A Plymouth VIN uses Chrysler's format, and the first three characters split the lineup cleanly. In our vPIC decodes, 1P3 covered the cars (Neon from Belvidere, Illinois, Breeze from Sterling Heights, Michigan, Prowler from Detroit and Acclaim from Newark, Delaware), 1P4 was a Voyager from the St. Louis South plant in Missouri, and 2P4 was a Voyager or Grand Voyager from Windsor, Ontario. Position 10 is the model year and position 11 is the plant. Plymouth was phased out after the 2001 model year, so even the newest one is about 25 years old, and the recall and title checks matter more than the decode.
We decoded these patterns with NHTSA's free vPIC decoder on October 14, 2026. The brand history explains why the WMIs look so much like Dodge and Chrysler. The Associated Press, via the Los Angeles Times, reported in November 1999 that DaimlerChrysler would phase out Plymouth at the end of the 2001 model year. Every Plymouth had a Dodge or Chrysler sibling except the Prowler. Voyager minivans were to be sold as Chryslers starting that December, Breeze production was ending at the end of 1999, and the Neon and Prowler stayed Plymouths until 2001. If the 17 positions are new to you, start with how to decode a VIN, then keep our Dodge VIN decoder and Chrysler VIN decoder open for the shared codes.
Positions 1-3: which Plymouth is it
The WMI separates the cars from the vans. Our 1996, 1998 and 2000 Neon patterns starting 1P3ES all decoded to Belvidere Assembly with a 2.0-liter four. The 1998 and 2000 Breeze patterns starting 1P3EJ came back from Sterling Heights, also with a 2.0. The Prowler patterns starting 1P3EW decoded to Chrysler's Conner Avenue plant in Detroit with a 3.5-liter V6, and a 1995 Acclaim decoded to Newark with a 2.5 four. On the vans, a 1999 Voyager starting 1P4 came back from Fenton, Missouri, which vPIC lists as St Louis Assembly South, and the 1998 Voyager and 2000 Grand Voyager patterns starting 2P4 decoded to Windsor with the 3.3 V6.
Two things surprised us. The 1998 Voyager decode named Windsor, Ontario as the plant but listed the plant country as the United States, which is plainly a data slip. And a 1996 Laser pattern starting 4P3 came back with nothing but "Mitsubishi Motors North America" as the maker. So on Plymouth, read every field, and do not panic if one is blank or wrong.
Positions 4-8: trim and engine
The middle block holds the line, series, body, restraints and engine. On our Neons, a 46 in positions 6 and 7 came back as High Line in 1996, while a 47 came back as Expresso, so the trim really is in there. Position 8 was a C on every Neon and Breeze and decoded to the 2.0 four, an R on the Voyagers decoded to the 3.3 V6, a B on a 2000 base Voyager decoded to a 2.4 four, and a G on the Prowler decoded to the 3.5 V6. Treat that as a pattern from our samples, not a factory chart, and compare the decode to what is under the hood.
Positions 9-11: check digit, year and plant
Position 9 is the check digit defined in 49 CFR 565.15, and a cloned VIN copied from a real car still passes it. Year codes in our samples ran S for 1995, T for 1996, W for 1998, X for 1999, Y for 2000 and the digit 1 for 2001, which is how our 2001 Prowler decoded clean. Plant letters were D for Belvidere, N for Sterling Heights, V for Conner Avenue, F for Newark, B for St. Louis South and R for Windsor.
Recalls on a Plymouth VIN
The minivans carry the heaviest file. NHTSA's record for 00V-268 covers 1996-2000 vans with the 3.3 or 3.8 V6 whose fuel rail O-ring seals can degrade and leak fuel under the hood, raising the risk of a fire. Recall 02V-293 covers 1996-1998 vans whose air bag clockspring may have been wound wrong at the factory, and 04V-480 covers 1998-2000 vans whose clockspring can fail and disable the driver air bag. On that one, the remedy record says dealers replaced it on vans with 70,000 miles or less and offered a lifetime warranty on the part above that. On the Breeze, 04V-021 covers 1996-1999 cars whose floor shifter interlock can let the lever leave Park with the key out. The Prowler has 03V-034 for 1997-2001 front lower ball joints, and 99V-313 is a strange one: 546 of the 1999 Prowlers, by NHTSA's count, got aluminum frame castings that missed heat treatment, and the remedy listed is that dealers would replace the vehicles. A recall from 2000 can still show as open today, and whether anyone can still get the part is a separate question, so call a dealer before you count on it. Our NHTSA recall check by VIN post shows the lookup.
Title and odometer on a 25-year-old car
Federal odometer disclosure does not protect you here. Under 49 CFR 580.17, a 2010 or older vehicle is exempt once it is transferred at least 10 years after its model year, which covers every Plymouth ever built. So the seller can write "exempt" where the miles go, and the only record of what the miles were is whatever got reported along the way. CARFAX says its reports draw on title, odometer, ownership and accident records. 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.
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