At a glance
- Motorhomes
- The VIN comes from the chassis maker, so it decodes as the chassis
- Travel trailers and fifth wheels
- The RV maker assigns a trailer VIN
- Labels
- A motorhome carries the chassis maker's label and the RV maker's
- Model year
- Position 10; vPIC flags it as uncertain on RVs
On this page
How to look up an RV by VIN
First work out what kind of RV you have, because it decides whose VIN it carries. A vehicle built in more than one stage keeps the VIN assigned by the maker of the incomplete vehicle (49 CFR 565.13(a)). For a motorhome, that's the company that built the chassis. A towable RV is a trailer, and the RV maker assigns its VIN.
| RV type | Who assigned the VIN | What the decoder shows |
|---|---|---|
| Motorhome on a truck chassis | The chassis maker | The chassis: make, model, engine, weight rating, brakes and the plant where the chassis got its VIN |
| Travel trailer or fifth wheel | The RV maker | The RV maker, model, trailer type, body type, length, axles and plant |
NHTSA defines the plant of manufacture as the plant where the manufacturer affixes the VIN (49 CFR 565.12), which for a motorhome is the chassis plant.
Example: a Jayco motorhome that decodes as a Freightliner
VIN 4UZADVFC3NCNP8909 appears in Jayco's recall 23V-477, which covers 2021 and 2022 Jayco and Entegra Coach Accolade, Accolade XL, Seneca and Seneca Prestige motorhomes. NHTSA's vPIC doesn't mention Jayco at all. It decodes the VIN as a 2022 Freightliner S2RV 106 conventional cab and chassis: an incomplete vehicle with a 6.7-liter Cummins B6.7 diesel, air brakes, 4x2 drive and a Class 7 weight rating of 26,001 to 33,000 lb, from Freightliner Custom Chassis in Gaffney, South Carolina.
The recall shows why that matters. Daimler Trucks North America sent Jayco the VINs covered by its recall 23V-237, and Jayco filed its own recall for worn windshield wiper arm splines on the motorhomes built on those chassis. Recalls in the decoder's results follow the decoded make and model, so for a motorhome, also enter the VIN at NHTSA's recall lookup to catch the RV maker's campaigns.
Example: three towable RV VINs decoded
Towables decode under the RV maker's own name, with trailer details. These three VINs come from recall reports filed by each maker:
| VIN | vPIC decode | Recall |
|---|---|---|
| 573FR3127N3342884 | 2022 Grand Design Reflection, fifth wheel, 31 ft, 2 axles, built in Middlebury, Indiana | 24V-861 |
| 4YDTCGR22NV509659 | 2022 Keystone Cougar, bumper-pull travel trailer, 36 to under 38 ft, 2 axles, built in Goshen, Indiana | 23V-169 |
| 1SMG4DD26MJ204885 | 2021 Airstream Base Camp, travel trailer, 20 to under 21 ft, 1 axle, built in Jackson Center, Ohio | 23V-614 |
All three decode clean with a correct check digit. vPIC can file a model as the make: the Cougar decodes with Cougar as the make and Keystone RV as the manufacturer.
Why does an RV's model year need a second look?
Year codes in position 10 repeat every 30 years. Cars, MPVs and trucks rated at 10,000 lb or less must put a letter in position 7, which marks the 2010 to 2039 cycle. A trailer or a Class 7 motorhome chassis doesn't have to, so vPIC warned that the model year may be wrong on all four RV VINs above. The decoder lets you enter the year from the title and decode again.
The model year also isn't the build year. A model year can span up to 24 months of production (49 CFR 565.12): Keystone's recall 23V-169 covers 2022 and 2023 Cougars built from December 9, 2021, to February 15, 2023.
What the labels on a motorhome tell you
A motorhome is built in stages, and each stage leaves a label with the same VIN (49 CFR 567.5):
- Chassis label: "Incomplete vehicle manufactured by" the chassis maker, the month and year the chassis was built, its weight ratings and the VIN.
- RV maker's label: "Manufactured by" the RV maker, the month and year it finished the coach, the weight ratings, a statement that it meets federal safety standards, the vehicle type and the VIN.
Compare the two dates to see when the chassis was built and when the coach was finished. If the VINs on the labels, the title and the decoder don't match, stop and find out why.
Where is the VIN on an RV?
On a travel trailer or fifth wheel, check the certification label on the front half of the left side, which must be readable from outside (49 CFR 567.4(d)). On a motorhome, the chassis maker's label goes in one of the driver's-side spots federal rules allow: the hinge pillar, door-latch post or door edge, or the left side of the instrument panel (49 CFR 567.4(c) and 567.5(a)). The RV maker's label must not cover it, so look nearby, and check the title and registration too.
For how trailer VINs are laid out, see the trailer VIN decoder. For motorhome chassis codes, see the Freightliner VIN decoder. Towing a boat? It has a hull identification number instead of a VIN; see the boat HIN lookup. Selling the RV? Fill in a free RV bill of sale with the VIN.