Enter the 17-character VIN of your GMC to see the factory basics. Free, with no registration.
Look on the dashboard, the driver's door frame or in the registration document.
Type all 17 characters. The letters I, O and Q are never used in a VIN.
See the factory basics for free, and order a full report for the history behind the VIN.
Enter the 17-character VIN of a GMC and the decoder reads three things from it: the manufacturer, the model year and the country of manufacture. Our data holds 16 GMC models, from Acadia and Canyon to Typhoon and Yukon, with body styles listed as SUV, Pickup and Coupe. The version data runs from 1943 to the present, since some of these models are still built.
The decoder works from the VIN alone, so it cannot show accidents, mileage, theft or previous owners. That information comes from a paid vehicle history report. The decoder itself is free and needs no registration.
The first three characters are the WMI, the code that identifies the manufacturer. For GMC we recognise ten of them: 1GD, 1GJ, 1GK, 1GT, 2GK, 2GT, 3GD, 3GK, 3GT and GKA. The first character of a VIN also points to a region. A 1 means the United States, a 2 means Canada and a 3 means Mexico, which is why these codes cover three countries. Our list is not complete, so it simply shows the codes we recognise for the brand.
Characters 4 to 8 are the descriptor section. Character 9 is the check digit, which is required in North America and therefore present on VINs that start with the codes above. Character 10 is the model year, character 11 is the assembly plant, and characters 12 to 17 are the serial number. A tenth character of M means 2021, N means 2022 and P means 2023. The letters I, O and Q are never used in a VIN, so they cannot appear anywhere in the 17 characters.
Year letters repeat on a 30-year cycle. A B in position 10 can mean 1981 or 2011, so the rest of the vehicle has to tell you which one applies. Our version data starts in 1943, but the 17-character VIN applies to vehicles built since 1981, and that is what the decoder reads.
Every VIN has six parts. This is what each of them means.
| Part | Characters | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| WMI | 1 to 3 | World manufacturer identifier: who built the vehicle and where |
| VDS | 4 to 8 | Vehicle descriptor: model, body type and engine, as set by the manufacturer |
| Check digit | 9 | Control value that helps confirm the VIN is valid |
| Model year | 10 | Code for the model year |
| Plant | 11 | Code for the assembly plant |
| Serial | 12 to 17 | Production sequence number of this vehicle |
On the driver's side, visible through the windshield.
On a sticker on the door frame or the edge of the door.
Printed in the vehicle registration or title.
Stamped on the firewall or the frame on many models.
A VIN is built from six parts, and each one says something about the vehicle. Our guides explain how to read it and what it can and cannot tell you.
Enter the 17-character VIN and see the factory basics in seconds.
It is usually visible at the base of the windshield on the driver's side and on a label in the driver's door frame. It is normally printed on the registration papers too. Compare the number on the vehicle with the one in the documents before you decode it.
The first three characters are the WMI, which names the manufacturer. We map 1GD, 1GJ, 1GK, 1GT, 2GK, 2GT, 3GD, 3GK, 3GT and GKA to GMC. The first character also shows the region: 1 for the United States, 2 for Canada, 3 for Mexico.
Look at the 10th character. For example, L stands for 2020, M for 2021 and N for 2022. The letters repeat every 30 years, so a B could be 1981 or 2011.
It reads only the VIN, so it gives the manufacturer, model year and country of manufacture. Accidents, mileage, theft and owners are not stored in the VIN. The decoder cannot show them.
Make sure the VIN on the vehicle matches the one in the papers, and decode it to see whether the model year and country fit what the seller tells you. Then look into the vehicle's past, since the VIN alone does not hold that.