[Keith Seymore]

Also - the sequential portion of the VIN does not necessarily translate into the order it was built.

Most plants have the ability to shuffle the order between body shop and paint, and then again between paint and trim, in order to level the downstream workload (ie, can't have too many manuals in a row, can't have too many A/C units in a row, can't have too many multiple carb vehicles in a row, etc) or to accommodate part shortages or more involved repairs.

Some plants run multiple nameplates, with differing starting points based on the product (ie, Chevy start with 100001, GMC starts with 500001, Cadillac starts with 600001) or even engine descriptors (ie, V8's start with 100001, 6 cylinders start with 600001). In my day every ninth vehicle was a GMC so yours could potentially have a couple hundred Chevy's built before the 37th-ish GMC.

All of this confuses what you are trying to do; the number you really want is the General Assembly sequence number which is, sadly, not normally readily available*.

Nobody cares about the VIN in the assembly plant. It's just another part to make sure gets on the correct vehicle in the correct manner. The GA sequence number is the gold source in terms of vehicle identification.

K

*You could look for a build sheet in the vehicle. In the seat cushions, under the carpet/flooring, inside the doors, behind any instrument panel trim or headliner are all fertile ground. The GA sequence would likely appear somewhere on the build sheet.