Freightliner VIN Decoder

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Freightliner VIN Check: What is a Freightliner VIN?

Freightliner started as a way for Consolidated Freightways to get around strict vehicle length laws. By building the cab over the engine, the carrier could use longer trailers, increasing cargo capacity while still meeting regulations. Freightliner started selling trucks to other companies in the 1950s, and by the 1970s, it was a separate company from CF. Daimler-Benz bought Freightliner in 1981, putting it in control of their North American commercial vehicle divisions. From there, they acquired Oshkosh, American LaFrance, Thomas Built, Western Star, Detroit Diesel and Ford’s heavy duty truck division. By consolidating these operations, they have a presence in nearly every commercial truck segment, including chassis cabs for RVs, school buses, fire trucks and both medium and heavy-duty tractors. They even sold Mercedes-Benz Sprinter vans through their dealer network in the 2000s.

Do you need an affordable work truck? Would a used Sprinter be perfect for an overland conversion? Whether you’re looking at a cargo van or a Class 8 semi, visit EpicVIN before you buy. By using a VIN check, you can get the vehicle’s configuration information, including the engine and vehicle class. This makes finding the right truck a whole lot simpler. Worried you might buy a lemon? When you order a VIN report from us, you’ll get accident reports, title changes and other useful information about the truck’s history. That way, you can be confident you’re buying the right Freightliner for you.

Freightliner VIN Number Lookup

When it comes to medium and heavy-duty trucks, you have a lot of options. Even within one model line, there are different drive systems, engines, cabs, chassis lengths and GVWR capacities. The easiest way to find the right configuration is by decoding the VIN. This number isn’t just a way to identify a specific vehicle. It also contains information about where and when the truck was built, as well as the parts Freightliner used when they built it. This gives you more information than a seller is likely to include on a sales listing. It also helps you identify errors, making it easier to weed out trucks that don’t have what you’re looking for.

Where to Search for the VIN?

There are several places where you can find this number printed on Freightliner’s trucks, rolling chassis and vans. If you’re looking at an RV based on a Freightliner chassis, be aware that the vehicle has two VIN numbers. One VIN is issued by Freightliner, while the other VIN is issued by the RV outfitter. The same goes for upfitted trucks, although it’s usually easier to pick out which VIN is for the glider or chassis, and which one is for the completed vehicle. Here are the most common places you’ll find the VIN number:

  • Look at the dashboard, next to the driver’s seat. You should see a small metal plate next to the windshield.
  • On trucks, there is an information plate or sticker above the seat belt, next to the driver’s door. This ID lists the VIN. On vans, you can usually find this plate or sticker on the step next to the driver’s door, or on the driver’s side B pillar.
  • If you have an RV, look at the wall next to the driver’s seat. There is usually a large sticker or plate with vehicle information, including the VIN. Some outfitters put this plate or sticker inside one of the closets.
  • Open the hood. Look for one or two metal tags riveted to the radiator support. At least one of these should have the VIN.

Freightliner also prints at least part of the VIN on the chassis. Most of the time, this is just the vehicle’s serial number. These digits should match up with the last characters of the VIN. Locations vary from model to model, but it’s usually close to one of the rear leaf spring mounts.

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Comprehensive VIN Decoder Guide

What do all those characters in the VIN mean? Here’s a breakdown of this identifying code, along with common characters and their meanings.

VIN Decode Guide?

The first three characters in the VIN identify the country, manufacturer and division. American made trucks usually have these codes:

CodeManufacturer
1FUComplete truck
1FVChassis cab or glider
4UVCustom chassis, mostly found on RVs

3AK and 3AL are codes for Mercedes-Benz Mexico, the manufacturer of Freightliner’s Sprinter vans.

The fourth character is the drive configuration:

CodeDrive
A4x2 truck
B4x2 truck/tractor
F6x2 truck
J6x2 truck/tractor
ZGlider

Characters 5 and 6 are the truck model, cab type and GVWR. Here are the codes for Freightliner’s most popular models:

CodeModel
AAFLB glider Class 8
A3Century Class 120 inch Class 8
AWArgosy Class 8
A5Columbia 120 inch Class 7
GLCascadia 125 inch Class 8
GACascadia 113 inch Day Cab Class 7
GP24U Coranado 122 inch Class 8

Characters 7 and 8 are the engine manufacturer and brake type. With so many possible combinations, it’s impossible to list them all here. It’s much easier to search for the VIN on our site, and use our decoder to find out which engine was installed at the factory.

Character 9 is the check digit. This verifies the rest of the VIN is correct.

Character 10 is the year the truck was built. This can be one of 30 numbers and letters. Numbers 1-9 were last used from 2001 to 2009.

CodeCountryCodeCountryCodeCountryCodeCountry
E1984R199442004E2014
F1985S199552005F2015
G1986T199662006G2016
H1987V199772007H2017
J1988W199882008J2018
K1989X199992009K2019
L1990Y2000A2010L2020
M199112001B2011M2021
N199222002C2012N2022
P199332003D2013P2023

Character 11 is the manufacturing plant. With so many truck models and divisions in their portfolio, there is a long list of plants where their trucks are built.

The remaining characters in the VIN are the truck’s serial number. Serial numbers are reused, so these last 6 digits aren’t enough to identify a specific truck or chassis.

Freightliner VIN Samples

What can you learn when you use our online tools to decode a VIN? Here are some examples of real Freightliner VIN numbers:

  • 1FUYSSEB3YLG35903: 2000 CC Conventional with a 12.7 liter Detroit Diesel S60
  • 1FVXSMDB4XP951853: 1999 CC Conventional with a 10.8 liter Cummins M11
  • 4UZAAHAK22CK96703: 2002 XC Chassis with a 7.2 liter Caterpillar 3126
  • 1998 FREIGHTLINER Long Conv.

    1998 FREIGHTLINER Long Conv.

    VIN 2FUYDSEB9WA931647
    Listed for sale on:
    03/18/2008
    Price:
    $0
    Odometer:
    1,461,821 km
  • 1999 FREIGHTLINER Med. Conv.

    1999 FREIGHTLINER Med. Conv.

    VIN 1FUW3MCA9XLA91190
    Listed for sale on:
    11/27/2013
    Price:
    $2,034
    Odometer:
    0 km
  • 2000 FREIGHTLINER Med. Conv.

    2000 FREIGHTLINER Med. Conv.

    VIN 1FUW3MCA1YLB54381
    Listed for sale on:
    01/25/2017
    Price:
    $6,950
    Odometer:
    1,478,893 km
  • 1996 FREIGHTLINER Long Conv.

    1996 FREIGHTLINER Long Conv.

    VIN 2FUPCSEBXTA556670
    Listed for sale on:
    07/29/2014
    Price:
    $12,905
    Odometer:
    375,393 km
  • 1997 FREIGHTLINER Med. Conv.

    1997 FREIGHTLINER Med. Conv.

    VIN 2FUY3WDB9VA737372
    Listed for sale on:
    04/26/2017
    Price:
    $0
    Odometer:
    0 km
  • 2000 FREIGHTLINER Long Conv.

    2000 FREIGHTLINER Long Conv.

    VIN 1FUPDXYB7YPH09458
    Listed for sale on:
    01/18/2011
    Price:
    $14,911
    Odometer:
    622,000 km
  • 2000 FREIGHTLINER Long Conv.

    2000 FREIGHTLINER Long Conv.

    VIN 1FVNFDZB2YLB89283
    Listed for sale on:
    12/28/2010
    Price:
    $0
    Odometer:
    58,435 km
  • 1999 FREIGHTLINER Long Conv.

    1999 FREIGHTLINER Long Conv.

    VIN 1FUPDSZB5XPA13715
    Listed for sale on:
    09/21/2017
    Price:
    $18,415
    Odometer:
    539,831 km
  • 2000 FREIGHTLINER Long Conv.

    2000 FREIGHTLINER Long Conv.

    VIN 1FUYDDYB7YDF18952
    Listed for sale on:
    04/17/2016
    Price:
    $12,890
    Odometer:
    1,585,354 km
  • 1997 FREIGHTLINER Med. Conv.

    1997 FREIGHTLINER Med. Conv.

    VIN 1FUY3WEB4VP684095
    Listed for sale on:
    02/05/2020
    Price:
    $0
    Odometer:
    1,087,330 km
  • 2000 FREIGHTLINER Long Conv.

    2000 FREIGHTLINER Long Conv.

    VIN 1FUWDMDA5YPF77825
    Listed for sale on:
    02/09/2018
    Price:
    $0
    Odometer:
    230,202 km
  • 2000 FREIGHTLINER Med. Conv.

    2000 FREIGHTLINER Med. Conv.

    VIN 1FUY3MDB6YMF37100
    Listed for sale on:
    09/03/2014
    Price:
    $0
    Odometer:
    1,563,034 km

Frequently Asked Questions

Locations vary from manufacturer to manufacturer. However, there are three places you can find the code on most vehicles:

- Look through the windshield at the dashboard. On the driver’s side, you should see a small metal plate with the number stamped into it.
- Open the driver’s door. Look at the front and side of the door pillar for an I.D. sticker. It usually has the manufacturer’s logo on it. The code should be on this sticker.
- Open the hood. You may see a sticker on the firewall or near the passenger’s side strut tower. Some cars have the number engraved in one of these areas.

Since this number is used to identify the vehicle on official documents, you can also find it on the title, the window sticker, and on insurance policies.

We also decode numbers for RVs, heavy-duty trucks and motorcycles. If you need to decode an RV number, make sure it’s the one issued by the chassis manufacturer, not the RV outfitter.

No. Canadian and Mexican cars usually use the same format. Other countries use their own formats.

It’s up to the manufacturer to determine what they want to include for some parts of the number. For example, some companies don’t include information about transmissions or trim levels.

Usually, no. A few manufacturers stamp the code into the engine. If the VINs on the engine and car match, then it’s the original engine. On most vehicles, there isn’t anything that ties an engine to a specific vehicle. At most, looking up the vehicle on our website will tell you if a different type of engine was installed. For example, if someone swaps a V8 into a Ford Mustang, our site will tell you it originally came with a V6.

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