How to Decode Your VIN to Know Your Motorcycle Better |
Posted: November 20, 2017 |
In your motorcycle, the Vehicle Identification Number or VIN is a 17 alphanumeric character code that stores information on the manufacturer, model, manufacture year, and place of manufacture of the bike. Of course, the VIN is printed on your registration papers or insurance cards. But sometimes you can’t find them when you need them badly. In such cases, looking it up on your vehicle is lot easier than searching for the code all over your house. Running a VIN check on motorcycles is pretty simple. The first three characters identify the manufacturer. The next six characters encodes the description or attributes of the vehicle. The last eight characters tell you when and where the motorcycle was manufactured. You must be clear that generally the letters A to Z and numbers 0 through 9 are used in VIN except for I, O and Q so that readers don’t get confused them with the numbers 1 and 0. Apart from this, vehicle manufacturers do not use any other characters and numbers and of course no spaces. To go into more detail on VIN, the first digit is the country code. It is 1 or 4 for United States. The second character signifies the manufacturer i.e. H for Honda and K for Kawasaki. The third character identifies the vehicle where manufacturers usually assign 1 or A to motorcycles. Characters four through nine contain information on engine type, engine size, and model. The ninth digit functions as an accuracy check and serves to verify the earlier characters that the manufacturer authorized. The 10th digit denotes the year while the 11th digit indicates a factory code. The remaining 12th to 17th digits represent the serial number. One interesting thing about VIN is that apart from furnishing useful information on the vehicle, the VIN will tell you whether the bike has been stolen or rebuilt or ever been involved in an accident. This piece of data is handy if you are buying a used motorcycle. So, getting to know motorcycle history by VIN is an exciting experience. Now where do you find the VIN on your motorcycle? The VIN is etched on the steering neck vertically, though in some cases it is located on the bottom of cylinders. Turn the handlebars to the left and look at the frame on the right side where the steering head meets the frame. There you will find your VIN. Every motorcycle owner and bike rider treats his vehicle as a part of his family, and you are expected to know your family well. A vehicle VIN check allows you to do that.
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