Character 4: Here is a breakdown of Yamaha's model group codes:
A: Sportbikes
B: Scooters
C: All-terrain vehicles (ATVs)
D: Dual-purpose bikes
E: Off-road motorcycles
F: Sport touring bikes
G: Snowmobiles
H: Motocross bikes
J: Jet skis
K: Street bikes
L: Side-by-side vehicles (SSVs)
M: Scooters and mopeds
N: Naked bikes
P: Dirt bikes
R: Supersport bikes
S: Snow bikes
VIN Model Years
An example of model years are shown below as you can see in the above example 'H' can represent either 2017 or 1987.
A
|
1980
|
L
|
1990
|
Y
|
2000
|
A
|
2010
|
L
|
2020
|
---|
B
|
1981
|
M
|
1991
|
1
|
2001
|
B
|
2011
|
M
|
2021
|
C
|
1982
|
N
|
1992
|
2
|
2002
|
C
|
2012
|
N
|
2022
|
D
|
1983
|
P
|
1993
|
3
|
2003
|
D
|
2013
|
P
|
2023
|
E
|
1984
|
R
|
1994
|
4
|
2004
|
E
|
2014
|
R
|
2024
|
F
|
1985
|
S
|
1995
|
5
|
2005
|
F
|
2015
|
S
|
2025
|
G
|
1986
|
T
|
1996
|
6
|
2006
|
G
|
2016
|
T
|
2026
|
H
|
1987
|
V
|
1997
|
7
|
2007
|
H
|
2017
|
V
|
2027
|
J
|
1988
|
W
|
1998
|
8
|
2008
|
J
|
2018
|
W
|
2028
|
K
|
1989
|
X
|
1999
|
9
|
2009
|
K
|
2019
|
X
|
2029
|
Yamaha 9 Digit VIN
Yamaha's 9-digit VIN (Vehicle Identification Number) system, which was used before 1981, is different from the standardized 17-digit VIN system used today. The 9-digit VIN is composed of alphanumeric characters, each representing specific information about the vehicle. Here's how the 9-digit Yamaha VIN works:
The first character represents the engine type. For example, "H" could represent a 2-stroke, 3-cylinder engine, while "J" could represent a 4-stroke, 4-cylinder engine.
The second character represents the vehicle's class or category, such as "A" for motorcycle, "B" for scooter, or "C" for ATV.
The third character represents the vehicle's model, such as "1" for a specific motorcycle model or "3" for a particular ATV model.
The fourth character represents the vehicle's design feature, which could be related to its engine, suspension, or another feature that differentiates it from other models in the same category.
The fifth character represents the production year, with letters A to Y representing years 1960 to 1984, and numbers 1 to 9 representing years 2001 to 2009. The production year may not be the same as the model year.
The sixth character represents the factory where the vehicle was manufactured. Each factory has a unique letter code.
The last three characters (7th, 8th, and 9th) represent the vehicle's production number or serial number. This is a unique number assigned to each vehicle during manufacturing.
Please note that this information might not be applicable to all Yamaha vehicles, as there could be variations depending on the specific model or manufacturing year. Yamaha switched to the 17-digit VIN system in 1981, which is more standardized and provides more detailed information about the vehicle.
John McDermott has Yamaha parts cross reference numbers on his site, this can be helpful to ID older bikes from the part numbers.