VIN Decoder · Mercedes-Benz
Mercedes-Benz VIN Decoder: W1K, WDD and 4JG Codes
A Mercedes VIN from Bremen and one from Alabama follow different rules. On a European car, positions 4 to 9 hold the six-digit model code (205 for a C-Class, 177 for an A-Class) and position 10 says 1 for left-hand or 2 for right-hand drive, not the year. Around model year 2020 the prefixes changed too: W1K and W1N replaced WDD and WDC. Which kind is in front of you?
- Mercedes-Benz WMI set: W1K · W1N · WDD · WDC · WDB · 4JG · 55S
- Plants: Sindelfingen · Bremen · Rastatt · Kecskemét · East London · Graz · Aguascalientes · Uusikaupunki
- Last verified: 8 October 2026
Decode a Mercedes-Benz VIN
Scope: Mercedes-Benz W1K / W1N / WDD / WDC / WDB / 4JG / 55S0 / 17
A Mercedes VIN never contains I, O or Q. A round character on the type plate is a zero; the 1 at position 10 of a European car is a digit, not an I.
What a Mercedes-Benz VIN tells you
A Mercedes VIN opens with the maker's code. W1K and WDD are cars, W1N and WDC are SUVs, and 4JG and 55S belong to cars assembled in Vance, near Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Position 11 is the plant. The last six are the serial.
Everything in between depends on the market the car was built for. On a European Mercedes, positions 4 to 9 are the model code: WDD213… is an E-Class of the 213 series, W1K177… an A-Class 177, and the remaining three digits narrow down body and engine. On a car built for the US or Canada the same slots follow American rules, with a real check digit at 9 and the model year at 10.
Why does this matter? If you are an expat in Germany looking at a C-Class with a VIN like WDD2053641F…, the 1 is the steering side and the F is Bremen. Nothing in that VIN says 2001. Shipping a 2020 GLE over from the US instead? Then position 9 has to compute, and the L at position 10 really is the model year.
Mercedes-Benz WMI codes
| WMI | Meaning |
|---|---|
| W1K | Passenger cars, the successor to WDD from around model year 2020 (A-Class 177, C-Class 206, E-Class) |
| W1N | SUVs, the successor to WDC from around model year 2020 (GLB, GLC, G-Class) |
| WDD | Passenger cars before the switch: C-Class 204 and 205, S-Class 221, CLA 117, AMG GT |
| WDC | SUVs before the switch, including the G-Class and the GLC 253 |
| WDB | The older Daimler-Benz car code; also used on the Maybach 57 and 62 |
| 4JG | SUVs built by Mercedes-Benz U.S. International in Vance, Alabama: the M-Class from 1997, today the GLE |
| 55S | Passenger cars built in Alabama, such as the US-made C-Class 205 |
Each code is checked against NHTSA's vPIC database, which is filled from Mercedes-Benz's own VIN filings, and against a second public VIN reference. smart (WME, W1A) and Mercedes vans (W1V, W1W, W1Y) use their own codes and plant letters, so this page does not decode them.
European Mercedes, Alabama Mercedes, and the plants in between
Mercedes-Benz writes two kinds of VIN. Which one you get depends on the market the car was ordered for, not on where it was assembled — a Mexican-built GLB for the US and a Bremen C-Class for Germany read differently.
European-market VIN (W1K, W1N, WDD, WDC)
- Positions 4 to 9 are the six-digit model code; the first three digits are the series, such as 205, 213 or 177.
- Position 9 is part of that code, not a check digit, so the ISO 3779 test usually fails. That is expected.
- Position 10 is 1 for left-hand drive and 2 for right-hand drive. UK cars show the 2.
US and Canadian VIN (4JG, 55S, and W-codes sold there)
- Position 9 is a mandatory check digit. If it does not compute, treat the VIN with suspicion.
- Position 10 is the model year: L is 2020, M 2021, N 2022.
- 4JG and 55S mean Vance, Alabama, where the first ML320 left the line in February 1997.
German code, foreign plant
- W at position 11 is Aguascalientes, Mexico: a US-market GLB 250 still starts W1N.
- N or P is Kecskemét, Hungary (CLA); R or S is East London, South Africa (C-Class 206).
- X is Graz, Austria, where Magna Steyr builds the G-Class. The decoder flags a WMI and a plant from different countries.
Same letter, two factories
Position 11 A means Sindelfingen on a W1K or WDD car, and Vance, Alabama, on a 4JG GLE. B and U are split the same way, and a European WDC M-Class with an A also came from Alabama. The decoder therefore names no plant for A, B or U. Read the WMI first, then the letter.
Amber on a European VIN means position 9 holds a model-code digit, which is how Mercedes builds these numbers. Red is kept for North-American VINs whose check digit fails. Green means the digit computes.
Mercedes-Benz model year — position 10
On a North-American Mercedes, position 10 is the model year in the usual 30-year cycle, and a letter at position 7 places it after 2009. A European Mercedes VIN carries no year at all: the 1 or 2 at position 10 is the steering side, so the 2001 or 2002 a code table suggests is wrong. Take the date of first registration from field B of the registration certificate instead.
| Code | Model year | Code | Model year |
|---|---|---|---|
| A | 2010 | M | 2021 |
| B | 2011 | N | 2022 |
| C | 2012 | P | 2023 |
| D | 2013 | R | 2024 |
| E | 2014 | S | 2025 |
| F | 2015 | T | 2026 |
| G | 2016 | V | 2027 |
| H | 2017 | W | 2028 |
| J | 2018 | X | 2029 |
| K | 2019 | Y | 2030 |
| L | 2020 |
Frequently asked questions
What do W1K, W1N, WDD, WDC, 4JG and 55S mean?
WDD and its successor W1K mark Mercedes-Benz passenger cars, WDC and its successor W1N mark SUVs; the change happened around model year 2020, and a 2020 E-Class can carry either. WDB is the older car code, also used on the Maybach 57 and 62. 4JG (SUVs) and 55S (cars) are vehicles built in Vance, Alabama.
Where is the VIN on a Mercedes-Benz?
It is embossed in the floor next to the right-hand front seat, under a flap in the carpet, printed on the type plate on the door pillar and, on US-market cars, readable through the bottom edge of the glass in front of the driver. On paper: the V5C in the UK, field E on a German Zulassungsbescheinigung Teil I.
Why does my European Mercedes fail the check-digit test?
Because position 9 on a European Mercedes is the last digit of the model code, not an ISO 3779 check digit. We ran nine real UK-registered Mercedes VINs through the formula: seven failed, two passed by coincidence. The decoder shows this as amber. A North-American Mercedes must pass.
The decoder says 2001 for my German C-Class. Is that right?
No. On a European Mercedes the 1 at position 10 means left-hand drive, and a 2 means right-hand drive. The VIN does not contain the model year, so check the date of first registration (field B) on the registration certificate.
Is a Mercedes with a W1N or W1K prefix always built in Germany?
No. The W codes are German WMIs, but position 11 tells the factory: W is Aguascalientes in Mexico, N and P Kecskemét in Hungary, R and S East London in South Africa, X Graz in Austria, V Uusikaupunki in Finland. A US-market GLB 250 with a W at position 11 came from Mexico.
What can a Mercedes VIN not tell me?
Options, paint, upholstery and the service history are not in the 17 characters. On a European car you get the model code and the steering side; on a US car you get series, body, engine and year. For equipment, check the original order, the service book or the dealer's records.