A Nissan Maxima 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. Decode a Maxima VIN here and you also get its 108 recall campaigns and 5,311 owner complaints filed with NHTSA — free.
How to read a Nissan Maxima VIN
Here is a real 2023 Nissan Maxima VIN from our database, split into its parts:
VIN 1N4AA6CV6PC511559 — 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. |
Nissan Maxima VIN prefixes, and when each one was used
Characters 1–3 are not fixed for the life of a model. The Nissan Maxima ran through 4 different prefixes across 27 years — a Maxima built in 1983 opens with JN1, one from 2009 with JN8, and a chart that assumes Maxima always starts the same way will hand you the wrong car:
| VIN starts with | Years seen | Built in | Vehicle type | VINs on record |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| JN1 | 1983–2011 | Japan | Passenger Car | |
| 5N1 | 1987–2006 | United States | Multipurpose Passenger Vehicle (MPV) | |
| 1N4 | 1994–2023 | United States | Passenger Car | |
| JN8 | 1997–2009 | Japan | Multipurpose Passenger Vehicle (MPV) |
Position 11 names the plant. On the Nissan Maxima it is not one number either — assembly moved between 8 of them over the years:
| Plant code | Years active | VINs on record | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| C | 1994–2023 | 3,441 | |
| T | 1982–2011 | 1,605 | |
| M | 1991–2009 | 90 | |
| X | 1984–1998 | 77 | |
| 8 | 1986–2012 | 11 | |
| P | 1989–2005 | 9 | |
| 2 | 1987–2002 | 8 | |
| N | 1992–2007 | 7 |
Counted from the 5,250 dated Nissan Maxima VINs attached to NHTSA complaints — the largest such set for this model — with every code checked against the NHTSA manufacturer registry, so mistyped entries are dropped; the figures say how many records carry each code, not how many Maximas left the line.
Model-year codes for the Nissan Maxima
Position 10 carries the model year, skipping I, O, Q, U and Z. The alphabet comes round every 30 years, which for the Nissan Maxima has already happened — 1993 and 2023 share the character P. All 42 model years of the Nissan Maxima, 1981 to 2023, with the character each one carries:
| Model year | VIN character (position 10) | Same character as |
|---|---|---|
| 2023 | P | 1993 |
| 2022 | N | 1992 |
| 2021 | M | 1991 |
| 2020 | L | 1990 |
| 2019 | K | 1989 |
| 2018 | J | 1988 |
| 2017 | H | 1987 |
| 2016 | G | 1986 |
| 2014 | E | 1984 |
| 2013 | D | 1983 |
| 2012 | C | 1982 |
| 2011 | B | 1981 |
| 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 | — |
| 1996 | T | — |
| 1995 | S | — |
| 1994 | R | — |
| 1993 | P | 2023 |
When two years share a character, the check digit and serial range tell them apart — that is what the decoder does automatically.
Body and engine characters we see on Nissan Maxima VINs
Positions 4 through 8 describe the build, and manufacturers assign them themselves — the same letter means different things on different marques. Across 60 VINs the Nissan Maxima uses 13 different characters in these three slots alone — the ones below, ordered by how much of the Nissan fleet each covers:
| Position | Characters seen on real VINs | Variety |
|---|---|---|
| 4 — body | A (83%) · C (10%) · D (3%) · B (2%) · E (2%) | 5 distinct |
| 5 — series | A (98%) · J (2%) | 2 distinct |
| 8 — engine | P (70%) · D (12%) · V (10%) · E (3%) · T (2%) · A (2%) | 6 distinct |
A character that dominates the column usually marks the body style the model was mostly sold in; a spread across several means multiple bodies or engines shared the same platform.
What a decoded Nissan Maxima VIN gets you
Reading the characters is the easy part — the reason to decode a VIN is what sits behind it. For the Nissan Maxima that is 5,311 owner complaints and every recall campaign NHTSA has on record, keyed to the same VIN you just read:
| Data | For this model | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Recall campaigns | 108 campaigns | NHTSA |
| Owner complaints | 5,311 filed | NHTSA |
| Fuel economy | 22 mpg combined (avg) | EPA |
| Crash-test ratings | 10 rated model years | NHTSA |
| Model years covered | 42 years | ForCar catalog |
Where to find the VIN on a Nissan Maxima
A Nissan Maxima VIN normally opens with 1N4. Four places on the car carry the full number, and all four must agree — on a Nissan Maxima, a plate that disagrees 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 tyre 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 |
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Frequently asked questions
Is this Nissan Maxima VIN decoder free?
Yes — decoding a Nissan Maxima VIN costs nothing and needs no account. Beyond the year, plant and build characters you also get what NHTSA holds on the Nissan Maxima — 108 recall campaigns and 5,311 owner complaints — at no charge.
Why does my Maxima VIN start differently from another Maxima?
Because the prefix changed during the model's run. Across the Nissan Maxima VINs on record we see 4 of them: JN1 (1983–2011), 5N1 (1987–2006), 1N4 (1994–2023), JN8 (1997–2009). A 1983 car opens with JN1, a 2009 one with JN8, and both are genuine. A decoder that assumes a single prefix for the whole model is where the wrong answers come from.
How many characters is a Nissan Maxima VIN?
Seventeen, on every Nissan Maxima built from 1981 onwards, when the 17-character format became mandatory in the US. The oldest Nissan Maxima VIN on file here is a 1992, so everything in our Nissan data already uses the modern layout.
Why do two Nissan Maxima model years share the same VIN character?
Position 10 cycles through the alphabet every 30 years, skipping I, O, Q, U and Z. For the Nissan Maxima that is not theoretical: a 1993 and a 2023 both carry P in position 10, and this model was built in both years. The check digit and serial range separate them.
Can a Nissan Maxima VIN tell me if the car was in an accident?
Not from the characters themselves — they describe how the Nissan Maxima 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 5,311 complaints Nissan Maxima 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 Nissan?
No, and that is the usual mistake — positions 4–8 are assigned per model, not per brand. A letter that means one body on the Nissan Maxima can mean a different one on another Nissan, and something else again on another marque. On Nissan Maxima VINs the character that dominates position 4 is A — 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 Nissan Maxima check the prefix first: for the model year in question it should open with JN1 or 5N1 or 1N4 or JN8, depending on when the car was built — anything outside that set did not come off a Nissan Maxima. 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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