 99 – 2.5 L or 3.0 L Turbo

8th character:

For 1991 and earlier models, this represents the body style. From 1991, the eight character represents the emission standard. Since this code changes from year to year, you can use our Volvo VIN decoder to easily and accurately verify the emission system. Some of the characters include:

• 2 – Two door
• 4 – Four door
• 5 – Five door

9th Character:

This is the check digit that verifies that the VIN is authentic and not a fake string of random characters. It is calculated using a specific algorithm developed by the U.S. Department of Transportation.

10th Character:

The tenth character indicates the model year and alternates between numbers and letters.

Here’s a table that can help you quickly identify any car’s model year:

Code/Year	Code/Year	Code/Year	Code/Year	Code/Year
A 1980 B 1981 C 1982 D 1983 E 1984 F 1985 G 1986 H 1987 J 1988 K  1989	L 1990 M 1991 N 1992 P 1993 R 1994 S 1995 T 1996 V 1997 W 1998 X 1999	Y 2000 1 2001 2 2002 3 2003 4 2004 5 2005 6 2006 7 2007 8 2008 9 2009	A 2010 B 2011 C 2012 D 2013 E 2014 F 2015 G 2016 H 2017 J 2018 K 2019	L 2020 M 2021 N 2022 P 2023 R 2024 S 2025 T 2026 V 2027 W 2028 X 2029

11th Character:

The eleventh character shows the manufacturing plant. Some of the possible characters include:

• 0 – Kalmar, Sweden
• 1 – Gothenburg, Sweden
• 2 – Ghent, Belgium
• 3 – Halifax, Canada
• A, J – Uddevalla, Sweden
• F – Nedcar, Born, Netherlands

12th to 17th Characters:

These characters make up the unique sequential number (serial number) of the Volvo. This number doesn’t mean anything special other than the production number when the car was rolled out of the factory.

You can spend a lot of time trying to decode a VIN manually, and this is usually prone to errors. We recommend using our reliable Volvo VIN decoder to get accurate information as quickly as possible.