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Arctic Cat VIN Decoder
Enter any 17-character Arctic Cat VIN. Free US-market Arctic Cat VIN decoder backed by the official NHTSA VPIC database — engine code, assembly plant, model year, body class, and every open recall, in about 30 seconds.
How to read an Arctic Cat VIN
A Arctic Cat VIN, like any modern road-vehicle VIN, is 17 characters split into three blocks: the World Manufacturer Identifier (WMI) in positions 1–3, the Vehicle Descriptor Section (VDS) in positions 4–9, and the Vehicle Identifier Section (VIS) in positions 10–17. Here's a real Arctic Cat VIN broken down position by position.
142U3F42506M7P8V9310L11T122135140150167171
| Position | Chars | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4 | Country of origin 4 = United States. Arctic Cat has built its wheeled off-road vehicles in Thief River Falls, Minnesota since 1960 — it's one of the few powersports brands whose entire VPIC-decodable lineup is US-assembled. Production paused in early 2025 under Textron and restarted later that year under the company's new owners. |
| 2-3 | UF | Manufacturer (WMI) UF = Arctic Cat Inc. Note that NHTSA's registry for the 4UF WMI also lists makes the same plant has built as white-label products — Tracker Off Road (Bass Pro / Cabela's), Cushman, and others — so not every 4UF VIN decodes to Make = ARCTIC CAT. CheckMyVIN shows whichever make the federal record returns. |
| 4-8 | 20MPV | Vehicle Descriptor Section (VDS) Encodes the model family, body type, and engine. Arctic Cat's scheme is unusually readable: positions 4-5 repeat the model year in digits ("20" on this 2020 unit) and the following characters encode the vehicle class (MPV = multipurpose vehicle here). Even so, NHTSA VPIC often returns only a generic model name for Arctic Cat — this VIN decodes to Model = "Arctic Cat" with the body class identifying it as a side-by-side (MOHUV/ROV). Powersports OEMs file lighter VDS tables than car makers, and CheckMyVIN shows exactly what the record contains. |
| 9 | 3 | Check digit A mod-11 checksum computed from the other 16 positions. NHTSA uses this to reject typos before returning a decode — for this VIN the check digit is 3 and VPIC confirms it validates. A failed check digit returns ErrorCode 1 and CheckMyVIN flags the VIN as a possible typo. |
| 10 | L | Model year L = 2020. The full year code table is below; the 30-year cycle skips I, O, Q, U, Z and 0. Handy Arctic Cat quirk: because positions 4-5 also carry the year in plain digits, you can sanity-check position 10 against them ("20" ↔ L = 2020 on this VIN). |
| 11 | T | Assembly plant T = Thief River Falls, Minnesota — Arctic Cat's home plant since the company's founding. CheckMyVIN reads Plant City and Plant Country directly from the VPIC record (this VIN returns Thief River Falls, United States) rather than inferring from this character. Arctic Cat engines have historically come from the company's St. Cloud, MN engine plant. |
| 12-17 | 250071 | Production sequence A 6-digit serial number that increments through the model year at that plant. Not useful on its own, but combined with year and plant it confirms the VIN is internally consistent. |
VIN year codes (position 10)
The 10th character of every modern VIN encodes the model year. The cycle skips the letters I, O, Q, U and Z, and the digit 0, to avoid being confused with similar digits. This table covers every model year currently on US roads.
| Code | Year | Code | Year | Code | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A | 2010 | H | 2017 | R | 2024 |
| B | 2011 | J | 2018 | S | 2025 |
| C | 2012 | K | 2019 | T | 2026 |
| D | 2013 | L | 2020 | V | 2027 |
| E | 2014 | M | 2021 | W | 2028 |
| F | 2015 | N | 2022 | X | 2029 |
| G | 2016 | P | 2023 | Y | 2030 |
Full year code chart for all years (1980–2030) →
Arctic Cat WMI codes (positions 1–3)
The first three characters of the VIN identify the manufacturer and country of assembly. Arctic Cat uses several WMI codes depending on plant and model line.
| WMI | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 4UF | Arctic Cat Inc — ATVs & side-by-sides, Thief River Falls, MN (USA); also used for white-label builds (Tracker Off Road and others) |
Arctic Cat build sheet & options
A full Arctic Cat build sheet — factory option packages, color, and accessories — is not in the federal NHTSA VPIC dataset, and VPIC's model-level data for Arctic Cat is thinner than for cars: this brand's VINs often decode with a generic model name even when make, year, and plant are solid. CheckMyVIN confirms what the federal record contains and runs the NHTSA recall query, but Arctic Cat's off-road recalls have historically been administered through the CPSC, so a clean NHTSA result is not the whole recall picture. For original specs and open-campaign status, an Arctic Cat dealer can look the unit up by VIN, and the company publishes recall notices and owner resources at arcticcat.com.
Arctic Cat VIN decoder FAQ
Is the Arctic Cat VIN decoder free?
Yes — every Arctic Cat VIN lookup on CheckMyVIN is free, no signup, no email gate, no usage cap on individual users. Data comes from the public NHTSA VPIC API. The optional "full vehicle history report" link at the bottom of each report is an affiliate to a paid third-party history service; you can ignore it.
How do I decode an Arctic Cat Wildcat, Prowler, or Alterra VIN?
Enter the 17-character VIN above. Position 1 = country (4 = USA), positions 2-3 = WMI (UF = Arctic Cat Inc), positions 4-8 = the descriptor section (Arctic Cat repeats the model year in digits at positions 4-5 and encodes the vehicle class after it — MPV on our example), position 9 = check digit, position 10 = model year letter (L = 2020), position 11 = plant (T = Thief River Falls). CheckMyVIN reads each field from NHTSA VPIC and presents the decoded record. Expect the model field to be generic for this brand — see the data-boundary FAQ below.
Where is the Arctic Cat VIN located?
On Wildcat and Prowler side-by-sides the 17-character VIN is stamped on the frame — usually a lower frame tube on the driver's side or toward the rear of the chassis. On Alterra and older Arctic Cat ATVs it's on the frame near the left footrest or below the front rack. The engine case carries a separate engine serial number that is NOT the VIN. Snowmobiles carry a tunnel-mounted serial that this tool cannot decode.
Why does NHTSA return so little model data for my Arctic Cat?
Federal rules require detailed VIN-decode submissions for cars and light trucks but allow much lighter filings for off-road vehicles. Arctic Cat's VPIC submissions are among the thinnest we see: our verified sample VIN returns Make = ARCTIC CAT, the correct year, plant, and body class, but Model = "Arctic Cat" — a placeholder, not a real model name. VPIC also appends an "off-road vehicle warning" (ErrorCode 10) because these units aren't certified for road use; the decode is still valid. CheckMyVIN shows what the federal record has and never fills the gaps with guesses.
Why does the recall check show nothing for Arctic Cat?
Because Arctic Cat's recalls have been administered through the CPSC (Consumer Product Safety Commission), not NHTSA. As of our last verification, the NHTSA recall API returns zero campaigns for the Arctic Cat make — but real CPSC recalls exist, for example the 2014 Wildcat Trail recall for oil leaks with a fire hazard and the 2014-2017 Wildcat Trail / Sport recall for exhaust heat melting body panels. A clean NHTSA result on this page therefore does NOT mean the unit has no recall history: check cpsc.gov, the recalls page on arcticcat.com, and ask a dealer to run the VIN through the factory system.
Does the 2025 Textron sale change how my Arctic Cat decodes?
No. The VIN record is historical — a 2016 Alterra decodes the same way it did the day it was built, with Arctic Cat Inc as manufacturer of record. What the ownership change does affect is practical: Textron announced a production shutdown in late 2024, and the brand was sold in April 2025 to an investor group led by Argo's president, which restarted production at Thief River Falls. If you're buying used, confirm your local dealer is active under the new organization before assuming parts and warranty support.