Audi VIN · Factory options
Audi VIN decoder: the factory options by VIN
A Audi VIN identifies the maker, the type and the serial number. The trim, the options and the paint code are not in it — they are held by Audi against it, on the factory build sheet.
Audi build sheet by VIN or registration
The make, model, colour and year are shown free, before anything is charged.
The registration is enough. Prefer the VIN? It's on the V5C and at the base of the windscreen.
What you get
2022 Audi A4 40 TDI quattro
Paint
6Y
Daytona grey pearl effect
Also on the same sheet
- Interior trim
- Soul (black) (EI)
- Gearbox
- 7-speed automatic, quattro
- Equipment codes
- 182 items, by code and description
What can you find out from a Audi VIN?
Audi manufacturer codes
| Code (characters 1 to 3) | What it identifies |
|---|---|
| WAU | Audi AG — most Audi cars |
| WA1 | Audi AG — the SUVs (Q5, Q7, Q8) |
| WUA | Audi Sport GmbH, the former quattro GmbH — RS models |
| TRU | Audi Hungaria, Gyor |
Audi is part of the Volkswagen Group, and on European-market cars the group fills characters 4 to 8 with ZZZ and a model code rather than a full description. A European Audi VIN therefore reads WAUZZZ followed by the model code, the model-year letter and the serial number — which is why the middle of the number tells you so little about an individual car.
Audi does use the tenth character for the model year on most cars, but the model year is not the same thing as the date the car was registered. For the date that matters when you are buying, use the date of first registration on the V5C.
What a Audi VIN cannot tell you
Not the trim, not the options, not the paint code, not the interior and nothing about the car's past. Those are not stored in the number. They are stored by Audi against the number, which is the distinction every VIN decoder glosses over.
That record is the factory build sheet. For a Audi it returns the paint name and usually its code, the trim, the gearbox and the three-character PR codes with their descriptions.
- Paint
- Daytona grey pearl effect (6Y)
- Interior trim
- Soul (black) (EI)
- Gearbox
- 7-speed automatic, quattro
- Equipment codes
- 182 items, by code and description
Where to look on the car first
Audi usually records the car's build data on a label in the service book and on a sticker under the boot floor, in the spare-wheel well. It lists the PR codes as a block of three-character groups, and the paint code with them.
If it is your own Audi, the myAudi app and an Audi Centre can both look the car's original specification up from the VIN.
If the label has gone, the book is missing or the car is not yours yet, the build sheet is the way to the same information — which is the common case when you are looking at a car to buy.
The 17 characters, in three blocks
A VIN (vehicle identification number) is always 17 characters, letters and digits, with I, O and Q left out so they cannot be confused with 1 and 0. The layout follows the international standard, ISO 3779:
| Characters | Name | What they carry |
|---|---|---|
| 1 to 3 | WMI | The manufacturer and the region it built the car in — the first character gives the part of the world |
| 4 to 9 | VDS | A description of the vehicle in each maker's own coding: model, body, sometimes the engine. Many makers use the ninth as a check digit |
| 10 to 17 | VIS | The car itself: depending on the maker, the model year and the plant, then the serial number |
The first character is the region: S to Z for Europe, J to R for Asia, 1 to 5 for North America. With the second it gives the country — W for Germany, S for the United Kingdom, V for France and Spain, Z for Italy, J for Japan, KM or KN for South Korea.
Other makes
VIN and factory options by make: BMW · Mercedes-Benz · Volkswagen · Vauxhall · MINI · Jaguar · Land Rover.
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
Does an Audi VIN tell you the trim and options?
No. On European Audis the middle of the VIN is mostly ZZZ filler, and nowhere in the 17 characters is there a trim level, an option, a paint code or an interior. Those live in Audi's own production record for the car, which is what the factory build sheet is.
What are Audi PR codes?
PR codes (Produktionsrelevant, 'production-relevant') are the three-character codes Volkswagen Group uses for every item a car was built with — the gearbox, the wheels, the seats, each pack. The build sheet lists them with a plain-English description beside each one, which is what makes them readable.
Where is the VIN on a Audi?
On the V5C, at the base of the windscreen on the driver's side, in the driver's door frame and stamped into the body. They should all read the same.
What does the Audi build sheet show?
The factory paint name and, on most recent cars, its code; the interior trim; the gearbox; and the three-character PR codes with their descriptions. It does not separate standard equipment from options, and it carries no list prices — whether an item cost extra depends on the model and trim.
How much is it, and what if there is no record?
£3.99 per vehicle, no account and no subscription. The amount is authorised on your card and taken only once the manufacturer's record comes back. If there is nothing on file, the authorisation is released and you are not charged.
Can I check the service history with the VIN too?
Yes, and on a Audi that is usually the more useful answer. The service history is what Audi's own dealer network recorded against the VIN — dates, mileages, the work done and the workshop. £9.99, and nothing to pay if we find no records.
Get the Audi build sheet
Paint, trim, gearbox and every option code Audi built into the car. £3.99, and nothing to pay if there is no record.
Get the build sheet · £3.99