Reading a Hyundai VIN
KMH covers Korean-built Hyundai cars and KM8 the SUVs. A VIN starting 5NP or 5NM means the vehicle was built at Montgomery, Alabama — the Sonata, Elantra and Santa Fe are assembled there for the North American market. With the Georgia Metaplant now producing the Ioniq 5, more US-built Hyundai VINs are entering circulation each year.
Hyundai WMI prefixes (VIN positions 1–3)
| Prefix | Manufacturer | Country of build |
|---|---|---|
| KMH | Hyundai | South Korea |
| KM8 | Hyundai | South Korea |
| KMF | Hyundai | South Korea |
| 5NP | Hyundai | United States |
| 5NM | Hyundai | United States |
| 5NT | Hyundai | United States |
Every prefix links to a full WMI page listing what that code covers. Position 11 narrows a vehicle down to the exact assembly plant — for Hyundai that most often means Ulsan, South Korea, Montgomery, Alabama, Nošovice, Czech Republic.
What a Hyundai decode returns
The full factory record as filed with NHTSA: model and trim as built, engine displacement, cylinder count and horsepower where the manufacturer supplied it, transmission style and speed count, drive type, body class, door and seat counts, restraint system, and driver-assistance equipment such as forward collision warning, lane departure warning and backup camera. Every decode also runs the resulting make, model and year against NHTSA's recall database so open campaigns surface alongside the specs.
Common Hyundai models that decode with full detail include Elantra, Sonata, Tucson, Santa Fe, Palisade, Kona, Ioniq 5. Older vehicles generally return fewer optional fields — manufacturers weren't required to file the extended safety attributes until the mid-2010s.
Hyundai assembly plants
Hyundai vehicles sold in the US have come from Ulsan, South Korea, Montgomery, Alabama, Nošovice, Czech Republic, Ellabell, Georgia. Plant identity matters more than most buyers realise: recall campaigns are frequently scoped to a single plant and a narrow production date range, so two identical-looking vehicles from the same model year can have entirely different recall exposure.
Position 10 tells you the model year — see the full table.
Frequently asked questions
How do I decode a Hyundai VIN for free?
Enter the 17-character VIN in the box at the top of this page. The lookup runs against NHTSA's vPIC database — the federal record every manufacturer must file before selling a vehicle in the US — and returns model, trim, engine, transmission, drivetrain, body class, assembly plant and factory safety equipment, plus any open recall campaigns for that make, model and year. There's no signup and no lookup limit.
What do Hyundai VIN numbers start with?
Hyundai vehicles use the world manufacturer identifiers KMH, KM8, KMF, 5NP, 5NM, 5NT in positions 1 to 3. The first character alone identifies the country of manufacture, so KMH indicates South Korea.
Can a Hyundai VIN tell me the model year?
Yes — position 10 encodes the model year. Position 7 disambiguates the 30-year cycle: if position 7 is a number the vehicle is from 1980 to 2009, if it's a letter the vehicle is 2010 or later. Our year-code table lists every letter and digit against its year.
Does a Hyundai VIN decode show accident or ownership history?
No. The VIN encodes how the vehicle was built, not what happened to it afterwards. Accident, title, odometer and ownership records live in paid databases such as NMVTIS, Carfax and AutoCheck. This page shows factory build data plus official NHTSA recall records — for title history you need a paid report.
Where is the VIN on a Hyundai?
On the driver's side of the dashboard where it meets the windscreen, visible from outside the car, and on a sticker inside the driver's door jamb. It's also printed on the registration document, the insurance certificate and the title.
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