Volkswagen VIN Decoder Australia

What each character on a Volkswagen VIN means, and what it doesn't tell you.

Volkswagens in our data
328,608
Volkswagens in our data
Characters that identify the model
8 characters
identify the model
Last updated
Sep 2026
last updated

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How to read a Volkswagen VIN

Take a 2016 Golf. Its VIN starts WVWZZZAU, and those eight characters are the useful part. Character 10 adds the model year (G for 2016). The serial number after it is unique to one car, so it's painted out here.

Golf Mk7 · windscreen VIN plate

WVWZZZAU PAINTED OUT 1234567891011121314151617 1 2 3 4 5 6
  1. Characters 1 to 3: Maker and country
  2. Characters 4 to 6: Filler (ZZZ outside North America)
  3. Characters 7 and 8: Model and generation
  4. Character 9: Not a check digit on a Volkswagen
  5. Character 10: Model year
  6. Characters 11 to 17: Plant and serial number

Characters 1 to 8

Maker and country, three filler characters (ZZZ outside North America), then the model code. AU is a Golf Mk7.

Characters 9 and 10

On a US car, a check digit and the model year. On a Volkswagen, 9 is usually a filler: it was a valid check digit on only 3% of the 8,232 we checked. 10 is the model year: it landed within a year of the build year on 99.7% of them.

Characters 11 to 17

Plant and serial number. Unique to one car, so never shown.

A Volkswagen build plate (illustration)

The VIN gives the model year, not the build date

On a Volkswagen, the 10th character is the model year, the same as on a US car. In September 2026 we checked 8,232 Volkswagens against their build dates, and it was within a year of the build year on 99.7% of them. The model year is not the build date, though: that is on the build plate, and in every Carify VIN check.

Golf VIN patterns

Each Golf generation has its own two-character code in characters 7 and 8.

Pattern Generation Built Cars in our data
Golf Mk4 Also used on the Bora 2000 to 2004 4,281
Golf Mk6 Also used on the Jetta 2005 to 2012 36,431
Golf Mk7 2013 to 2019 47,583
Golf Mk8 2021 on 7,567

Plus 10 less common patterns. Built: the middle 90% of build years, from 3,477 decoded cars. Updated Sep 2026.

Golf (Mk7) · where to find the VIN
Line drawing of a Golf hatch (Mk7), numbered where the VIN is
  1. The VIN plate on the dashboard, seen through the base of the windscreen on the passenger side
    1  Base of the windscreenPassenger side. Read it from outside.
  2. The VIN stamped into the water drainage channel between the right strut tower and the wing, with the bonnet open
    2  Under the bonnetDriver's side, stamped between the strut tower and the wing.
  3. The vehicle data sticker in the spare wheel well, with the boot floor lifted
    3  Spare wheel wellLift the boot floor to find the vehicle data sticker.

Locations from Volkswagen's owner's manual for the Golf (Mk7).

Other popular Volkswagens

The Volkswagens we see most after the Golf, and the patterns that identify them.

  • Tiguan

    and 5 more

    • 5N 2009 to 2022

    From 868 decoded cars

  • Amarok

    and 1 more

    • 2H 2011 to 2021
    • NF 2023 on

    From 810 decoded cars

  • Polo

    and 4 more

    • 9N 2003 to 2009
    • 6R 2010 to 2017
    • AW 2018 to 2023

    From 909 decoded cars

  • T-Roc

    • Mk1 2020 on

    From 100 decoded cars

Other makes

About these numbers: generations and build years come from 8,232 Volkswagens decoded from factory records, one per VIN. Build years show the middle 90% of each pattern, and patterns with fewer than 30 decoded cars are left out. Updated September 2026.