Nissan VIN Decoder & Lookup Tool

A Nissan VIN decoder reveals the model year, model name, trim level, engine type and displacement, transmission, drive type, body style, and assembly plant of any Nissan vehicle. It uses NHTSA vPIC, the public VIN-decoding platform built from manufacturer-submitted data (model year 1981-forward); decode fields vary by model year and manufacturer submission. It does not show accident or ownership history.

Nissan VINs typically start with JN1, JN6, JN8, 1N4, or 1N6. JN-prefixed VINs identify Nissan vehicles built in Japan. 1N4 and 1N6 identify Nissan vehicles built at Smyrna or Canton, Tennessee/Mississippi. 3N1 identifies Mexico-built Nissan Sentra and Versa.

The easiest place to find the VIN on a Nissan is the lower corner of the windshield on the driver's side dashboard, visible from outside the vehicle. It's also printed on the driver's door jamb sticker, the vehicle title, the registration card, and the insurance card. On older models the VIN may be stamped on the engine block or firewall.

Every Nissan VIN from model year 1981 onward is exactly 17 characters — the ISO 3779 standard — and never contains the letters I, O, or Q to avoid confusion with the digits 1, 0, and 9. Vehicles built before 1981 used shorter, manufacturer-specific serial formats, so a shorter number on a pre-1981 Nissan can be legitimate. On a 1981-or-newer Nissan, anything other than 17 characters is a partial reference or a transcription error.

Yes. CarWhere's Nissan VIN decoder is completely free with no signup, account, or credit card required. We use the NHTSA vPIC API — the official U.S. government VIN database that every U.S.-market Nissan is filed against. We additionally cross-reference the decoded year, make, and model against verified buyer transactions in our deal database.

Nissan operates manufacturing facilities in Smyrna, Tennessee, Canton, Mississippi, Aguascalientes, Mexico, Cuernavaca, Mexico, plus additional facilities globally. Note that not every facility does final vehicle assembly — some build engines or components that ship to an assembly plant. The 11th character of a Nissan VIN identifies the final-assembly plant, while the first three characters (the World Manufacturer Identifier) identify the manufacturer and country.

Yes, in two steps. Decoding a Nissan VIN here surfaces the recall campaigns filed against that year, make, and model — which tells you what campaigns affect the model, not whether this specific vehicle's repair is still outstanding. To confirm whether a specific VIN has an unrepaired open recall, enter the full VIN at the official NHTSA recall lookup at nhtsa.gov/recalls; Nissan also operates an owner portal where owners can view recall status and schedule free repairs at any authorized Nissan dealer.

No. A VIN decode reveals factory specifications only — make, model, trim, engine, plant. To check accident history, salvage titles, or odometer rollback on a Nissan, you need a vehicle history report from Carfax or AutoCheck, both of which use the VIN as the lookup key but pull from insurance and DMV records.

A 3N1 prefix means the vehicle was built in Mexico by Nissan Mexicana — primarily the Sentra, Versa, and Kicks for the U.S. market. This is normal for those models: Nissan builds essentially all U.S.-market Sentras and Versas at its Aguascalientes complex. Mexico-built Nissans go through the same federal certification as U.S.-built ones.

The Rogue, Pathfinder, and Murano are built at Smyrna, Tennessee (VINs starting 5N1), while the Altima and the Frontier pickup are built at Canton, Mississippi (1N4 and 1N6). The Titan pickup was discontinued after the 2024 model year. Japan-built models like the Z and GT-R carry JN1 VINs.