Car make · Canada · United States · South Korea · 1990–2013

Buick VIN Decoder

Enter a Buick VIN to read its model year, model, trim, engine and factory specs. The lamps check the format as you type.

Buick

MAKE DATA

Countries: Canada · United States · South Korea · MexicoFrom the WMI codes below
WMI: 2G4 · 1G4 · 5GA · KL4 · 3G55 maker codes in our patterns
Models: 18 VIN patterns listed below
Years: 1990–2013Sample years in the table
Check digit: North American, position 9

/buick-vin-decoder

01About

About Buick

Possessed by General Motors, Buick is among numerous earliest brands, having a wealthy tradition of innovation that goes back towards the turn from the century. Though lengthy noted for catering to retirement-age clients using its full-size sedans, the automaker's selection now includes Sports utility vehicles and sport sedans made to bring more youthful purchasers in to the showrooms of Buick sellers.

Once corporate identity and search issues were acceptable solved, Buick began concentrating on vehicle-engine development. The emphasis Buick placed on his work would soon repay, the genesis from the overhead valve engine getting introduced the organization an ample quantity of acclaim.

Durant did not be satisfied with just making certain the prosperity of the Buick logo and went farther to overcome racing grounds too. His team, created of Louis Chevrolet and Wild Bob Burman (amongst others), grabbed as many as 500 trophies only between 1908 and 1910. The main reason to why Buick had a lot success was that by 1908 it was subsequently the nation's leading automobile producer with 8,820 cars created. As though this wasn't enough, the brand new model 10 had capped the rest of the company's sales, with 4,002 models created. The success registered through the Buick title increased enough to supply Durant using the cause for breeding a sizable holding company. Thus, Vehicle was created.

However, this alternative of title didn't have the effective resonance of their founder's title, that was quick to replace it all by 1903 - when the organization pinned a completely new title tag to the chest: the Buick Manufacturing Co. Throughout exactly the same year, the business's heads selected further simplifying the title by shedding the 'Manufacturing' in the label.

02Models

Buick VIN patterns

One sample year per model. The pattern is VIN positions 1–8 and 10–11: everything except the check digit and the serial.

Buick models Century to Park Avenue
Model	Year	VIN pattern
Century	2002	`2G4WY55J·21`
Electra	1990	`1G4CU54C·L1`
Enclave	2013	`5GAKRDED·DJ`
Encore	2013	`KL4CJBSB·DB`
Estate Wagon	1990	`1G4BR81Y·LA`
LaCrosse	2006	`2G4WC552·61`
LeSabre	1997	`1G4HP52K·VH`
Lucerne	2011	`1G4HC5EM·BU`
Park Avenue	2004	`1G4CW54K·44`

Buick models Rainier to Verano
Model	Year	VIN pattern
Rainier	2005	`5GADS13S·52`
Reatta	1991	`1G4EC13L·MB`
Regal	1998	`2G4WB52K·W1`
Rendezvous	2005	`3G5DB037·5S`
Riviera	1992	`1G4EZ13L·NU`
Roadmaster	1996	`1G4BN52P·TR`
Skylark	1993	`1G4NV143·PC`
Terraza	2006	`5GADX33L·6D`
Verano	2012	`1G4PP5SK·C4`

2G4 maker code (WMI) · WY55J vehicle descriptor · 2 model-year code · 1 plant code. The check digit (position 9) sits where the dot is.

03Location

Where to find a Buick VIN

Dashboard tagDriver's side, at the base of the windshield. Read it from outside the car.
Door jamb stickerOpen the driver's door and look at the frame.
PaperworkTitle, registration and insurance card all carry the full VIN.

04Breakdown

How a Buick VIN breaks down

The 2013 Enclave pattern from the table, 5GAKRDED·DJ, position by position. A VIN has 17 characters and never uses I, O or Q.

2013 Buick Enclave · VIN pattern? = check digit · # = serial

1–3 · WMIMaker & country5GA · Buick, United States

4–8 · VDSModel, body, engineKRDED · Enclave

9CheckCalc.

10YearD · 2013

11PlantJ

12–17 · SerialUnique to this vehicleNot in the pattern

WMI · 1–32G4 for Canada; 1G4, 5GA for United States; KL4 for South Korea; 3G5 for Mexico.

VDS · 4–8Model, body and engine. The decoder turns these into specs.

CHECK · 9Worked out from the other 16 characters. A typo breaks it.

YEAR · 10D is 2013 here. In the table, 2 is 2002 and L is 1990.

PLANT · 11The factory that assembled the car.

SERIAL · 12–17Unique to each vehicle, so it isn't part of the pattern.

05API

Decode Buick VINs in your app

22 fields per decode: year, model, trim, engine, dimensions, mpg, features
Salvage checks and US plate lookups on the same key
BASIC $0, PRO $69, ULTRA $99 a month, billed by RapidAPI

Get API key API docs

GET/v2.0/decode_vin

import os, requests

r = requests.get(
    "https://vindecoder.p.rapidapi.com/v2.0/decode_vin",
    params={"vin": "<Buick VIN>"},
    headers={
        "X-RapidAPI-Key": os.environ["RAPIDAPI_KEY"],
        "X-RapidAPI-Host": "vindecoder.p.rapidapi.com",
    },
    timeout=10,
)
spec = r.json()["specification"]
# spec["year"], spec["model"], spec["engine"] …

const url = new URL("https://vindecoder.p.rapidapi.com/v2.0/decode_vin");
url.searchParams.set("vin", "<Buick VIN>");

const res = await fetch(url, {
  headers: {
    "X-RapidAPI-Key": process.env.RAPIDAPI_KEY,
    "X-RapidAPI-Host": "vindecoder.p.rapidapi.com",
  },
});
const data = await res.json();
if (data.success) console.log(data.specification);

curl -G "https://vindecoder.p.rapidapi.com/v2.0/decode_vin" \
  --data "vin=<Buick VIN>" \
  -H "X-RapidAPI-Key: $RAPIDAPI_KEY" \
  -H "X-RapidAPI-Host: vindecoder.p.rapidapi.com"

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