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Volkswagen VIN Decoder

Paste a 17-character Volkswagen VIN to decode the year, model, trim, engine, and where it was built — instantly, from NHTSA data. Free, no sign-up.

How to read a Volkswagen VIN

Volkswagen sells German-built cars (VINs starting with WVW) alongside U.S. production in Chattanooga, Tennessee (1VW) and Mexican production in Puebla (3VW). The first three characters — the World Manufacturer Identifier (WMI) — are the fastest tell. These are the Volkswagenprefixes you'll see most often:

WVW
Volkswagen passenger cars built in Germany
1VW
Volkswagen built in the U.S. (Chattanooga, Tennessee) — Passat, Atlas
3VW
Volkswagen built in Mexico (Puebla) — Jetta, Tiguan
9BW
Volkswagen built in Brazil

These are the common prefixes, not an exhaustive list — manufacturers add and retire WMIs over time. The decoder above always reads the authoritative record from NHTSA. For the full breakdown of all 17 VIN positions and the model-year chart, see the main VIN decoder guide.

Common Volkswagen models this decoder covers

Volkswagen JettaVolkswagen TiguanVolkswagen AtlasVolkswagen PassatVolkswagen Golf

Volkswagen VIN decoder FAQ

How do I decode a Volkswagen VIN?▾
Paste the full 17-character Volkswagen VIN into the decoder above and it returns the year, model, trim, engine, transmission and body style from NHTSA's database. Every Volkswagen built since 1981 has a 17-character VIN you can decode this way.
What does a Volkswagen VIN start with?▾
Volkswagen VINs commonly begin with WVW, 1VW, 3VW, 9BW. The first three characters are the World Manufacturer Identifier: the first tells you the country of assembly and the next two identify Volkswagen and the vehicle class.
Where are Volkswagen vehicles built?▾
Volkswagen sells German-built cars (VINs starting with WVW) alongside U.S. production in Chattanooga, Tennessee (1VW) and Mexican production in Puebla (3VW). You can read the exact plant country from the first VIN character and confirm the specifics in the decoded result above.
Is this Volkswagen VIN decoder free?▾
Yes — decoding a Volkswagen VIN here is free, needs no sign-up, and pulls directly from the U.S. government's NHTSA vPIC database.

Decode another make

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Decode every Volkswagen you take in — automatically

DealerVLO is a dealer management system for independent used-car lots. Paste a VIN when you add a vehicle and the year, make, model, trim, engine and GVWR fill themselves — no re-typing onto the title application or the listing.

  • Inventory with photo management and a public dealer website
  • Deal jacket — Bill of Sale, FTC Buyers Guide, Federal Odometer Disclosure
  • Customer CRM with encrypted PII and a website lead inbox
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