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Harley Davidson VIN Decoding. The Last 100 Years Explained

Harley Davidson VIN Decoding. The Last 100 Years Explained

Whether you are scouring the country for rare motorcycles, or you just want to know some basic information about a bike you saw in a parking lot, understanding how Harley-Davidson formats their vehicle identification numbers (commonly referred to as VIN numbers) will give you the 411 on exactly what type of Harley you are looking at. From the very beginning, Harley has been stamping their engines with unique serial numbers, but these early serial numbers didn’t conform to any real standard until the 1920’s. At that point Harley began using an easily decipherable string of numbers and letters that saw continued use until 1969. For the 1970 model year, Harley revamped their VIN numbers and for a brief ten-year period used this different arrangement. The last change came in 1981, when the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration mandated that all vehicle manufacturers adopt a 17-digit VIN and Harley switched to this new standard which they still use today.  

Locating the VIN on a Harley-Davidson Motorcycle

Before we get into the details of how to decode these VIN numbers, let’s start out with where to find them. If you are looking at a 1969 or older machine, the VIN number is only going to be located on the motor. It will be hand stamped on the left side motor case, just under the cylinders on a raised boss. It is important to note that the VIN number was not stamped on the frame on these early models and that any numbers found on the frame are casting numbers that were identical on every frame of the same model/year. Starting in 1970, The official VIN location moved to the frame neck, and it has remained in that location ever since. From 1970 - 1980, Harley continued to stamp a matching VIN on the motor (except for early 1979 models), so that the motor could be matched to the frame. In 1981, when Harley switched to the new 17-digit VIN standard, they stopped stamping a matching VIN on the motor and began using a truncated version of the VIN on the motor which still allowed for matching the motor to the frame but only used 10-digits.

Harley-Davidson VIN Numbers Prior to 1970

Jumping back to the 1920’s we see Harley standardizing on a very straightforward format for their VIN numbers. Through 1969, Harley VIN numbers consisted of a combination 8 to 11 numbers and letters with the following arrangement:

  • the first two digits specified the production year
  • the next one to four letters specified the model
  • the last four or five digits specified the production number 

 Figure 1. 1964 Harley-Davidson FLH VIN number on Motor

Further breaking down the VIN number, we find that the bulk of the information about an individual motorcycle is contained within the letters following the production date. The first letter, often referred to as the engine code, designates the type of motor originally installed at the factory. Below is a list of Engine Codes for Harley V-twin motors built by Harley from 1920 until 1969. Note that prior to 1935, Harley also produced a variety of single cylinder models under engine codes A, B and C as well as two horizontally opposed two-cylinder motors under engine codes WJ and WF. There was also one other horizontally opposed two-cylinder motor built in 1942 and was designated by the letters XA.

1920 – 1969 V-Twin Engine Codes
Engine Code Engine Type
F 61” or 74” F-Head V-Twin
J 61” or 74” F-Head V-Twin
D 45” Side Valve V-Twin
R 45” Side Valve V-Twin
V 74” or 80” Side Valve V-Twin
W 45” Side Valve V-Twin
G 45” Side Valve V-Twin used in Servi-cars
U 74” or 80” Side Valve V-Twin
K 45” or 55” Side Valve V-Twin
E 61” Overhead Valve V-twin
F 74” Overhead Valve V-twin
X 45” or 55” Overhead Valve V-Twin

While Harley did a great job of assigning different letter designations to each variety of side valve motor, they started to overlap when they switched to overhead valve motors for their big twin models. Hence you really need to know the date ranges for the different types of early overhead valve motors, so you know that a set of 1947 EL cases go to a knucklehead while a set of 1948 EL cases go to a panhead.

1936 – 1984 Big Twin Motor Production Dates
Engine Production Dates
Knucklehead 1936-1947
Panhead 1948-1965
Shovelhead 1966-1984

Any letters after the engine code tell more specifics about the motor. These can indicate a special model (like A for Army or R for factory racer), but usually tells something about the engine’s performance in comparison to the base motor. For example, a standard U series motor is 74” with medium compression heads. Based off that motor, Harley built three slightly different versions which are designated the UH, the UL and the ULH. The UH is simply a larger displacement version of the base motor, bumping the cubic inches up to 80” and keeping the medium compression heads. The UL featured the same displacement as the base motor but is outfitted with high compression heads. Lastly the ULH is a combination of the UL and UH motor featuring both 80” and high compression heads. Unfortunately, Harley kept changing the meanings of these letters slightly over the years to fit with their current model lineup. So, if we look at the model designations for early panheads we will find that there is indeed a medium compression 74” base motor designated with the letter F and there is also an FL model which is a 74” motor with higher compression. What we don’t see is a medium compression 80” FH or a high compression 80” FLH. Instead, there is a 74” FLH which is a higher compression version of the FL motor. The table below shows some of the commonly used letters between 1920 and 1969 along with their possible designations.

Letters Used From 1920 - 1969 in Model Designations

Letter

Common Designations
A Army or No Tow Bar (servicer option)
C Commercial or Canadian
D Increased Displacement or Increased Performance
E Electric Start or Traffic Combination (police option)
H Increased Displacement or Increased Performance
L High Compression
R Factory Racer

For any model year prior to 1970, if you look up the actual production numbers from Harley, you will see that there are a lot of models listed which use letters that are not included in the above table. The reason being is that Harley did not include these letters in the VIN numbers. While Harley may have produced and FLHF and an FLF in 1957 for example, these bikes would have been stamped FLH and FL respectively with the F (which stands for footshift) omitted. Other examples of omitted letters are S for sidecar and B for electric start.

The last piece to the puzzle is the production number and it is no surprise that Harley added a couple twists to this as well. Up until 1961 the production number always started at 1000. That meant the first EL panhead coming off the line in 1948 would have been VIN number 48EL1001, not 48EL0001. Then from 1962-1969 Harley decided to change things up a bit more by making the first digit of the production number even on even model years and odd on odd model years for 4-digit production numbers. Taking things on step further, on production numbers that were 5-digits, they made the first two numbers odd for odd model years and the first two numbers even for even model years.

Harley-Davidson VIN Numbers from 1970-1980

In 1970 Harley decided to change the VIN number to a 9-digit combination of letters and numbers with the following arrangement:

  • the first 2 digits specified the model code
  • the next 5 digits specified the production number
  • the last two digits specified the year code 

Figure 2. 1975 Harley-Davidson FXE VIN number on frame.

Figure 3. 1975 Harley-Davidson FXE VIN number on engine.

 

1970 – 1980 Model Codes
Model Code Model Model Code Model Model Code Model
1A FL/FLP-1200 3D Z-90 2G XLT-1000
2A FLH -1200 4D XLA 3G FLH-80
3A XL - XLH-1000 5D SX-175 5G FLT-80
4A XLCH-1000 6D SX-250 6G FXE-80
5A GE-750 7D MX-250 7G FXS-80
6A SS-350 Sprint 9D FXE - 1200 9G FXWG-80
7A SX-125 4E XLS-1000 1H FXB-80
8A M65-S 5E FXEF-1200 2H CLE-80 Sidecar
7B ERS 6E FXEF-80 3H FLH-80 Classic
8B MSR-100 7E FLHS-1200 5H FLHS-80
2C FX -1200 9E SS-250 6H FL-80
3C SX-350 Sprint 2F FXS - 1200 7H FLH-1200 Police
5C MC-65 3F SXT-125 8H FLH-1200 Shrine
6C SR-100 4F SS-175 9H FLH-80 Police
1D LE Sidecar 6F SS-125 1K FLH-80 Shrine
2D X-90 7F XLCR-1000
1970-1980 Year Codes
Year Code Production Year
H0 1970
H1 1971
H2 1972
H3 1973
H4 1974
H5 1975
H6 1976
H7 1977
H8 1978
H9 1979
J0 1980

As previously mentioned, 1970 also marked the first year that the official VIN location was moved to the frame neck although a matching VIN number was still stamped on the motor. For the first month of 1979, Harley decided to put unique non-matching VIN numbers on frame neck and motor, but due to complaints from the police (all the bikes looked stolen) this practice only lasted for production numbers 43000H9 - 48199H9.

 

Harley-Davidson VIN Numbers 1981 - Present

Starting in 1981, Harley implemented a new 17-digit VIN number format that was mandated by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The full code was stamped on the frame neck with a shortened 10-digit version stamped on the engine. The 17-digit VIN uses the following arrangement:

  • the first 3 digits specified the world manufacturer ID
  • the fourth digit specified the weight class ID
  • the fifth the sixth characters specified the model code
  • the seventh character specified the engine code
  • the eighth character specified the introduction period
  • the ninth character specified the VIN check digit
  • the tenth character specified the model year code
  • the eleventh character specified the assembly plant code
  • the final 6 characters specified the production number

Figure 4. 1996 Harley-Davidson XL1200C VIN number on frame.

Figure 5. 1996 Harley-Davidson XL1200C VIN number on motor.

17-digits contains a lot of information, but using the tables below, you can work out all the details of any Harley-Davidson motorcycle built from 1981 until present day.

1981 and up World Manufacturer IDs
World Manufacturer ID Definition
1HD Manufactured for sale within the United States
5HD Manufactured for sale outside of the United States
932 Manufactured in and for sale only in Brazil
MEG Manufactured in and for sale only in India
1981 and up Weight Class IDs
Weight Class ID Definition
1 Heavyweight (≥ 901 cc)
4 Lightweight (≤ 900 cc)
8 Sidecar
1981 and up FL Touring Model Codes
Model Code Model Model Code Model Model Code Model
AA FLH DJ FLHTC FR FLHRCI, FLHRC
AB FLHP DK FLTC Shrine FS FLTRI
AC FLH DM FLTCU - Ultra FT FLHPEI
AD FLH - Classic DN FLTCU - Ultra FW FLHR Shrine
AE FLT DP FLHTC KA FLHX
AF FLTC DS FLTCU - Ultra Shrine KB FLHX
AH FLHP - Deluxe DT FLHTCU - Ultra Shrine KE FLHTK
AJ FLH - Heritage FA FLHRS, FLHS KG FLTRU
AK FLHS FB FLHRI, FLHR KH FLTRX
AL FLH - Shrine FC FLHTCUI, FLHTCU KX SIDECAR TLE ULTRA
DA FLT, FLHTP FD FLHR MA FLHTCUTG - Trike
DB FLTC FE FLTCUI MB Trike
DC FLHT FF FLHTCI, FLHTC PF FLSTDSE
DD FLHT FG FLHTCUI PG FLHRSEI2
DE FLHTC FH FLHPI PR FLHTCUSE7 - CVO
DF FLHTP FL FLHTCUI, FLHTCU PY FLSTSE3 - CVO
DG FLHTC Shrine FM FLHTPI PZ FLHXSE - CVO
DH FLTC FP FLTR MC FLRT
1981 and up FX/FL Dyna Glide Model Codes
Model Code Model Model Code Model Model Code Model
BA FXE EK FXRP - C.H.P. GM FXDI
BB FXEF, FXSTDI EL FXLR GN FXDL
BC FXS EM FXRS – CON GP FXDWG
BD FXB ES FXR GR FXDXI
BE FXWG ET FXR GT FXDC
BF FXSB EV FXR GV FXDC
BG FXDG GA FXDB-D Daytona GX TL
EA FXR GB FXDB-S Sturgis GY FXDF
EB FXRS GC FXDC GZ FLD
EC FXRT GD FXDL PB FXDWG
ED FXRP - Windshield GE FXDWG PE FXDWG3
EE FXRDG GG FXDS-CON PS FXDSE
EF FXRP - Fairing GH FXD PX FSDFSE
EG FXRS-SP Sport Edition GJ FXDX VA FXDBP
EH FXRD GK FXDP
EJ FXRC GL FXDXT
1981 and up FL/FX Softail Model Codes
Model Code Model Model Code Model Model Code Model
BH FXST BX FLSTF JL FXSTC
BJ FLST, FLSTC BY FLSTC JM FLSTSB
BK FXSTC BZ FXSTSI JN FLSTFB
BL FXSTS JA FXSTB JP FXS
BM FLSTF JB FXSTDI JR FLS
BN FLSTN JD FLSTN PF FXSTDSE
BP FXSTSB JE FLST PH FXSTDSE
BR FLSTS JF FLSTI PL FLSTFSE
BS FXSTD JG FLSTF PN FLSTFSE
BT FXSTB JH FLSTC PT FXSTSSE
BV FXST JJ FXCW PY FLSTSE
BW FLSTC JK FXCWC JT FLSTFBS
1981 and up Sportster Model Codes
Model Code Model Model Code Model Model Code Model
CA XLH CN XL883 CZ XL1200N
CB XLS CM XL883L LA XR1200
CC XLX CP XL883C LC XL1200X
CD XR-1000 CR XL883L LD XR1200X
CE XL 883H CS XL883R LE XL883N
CF XL 883 Deluxe CT XL1200C LF XL1200V
CG XL 1200C CV XL1200R LH XL1200CP
CH XL 1200S CW XL1200L LJ XL1200CA
CJ XL 883C CX XL1200L LK XL1200CB
CK XL 883R CY XL50

 

1981 and up V-Rod Model Codes
Model Code Model Model Code Model Model Code Model
HA VRSCA HF VRSCA HP VRSCF
HC VRSCR HH VRSCDX
HD VRSCD HJ VRSCX
1981 and up Street Model Codes
Model Code Model Model Code Model
NA XG500 NB XG750
1981 and up Engine Codes
Engine Code Engine Engine Code Engine
A 1130 Revolution (100 CV) R 1340 Evolution Fuel Injected
B 1450 Fuel Injected Counter Balanced S 500 Single (Armstrong Military)
C 1550 V Twin Cam 88 Carburetor, 130B
D 1550 EFI W Twin Cam 88 Fuel Injected
E 1690 EFI Y Twin Cam 88 Counter Balanced - Carb
F 1690 Balanced-EFI Z 1130 Revolution
G 1246 Revolution EFI 1 1450 EFI
H 1246 (2001-2009), 1000 Ironhead XL 2 883 ESPFI
J 1246 3 1200 ESPFI
K 1340 Shovelhead 4 1584 ESPFI
L 1340 Evolution 5 1584 ESPFI, Twin Cam 96B
M 883 Evolution XL, Twin Cam 103 6 1200
N 1100 Evolution XL 8 1800 ESPFI
P 1200 Evolution XL 9 1800 ESPFI H 1250 ESPFI
A 500cc Liquid Cooled Revolution X B 749cc Liquid Cooled Revolution X
1981 and up Introduction Periods
Normal Introduction Mid-Year or Special Introduction
Introduction Code Introduction Date Introduction Code Introduction Date
1 Domestic (Normal) 2, 4 Domestic (Mid-Year)
3 California (Normal) 5, 6 California (Mid-Year)
A Canada (Normal) B Canada (Mid-Year)
C International (Normal) D International (Mid-Year)
E Japan (Normal) F Japan (Mid-Year)
G Australia (Normal) H Australia (Mid-Year)
J Brazil (Normal) K Brazil (Mid-Year)
L Asia Pacific (Normal) M Asia Pacific (Mid-Year)
N India (Normal) P India (Mid-Year)

In between the Introduction Period Code and the Model Year Code there is a single digit check number used to detect invalid VINs. The number that appears varies and is based on a mathematical formula that the U.S. Department of Transportation developed.

1981 and up Model Year Codes
Year Code Year Year Code Year Year Code Year Year Code Year
A 2010 J 1988, 2018 T 1996 4 2004
B 1981, 2011 K 1989, 2019 V 1997 5 2005
C 1982, 2012 L 1990, 2020 W 1998 6 2006
D 1983, 2013 M 1991 X 1999 7 2007
E 1984, 2014 N 1992 Y 2000 8 2008
F 1985, 2015 P 1993 1 2001 9 2009
G 1986, 2016 R 1994 2 2002
H 1987, 2017 S 1995 3 2003

1981 and up Assembly Plant Codes
Plant Code Plant Location
Y, B York, PA
T Tomahawk, WI
J Milwaukee, WI
K Kansas City, MO
D Manaus, Brazil
E Buell East Troy
N Haryana, India (Bawal District Rewari)

Finally, you are left with 6-digits that indicate the production number of the motorcycle.

Conclusion

It’s amazing to think that in over 100 years of operation, Harley-Davidson has only used three VIN number standards. That certainly makes deciphering VIN numbers a lot easier and with this article as a quick reference you should be able to figure out some basic information on just about any Harley-Davidson model you come across. Keep in mind that even though this article is extensive, Harley has made a number of prototypes and one-off models over the years which might not be covered here. If you come across an odd VIN number make sure to research it thoroughly before buying, you might have stumbled on a rare machine but more than likely someone has changed the VIN after it left the factory which can lead to some legal headaches down the road.

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