Honda VIN Decoder
Enter any 17-character Honda VIN. Free US-market Honda 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 a Honda VIN
A Honda 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 Honda VIN broken down position by position.
122H3G4F5C627F859110H11H125130140150160171
| Position | Chars | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | Country of origin 2 = Canada. Honda VINs starting with 1 are USA-built (Marysville OH, East Liberty OH, Lincoln AL); 2 = Canada (Alliston ON); J = Japan (Suzuka and Saitama plants); 5 = USA Honda SUV / Acura (Lincoln AL, East Liberty OH). For motorcycles JH2 = Japan-built Honda Motorrad. |
| 2-3 | HG | Manufacturer (WMI) HG = Honda Canada passenger car (Civic / CR-V at Alliston). Other major Honda WMIs include 1HG (USA passenger — Civic / Accord Marysville), JHM (Japan passenger), 5FN (USA MPV / SUV — Pilot / Odyssey / Passport), 5J6 (USA CR-V — East Liberty), JH2 (Japan motorcycle — CBR / CRF / Gold Wing), and 1HF (USA ATV — TRX / Rancher / FourTrax). |
| 4-8 | FC2F5 | Vehicle Descriptor Section (VDS) Encodes the model line (Civic FC sedan for this VIN), body style, restraint type, transmission, and engine. Honda does not publish a public VDS-to-trim table, so CheckMyVIN reports the Model, Trim, Body Class and Engine Model that NHTSA VPIC returns directly rather than decoding the chars in isolation. |
| 9 | 1 | Check digit A mod-11 checksum computed from the other 16 positions. NHTSA uses this to reject typos before returning a decode — if the check digit is wrong, VPIC returns ErrorCode 1 and CheckMyVIN treats that as an unreadable VIN. |
| 10 | H | Model year H = 2017. The full year code table is below. The 30-year cycle skips I, O, Q, U, Z and 0 to avoid being confused with similar-looking digits. |
| 11 | H | Assembly plant For this VIN, H maps to Alliston — Honda of Canada Manufacturing in Ontario, where the 10th-gen Civic sedan / coupe / hatchback was built for the North American market alongside the CR-V. CheckMyVIN reads Plant City and Plant Country directly from the VPIC record rather than inferring from this character; Honda also builds in Marysville OH (Accord / Acura TLX), East Liberty OH (CR-V / Acura RDX), Lincoln AL (Pilot / Passport / Ridgeline / Odyssey), Greensburg IN (Civic / CR-V Hybrid), Japan (multiple plants), Mexico (Celaya — HR-V / Fit), and Brazil. Honda motorcycles come from Hamamatsu and Kumamoto in Japan. |
| 12-17 | 500001 | 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) →
Honda WMI codes (positions 1–3)
The first three characters of the VIN identify the manufacturer and country of assembly. Honda uses several WMI codes depending on plant and model line.
| WMI | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 1HG | Honda passenger car — Marysville, OH USA |
| 2HG | Honda passenger car (Civic) — Alliston, ON Canada |
| JHM | Honda passenger car — Japan |
| 5FN | Honda SUV (Pilot, Passport) — Lincoln, AL USA |
| 5J6 | Honda SUV (CR-V) — East Liberty, OH USA |
| JH2 | Honda motorcycle — Japan |
Honda build sheet & options
A full Honda build sheet — original Monroney sticker options, package contents (Sport / EX / Touring / Type R), exterior color code, dealer-installed accessories — is not part of the federal NHTSA VPIC dataset. CheckMyVIN can confirm the model, trim level, engine family (K20C2, L15B7 turbo, J35Y6, K24W7), assembly plant, model year, body class, and recall history pulled live from NHTSA, but it cannot return the original window-sticker options. For the full Monroney your authoritative source is a Honda dealer, who can pull the build sheet from the VIN through Honda's service system — the Honda Owners site at owners.honda.com also retains the original sale configuration when the VIN is linked to your account. CheckMyVIN never claims options data it cannot verify against the NHTSA record.
Honda VIN decoder FAQ
Is the Honda VIN decoder free?
Yes — every Honda 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 read a Honda VIN (Civic, Accord, CR-V, Pilot)?
A Honda VIN is 17 characters: position 1 is the country (1 = USA, 2 = Canada, J = Japan, 5 = USA SUV), positions 2-3 are the WMI (1HG / 2HG = passenger car Marysville or Alliston, 5FN = USA MPV, 5J6 = USA CR-V, JHM = Japan passenger), position 10 is the model year (H = 2017, see the year table on this page), and position 11 is the plant. Enter any 17-character Honda VIN above and CheckMyVIN reads every field via the official NHTSA database.
Does CheckMyVIN cover Honda motorcycles (CBR, CRF, Gold Wing, Africa Twin)?
Yes — Honda motorcycles use the WMI JH2 (Japan-built) and are fully decoded by NHTSA VPIC. The decoder returns engine displacement, body class, and assembly plant the same way it does for cars. Note that on a bike the 17-character VIN is stamped on the steering neck (turn the handlebars to one side and look at the metal where the frame meets the front forks) — the separate serial number on the engine case is NOT the VIN. CBR / CBR Repsol / CRF / CRF-R / Gold Wing / Africa Twin / Rebel / Shadow / Grom / Monkey / NC700 / NC750 — every modern Honda Motorcycle in NHTSA VPIC decodes through this same decoder.
Does CheckMyVIN cover Honda ATVs / quads / side-by-sides (FourTrax, Rancher, Talon, Pioneer)?
Yes — Honda Powersports vehicles registered in NHTSA VPIC are supported. ATVs (TRX / FourTrax / Rancher / Foreman / Rubicon) use the WMI 1HF for USA-built quads and decode normally. The Talon side-by-side and Pioneer multi-purpose UTV are also covered. Note that on an ATV / side-by-side the 17-character VIN is stamped on the frame (usually on the left side rail near the front of the frame), not on a dash plate.
Where is the Honda VIN located?
Three places on every modern Honda car: the dash plate at the base of the windshield (visible from outside, driver side), the driver-door jamb certification sticker, and on the title / registration. On Honda motorcycles the VIN is on the steering neck; on Honda ATVs / side-by-sides it's stamped on the frame rail. The Honda Owners app (linked to the VIN) also displays it under Vehicle Information.
Does CheckMyVIN cover Acura?
Yes — Acura is Honda's luxury sub-brand and uses the same VIN structure. Acura VINs start with 19U (Marysville OH), JH4 (Japan, older), or 5J8 (Honda SUV-built Acura). Every Acura in the NHTSA VPIC database decodes through this same Honda decoder; CheckMyVIN reports Make = ACURA in the result.
How do I tell a Honda engine code (K20, K24, L15 turbo, J35) from the VIN?
The engine code is in the Engine Model field NHTSA VPIC returns — decode the VIN above and look at the Vehicle Specifications block. K20C2 = 2.0L i-VTEC (Civic LX/EX 2016+), K24W7 = 2.4L direct-injection (Accord 2013-2017), L15B7 = 1.5L turbo (Civic Sport / Touring, Accord 1.5T, CR-V 1.5T), J35Y6 = 3.5L V6 (Pilot / Odyssey / Ridgeline), K20C1 = 2.0L turbo (Civic Type R 306-315 hp). Engine code dictates oil grade, service interval, and the engine's known weak points.