Acura VIN Decoder: How to Read an Acura VIN (19U, 5J8, JH4)

An Acura VIN built in the US starts with 19U on cars (TLX, Integra, NSX), 19V on the Indiana-built ILX, and 5J8 or 5FR on SUVs (RDX and MDX), while Japan-built Acuras start with JH4. Positions 4-8 carry the model, body and engine, 9 is the check digit, 10 is the model year and 11 is the plant: Marysville, East Liberty, Lincoln, Greensburg or Sayama in our tests. A clean decode only describes the factory build, so check recalls and history before you buy.

We decoded 15 Acura patterns through NHTSA's free vPIC decoder on October 12, 2026. Acura is Honda's premium brand, and a lot of the hardware is shared (the MDX and Honda Pilot use the same J35 V6 family, for example), so some recalls hit both badges at once. The Honda side is in our Honda VIN decoder, and the general position-by-position walkthrough is in how to decode a VIN.

Positions 1-3: 19U, 19V, 5J8, 5FR and JH4

vPIC lists 19U and 19V as American Honda passenger-car codes and 5J8 and 5FR as its multipurpose-vehicle codes, while JH4 belongs to Honda Motor Co. in Japan. In our runs, a 2021 TLX starting 19UUB5F4 and a 2023 Integra starting 19UDE4H2 both decoded to Marysville, Ohio. A 2017 NSX starting 19UNC1B0 also came back Marysville, with the plant company listed as PMC, Honda's Performance Manufacturing Center. A 2014 ILX starting 19VDE1F3 decoded to Greensburg, Indiana. On the SUV side, a 2019 RDX starting 5J8TC2H5 and a 2022 MDX starting 5J8YE1H0 both came back East Liberty, Ohio, while a 2017 MDX starting 5FRYD4H4 decoded to Lincoln, Alabama. A 2012 TSX starting JH4CU2F6 came back Sayama, Japan. Small detail we noticed: one 2015 TLX pattern listed the plant city as "Maryville," a typo in the federal data. The plant is still Marysville.

Positions 4-8: model and the engine code

Acura's middle five characters decode to model, trim, drive and an engine code, and the engine code is the one worth writing down. Our 2019 RDX returned a K20C4 2.0-liter turbo four with SH-AWD Tech trim. The 2017 and 2022 MDX patterns both returned the J35Y5 3.5-liter V6. A 2015 TLX Tech returned the K24W7 2.4-liter with a dual-clutch transmission, and a 2021 TLX returned a K20C6 2.0. The 2023 Integra returned an L15CA 1.5-liter with a CVT, the ILX returned an R20A5 2.0, and an older 2013 RDX returned a J35Z2 V6. Two older patterns we tried (a 2012 JH4 code and a 2010 5J8 code) came back with "no detailed data available," which happens. Check the door-jamb label and match it to the dash plate; our how to find and verify a VIN post shows where to look.

Positions 9-11: check digit, year and plant

Position 9 is the check digit from 49 CFR 565.15. It catches typos and nothing more; a cloned VIN copied from a real MDX passes. Position 10 is the year (D was 2013, E was 2014, F was 2015, H was 2017, K was 2019, M was 2021, N was 2022 and P was 2023 in our runs). Position 11 is the plant: A for Marysville, L for East Liberty, B for Lincoln, E for Greensburg, Y on the NSX from PMC, and C for Sayama on the TSX. If a listing claims a "Japan-built MDX" and the VIN reads 5J8 with an L in position 11, you are looking at an Ohio truck, which is fine, but now you know the seller is guessing.

Recalls worth checking on an Acura VIN

We pulled Acura recalls from NHTSA data in mid October 2026, and a few stand out for used buyers. Recall 23V-751 covers about 249,000 Honda and Acura vehicles, including 2015-2020 TLX and 2016-2020 MDX, where a manufacturing error can let a connecting rod bearing wear and seize, damaging the engine; dealers inspect and repair or replace the engine. Recall 19V-182 covers Acuras including 2007-2016 RDX and 2013-2016 ILX that got a replacement Takata driver inflator during an earlier remedy, and that replacement can itself explode; our Takata airbag recall check explains how to confirm it was fixed. Recall 26V-365, filed in June 2026, covers 2014-2020 MDX sold in salt-belt states, where the rear subframe can corrode at the suspension mounts; interim owner letters went out July 27, 2026, and the repair is an inspection plus a subframe reinforcement kit. If you are shopping an MDX from Ohio or Michigan, get it on a lift. The Pilot shares that campaign, which our used Honda Pilot buying guide covers.

After the decode: the history report

Car and Driver's MDX page covers generation changes, and IIHS MDX ratings change by year. You can confirm open campaigns on Acura's recall lookup. None of that covers title brands, odometer rollbacks, auction damage or old insurance claims, which come from DMV, insurer and auction records. CARFAX describes those sources. Pull the report yourself, because a seller-supplied PDF is easy to doctor. As of mid October 2026, a CARFAX report through us runs about $5.50 as a guest or about $4.50 as a member, and a CARFAX plus AutoCheck bundle is about $6.75, versus roughly $39.99 to $44.99 at retail. Confirm at checkout. We are a licensed CARFAX and AutoCheck reseller, not affiliated with CARFAX, AutoCheck, or Experian.

Sources

• NHTSA vPIC VIN Decoder
• 49 CFR 565.15 VIN requirements
• NHTSA: Honda recall report 23V-751 (connecting rod bearing)
• NHTSA: Honda recall report 19V-182 (replacement driver inflators)
• NHTSA: Honda recall report 26V-365 (rear subframe corrosion)
• Acura: Recall lookup
• Car and Driver: Acura MDX
• IIHS: Acura MDX ratings
• CARFAX: Vehicle History Reports