From my240

This article is simply a presentation rework of this information.

"Do I have LSD?"

"How can you tell if it's California model?"

"Is my car a base/ SE/ LE model?"

If you browse the forums a lot, you'll see these questions regularly. Some people say you can identify a 240SX model by parts combinations. Some say "look at the emblem" which isn't entirely true anymore since anyone and their mom can just buy emblems and fake the funk.

There's a more accurate way of telling what model 240SX you have other than just by looking at the wheels and the emblem on the back.

So What 240SX Does Your Have?

How do I identify my 240SX?

Here's a close up of the vehicle identification plate (S14). The two sets of digits we're concerned with is the two longest ones - the 17-digit VIN number (above, starts with JN1) and the 18-digit Model ID number right below it (there's 18 digits, including the 3 dashes at the end). NOTE: S13 model ID numbers are shorter, around 11 digits.

The only accurate way to identify your 240SX is by reading and decoding a shiny metal "vehicle identification plate" attached to your car from the factory.

This plate is stamped with various identification numbers depending on make and model car. On Nissan 240sx cars, this plate is stamped with things such as the Vehicle Identification Number (VIN), model ID number, engine code, factory paint color code, transmission and axle type, chassis code, etc.

For our purposes we'll focus on the first two (and the two longest) numbers on the plate.

Locating the VIN plate

A majority of what you'll read is based on California, Canadian, and Federal (non-Californian, North-American) models.

However, some of it may also work for off-continent models - during 'decode checking" I had some people out of the country (Canada, Mexico, and even Peru) test out the "decoding" before I published this article, and surprisingly they got accurate results. It's possible that these countries are supplied with Federal models, but that's not the point of this article. Anyhow, let's get started.

Don't strain your brain - get out a pencil or pen, go to your car, pop the hood, and write down the VIN and the Model ID numbers on a piece of paper. See the photos to the right to find your vehicle identification plate.

For both S13 and S14, the location of the plate is pretty much in the same place - right side of the car, behind the right shock tower, on the firewall against the back of the engine bay.

The VIN should be 17 digits, with the most variation occurring in the last 6 digits. These last 6 digits are the actual sequence number of the car you own. Think of it as like a serial number identifying when your car came out of the factory fresh and new.

The "MID" (Model ID number) should have 18 'slots' for S14 models and about 11 'slots' for S13 models. I say "slots" because some of the digits might be in the form of a dash (-) which just means the same thing as n/a (not applicable).

While you're at your car, open the driver's side door. There should be a label in the doorjamb. This is the F.M.V.S.S. label (Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards).

Look for the part that says "date" and that will tell you the month and year your car was actually manufactured.

Get the numbers down, and then let's continue.

Chances are high that most of the people reading this article bought their 240SX used. If you are one of the few who have had your 240SX since it came off the dealer lot (meaning you're still the original first owner) I do envy you.

Also, if you had trouble locating the F.M.V.S.S. label, I decided to add some pics of mine for reference. The label is located on the driver's side doorjamb right below the door latch (see the two pics to the right). The part we're concerned about is the part labeled "date". As you can see here, my car actually rolled off the assembly line in April of 1994.

Decoding the VIN

1. Vehicle Identification Number, or VIN

Let's start with the Vehicle Identification number (top row, 17 digits). I'll use a fake S14 VIN number as an example: JN1AS44D3SW012345. Let's break this down in significant parts:

JN1 - AS44 - D3S - W - 123456

And to the right, we see what each digit (or group of digits) mean.

So "JN1" means that I have a Nissan car manufactured in Japan. It's common knowledge that all 240SX's brought to U.S. dealers were all made in the homeland."AS44" means that I have a KA24DE, S14 coupe. I wish mine said "P" but oh well.

MIN (Model Identifying Number)

Remember those first 3 questions at the beginning of this article? With the Model ID number, all of those questions can be answered.

The model ID number specifies which features were installed into the car as standard equipment when the vehicle left the factory, wherever that may be. Please note - this does not specify or identify "dealer-installed" items.

Dealer-installed items were added or installed in the car AFTER the car was delivered to the dealership. Common "dealer-installed" items include mudguards, pin striping, rear spoilers on base model vehicles, etc.

Just in case you got all confused after all of the above, the 18-digit Model ID number is the second row of digits. There's 18 digits total, depending on factory installed equipment. Some cars might have blanks.

S13 (1988-1994)

For S13 SOHC coupe and fastback manufactured in 1988-1990.

For S13 coupes, convertibles, and fastbacks manufactured in 1991-1994.

S14 (1995-1998)

With the exception of the engine type, all S14 chassis MIN numbers start with G_ _A.

Note that the 6th digit is THE REFERENCE for what model vehicle you have. This one should help many owners and also people looking into buying an S14 but want to make sure what they're getting.

The "S14" part is self-explanitory. Same with the 11th-13th digits. From here, the 14th-and-on digits mean different things. They basically specify which optional features were installed at the time of manufacture. For example, with these numbers you can tell if the VLSD in your car was original equipment, or if the previous owner added it on after, or if your car even has one (or is supposed to have one).

To find out the actual month and year, refer to the F.M.V.S.S. label.

For S14 COUPE manufactured between APRIL 1994 and JULY 1995.

For S14 COUPE manufactured between AUGUST 1995 and JULY 1996.

For S14 COUPE manufactured in AUGUST 1996 and beyond.

Thanks to...

I'd like to thank the resources I used as a reference to write this article:

240-sx.com faq

lub240.com forum members

Zilvia.net forum members

NICO forum members

Chart from Courtesy Nissan of Texas

Rich Bjornson's S14 Model ID document

Downtown Nissan, Toronto, Ontario Canada

Nissan 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998 Factory Service Manuals

Nissan 1991, 1993 Factory Service Manuals

Also to the people who went out of their way (some of them in the middle of the night) to relay their VIN and MIN numbers for reference: Vince, John, Kevin, Alan, Edgar, John, Oliver, Darren, Kristelle, Chris, Mike, Paolo, and Jason; and extra thanks to John H. for letting me use a picture of his S13 engine bay for the article.

And finally, a big thanks to Nicholas L. who gave me a lot of great info that helped me finally complete the S13 MIN section!

So there you have it. By decoding your VIN and MIN numbers, you have a sure-fire way of identifying any model S13 or S14 - what it has, what it was built with, and what it should have came with. For potential new S13 or S14 owners, this information can help them determine "steals" from "deals". For current S13 and S14 owners, hey - it's always good to learn something new about your car =)

The charts shown in this article all apply to Nissan 240SX VIN and MIN numbers. Nissan uses several different combinations of numbers and letters for the first 3 digits depending on destination and vehicle type. Some other numbers might mean different things depending on vehicle type. The charts focus mainly on North American market S13 S14 chassis cars for simplicity. If there are any errors or you can add more information, please email me so I can update this article.