A Buick VIN is 17 characters. Positions 1–3 say who built it and where, 4–8 describe the body and engine, 9 is a check digit, 10 is the model year, 11 is the plant, and 12–17 are the serial number. On a Buick those first three characters are almost always KL4, 1G4, 5GA — 74% of the 818 VINs decoded here start with one of them.
Got a VIN from another make? The free VIN decoder reads any 17-character VIN, whatever built it.
How to read a Buick VIN
Here is a real 2026 Buick VIN from our database, split into its parts:
VIN 5GAERAKS0TJ270524 — decoded free on its own report page.
| Position | Section | What it tells you |
|---|---|---|
| 1–3 | WMI | World Manufacturer Identifier — country, manufacturer and vehicle type. |
| 4–8 | VDS | Vehicle Descriptor Section — body style, engine, restraint system, series. |
| 9 | Check digit | A calculated digit that validates the whole VIN. Wrong digit = wrong VIN. |
| 10 | Model year | One character for the model year. Letters skip I, O, Q, U and Z. |
| 11 | Plant | The assembly plant that built the car. |
| 12–17 | Serial | Sequential production number of this exact vehicle. |
Which Buick is it? Read the first three characters
Characters 1–3 are the World Manufacturer Identifier, and Buick runs 8 of them across 6 countries, so on a Buick the prefix alone tells you which line the car came off and what body it was built as. Counted across 818 Buick VINs decoded here:
| WMI | Built in | Vehicle type | Models under this code | VINs on file |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| KL4 | South Korea | — | Encore, Encore GX, Envista | |
| 1G4 | United States | — | Century, Electra, LaCrosse, LeSabre, Lucerne + 7 more | |
| 5GA | United States | — | Enclave, Rainier | |
| LRB | China | — | Envision | |
| 2G4 | Canada | — | Allure, Century, LaCrosse, Regal | |
| W04 | Germany | — | Cascada, Regal, Regal TourX | |
| 3G5 | Mexico | — | Rendezvous | |
| 4GL | United States | — | Roadmaster |
Country and vehicle type come from the NHTSA manufacturer registry; the model column is counted from Buick VINs decoded on ForCar, so it reflects what people actually own, not the full production catalog.
Model-year codes for Buick
Position 10 carries the model year, skipping I, O, Q, U and Z. The alphabet comes round every 30 years, which for Buick has already happened — 1996 and 2026 share the character T. All 44 model years of Buick, 1983 to 2026, with the character each one carries:
| Model year | VIN character (position 10) | Same character as |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 | T | 1996 |
| 2025 | S | 1995 |
| 2024 | R | 1994 |
| 2023 | P | 1993 |
| 2022 | N | 1992 |
| 2021 | M | 1991 |
| 2020 | L | 1990 |
| 2019 | K | 1989 |
| 2018 | J | 1988 |
| 2017 | H | 1987 |
| 2016 | G | 1986 |
| 2015 | F | 1985 |
| 2014 | E | 1984 |
| 2013 | D | 1983 |
| 2012 | C | — |
| 2011 | B | — |
| 2010 | A | — |
| 2009 | 9 | — |
| 2008 | 8 | — |
| 2007 | 7 | — |
| 2006 | 6 | — |
| 2005 | 5 | — |
| 2004 | 4 | — |
| 2003 | 3 | — |
| 2002 | 2 | — |
| 2001 | 1 | — |
| 2000 | Y | — |
| 1999 | X | — |
| 1998 | W | — |
| 1997 | V | — |
To tell the two apart on a car or light truck, look at position 7: a number for 1980–2009 models, a letter from 2010 on.
Body and engine characters we see on Buick VINs
Positions 4–8 are the maker's own build code. Across 818 VINs Buick uses 18 different characters in positions 4, 5 and 8:
| Position | Characters seen on real VINs | Variety |
|---|---|---|
| 4 — body | C (17%) · G (17%) · F (12%) · E (12%) · K (8%) · H (7%) | 6 distinct |
| 5 — series | J (18%) · V (13%) · R (11%) · Z (9%) · M (9%) · D (5%) | 6 distinct |
| 8 — engine | B (14%) · 4 (9%) · D (9%) · L (7%) · 2 (7%) · W (7%) | 6 distinct |
What a decoded Buick VIN gets you
Behind a Buick VIN: 16,953 owner complaints and every recall campaign NHTSA has on record:
| Data | For this brand | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Models covered | 25 Buick models | ForCar catalog |
| Recall campaigns | 287 across the brand | NHTSA |
| Owner complaints | 16,953 filed by Buick owners | NHTSA |
| Model years covered | 46 years (1981–2026) | ForCar catalog |
| VINs already decoded | 818 Buick VINs on file | ForCar |
Where to find the VIN on a Buick
Before hunting for the plate, know what you are looking for: a genuine Buick VIN opens with one of KL4, 1G4, 5GA, LRB, 2G4, W04. Four places on a Buick carry that number, and all four must read the same — a mismatch on this brand is where fraud shows itself first.
| Where | How to see it | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Dashboard, driver side | Through the windshield, bottom corner | Easiest to check before you touch anything |
| Driver door jamb | Open the door, sticker on the pillar | Also lists tire pressures and build date |
| Under the hood | Firewall or strut tower plate | Survives a windshield replacement |
| Title and insurance | Paper documents | Must match the car — a mismatch means fraud or a swapped panel |
Decode a VIN by Buick model
Codes in positions 4–8 are assigned per model, not per brand, and Buick has 25 of them in our catalog. 5 of the prefixes above cover more than one model, so the table on this page narrows it down but does not finish the job. Open the Buick you own for the plants, year codes and build characters that apply to it alone.
You know what it is. Find out what it's worth.
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Frequently asked questions
Is this Buick VIN decoder free?
Yes — decoding a Buick VIN costs nothing and needs no account. Beyond the year, plant and build characters you also get what NHTSA holds on the Buick — 287 recall campaigns and 16,953 owner complaints — at no charge.
What do the first three characters of a Buick VIN mean?
That block is the World Manufacturer Identifier, and on a Buick it resolves to one of 8 codes — each tying the car to a plant country and a body type before you read any further. The ones that turn up most on Buick VINs here are KL4 (South Korea — Encore, Encore GX, Envista); 1G4 (United States — Century, Electra, LaCrosse); 5GA (United States — Enclave, Rainier). The full list, with the models built under each, is in the table above.
Where was my Buick built?
Character 11 names the plant, but the country is already set by characters 1–3. Of the 818 Buick VINs decoded on ForCar, assembly splits as United States 46%, South Korea 28%, China 13%, Canada 8%. Match your first three characters to the table above to see which one is yours.
How many characters is a Buick VIN?
Seventeen, on every Buick built from 1981 onwards, when the 17-character format became mandatory in the US. The oldest Buick VIN on file here is a 1983, so everything in our Buick data already uses the modern layout.
Why do two Buick model years share the same VIN character?
Position 10 cycles through the alphabet every 30 years, skipping I, O, Q, U and Z. For Buick that is not theoretical: a 1996 and a 2026 both carry T in position 10, and this brand was built in both years. Position 7 tells them apart on cars and light trucks: a number for 1980–2009 models, a letter from 2010 on.
Can a Buick VIN tell me if the car was in an accident?
Not from the characters themselves — they describe how the Buick left the factory, not what happened to it afterwards. Crash and title records sit in separate databases keyed to the same number. What is public are the 16,953 complaints Buick owners filed with NHTSA, and those we do show. Run the number through our VIN check to see what is on the record for it.
Do the body and engine characters mean the same thing on every Buick?
No, and that is the usual mistake — positions 4–8 are assigned per model, not per brand. A letter that means one body on a Buick means something else entirely on another marque. On Buick VINs the character that dominates position 4 is C — read it against the table above, not against a generic chart.
What if the VIN on the dashboard doesn't match the door jamb?
Treat it as a red flag on any car, and on a Buick check the prefix first: if the first three characters are not one of the 8 codes listed above, the plate did not come from this brand at all. Beyond that, mismatched plates mean either a replaced panel or a tampered identity — ask for documents and verify before any money changes hands.
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