Scion VIN Decoder

Decode any Scion VIN free in seconds. Enter the 17-character vehicle identification number from your Scion into the decoder above and get the model, year, engine family, trim, factory options, plant code, and recall status instantly, with no sign-up and no credit card.

This page is the Scion VIN hub. Below you’ll find Scion-specific WMI codes, the brand’s plant codes, a position-by-position guide to reading a Scion VIN, where to find the VIN on your Scion, and how to check recalls now that the brand is discontinued.

About Scion

Scion was Toyota’s youth-oriented marketing brand for the United States and Canada, launched in June 2003 to sell affordable, style-forward small cars to younger buyers through a no-haggle pricing model. The lineup grew to include the xA and xB hatchbacks, the tC coupe, the xD, the boxy iQ city car, and the rear-wheel-drive FR-S sports coupe co-developed with Subaru. Toyota discontinued Scion in 2016, folding the brand back into Toyota: the tC and xB were retired, while the FR-S was rebadged as the Toyota 86 and the iA and iM were renamed Toyota Yaris iA and Corolla iM.

Every Scion was engineered and built as a Toyota under the hood, which is why Scion VINs carry Toyota manufacturer codes rather than a separate identifier. Most Scion models were assembled in Japan. The tC and xD came from Toyota’s Tsutsumi and Takaoka plants in Toyota City, Aichi Prefecture; the xB was built by Central Motor Co. (a Toyota group company) in Sagamihara; and the iQ was also produced at the Takaoka plant. The FR-S is the exception: it was built by Subaru at the Gunma Main Plant in Ota, Japan, as part of the joint Toyota-Subaru sports car program that also produced the Subaru BRZ.

Scion WMI codes (positions 1-3)

The first three characters of your VIN, the World Manufacturer Identifier (WMI), tell you who built the vehicle and where. The WMI is assigned by SAE International on behalf of ISO. Scion never had its own WMI registration; it was issued VINs under Toyota’s existing manufacturer codes. Here are the WMIs confirmed on real Scion vehicles via NHTSA’s VIN decoding database:

If your Scion VIN begins with any of the codes above, it decodes as a genuine factory Scion. A VIN claiming to be a Scion but starting with an unlisted WMI may indicate a rebadge, a data entry error, or a mismatched title. Decode the full VIN with the tool above to confirm.

How to read a Scion VIN: position by position

Every Scion VIN uses the ISO 3779 17-character standard, the same standard applied to every Toyota. The 17 characters split into three blocks:

Here is what each position means specifically on a Scion:

Positions 1-3: World Manufacturer Identifier

See the WMI table above. Because Scion was a Toyota sales brand rather than a separate manufacturer, the WMI on a Scion VIN reflects Toyota’s own registered codes for the assembly plant that built the car, not a Scion-specific identifier.

Positions 4-8: Vehicle Descriptor Section (VDS)

These five characters spell out the model line, body style, restraint system, and engine. For example, on a tC VIN the pattern reads JTKDE1…, where D indicates the two-door coupe body and E indicates the 2.4L 2AZ-FE four-cylinder engine. On an xD VIN the pattern reads JTKKU1…, with K and U identifying the xD’s hatchback body and 1.8L engine combination. The exact character-to-feature mapping differs by model year, so always confirm with a full decode.

Position 9: Check digit

The check digit is the most important single character in any VIN. It is calculated from the other 16 characters using a fixed weighting table and modulo-11 math. If even one character of a Scion VIN is mistyped, the check digit will not match, and any compliant decoder, DMV, or insurance system will flag the VIN as invalid.

Position 10: Model year

The 10th character maps to a model year on a 30-year cycle. Since Scion only sold vehicles from 2003 to 2016, you only need this slice of the chart:

The letters I, O, and Q are never used in any VIN, including Scion, because they look too similar to the digits 1 and 0.

Position 11: Assembly plant

The single character at position 11 identifies the specific factory. Scion vehicles were built at a small number of Toyota-group plants: Tsutsumi and Takaoka in Toyota City, Aichi (tC, xD, iQ), the Central Motor Co. plant in Sagamihara (xB), and Subaru’s Gunma Main Plant in Ota (FR-S).

Positions 12-17: Serial number

The final six characters are the production sequence number stamped on your specific Scion as it rolled off the line. Combined with the previous 11 characters, this makes every Scion VIN globally unique.

Where to find the VIN on a Scion

You can find your Scion VIN in several places. The lower-left windshield and the door jamb are the easiest to read; the others are useful when one of those labels has been damaged or replaced.

• Lower-left corner of the windshield, visible from outside
• Driver’s side door jamb sticker (VIN, type code, paint, interior code)
• Stamped on the right-side suspension strut tower under the hood
• Vehicle title, registration, and Toyota’s owner service portal

Check Scion recalls and safety information

Scion was discontinued in 2016, but every Scion on the road is still covered by federal safety recall law, and Toyota still handles Scion recalls directly since Toyota was always the manufacturer of record. Open and historic recalls are tracked by NHTSA and by Toyota’s own recall lookup, which explicitly covers Toyota, Lexus, and Scion vehicles from the same tool. The fastest way to check a specific Scion:

1. Decode the VIN with the tool above to confirm the model and model year
2. Cross-reference the 17-character VIN with Toyota’s official recall lookup, which covers Scion vehicles, or with NHTSA’s recall search
3. Review any open safety actions and contact your nearest Toyota dealer for free repair; Scion-branded service departments no longer exist, but Toyota dealers service and repair every Scion model under the same recall obligations

Recalls are repaired free of charge by the manufacturer regardless of vehicle age, brand discontinuation, or ownership history. Many Scion models, particularly 2003-2013 tC, xA, xB, and xD units, were included in the Takata airbag inflator recall, one of the largest safety recalls in automotive history, so it is worth checking even if you have owned the car for years without incident.

Frequently asked questions

How do I decode my Scion VIN?

Type the 17-character VIN from your Scion’s windshield, driver-side door jamb, or vehicle title into the decoder at the top of this page. Results return in seconds and include make, model, model year, body style, engine family, transmission, plant of origin, and open NHTSA recalls. No registration is required.

Where is the VIN on my Scion?

The two easiest spots are the lower-left corner of the windshield (visible from outside the car) and the driver-side door jamb sticker. Both locations were required by federal labelling regulation on every Scion sold in the US and Canada.

Is the Scion VIN decoder free?

Yes. VinDecoderPlus decodes every Scion VIN free of charge with no sign-up or credit card. Full vehicle history reports, including ownership records, accident history, and odometer history, are available as an optional paid upgrade.

What does the VIN tell me about my Scion?

A VIN decode confirms the original factory configuration of your Scion: model, year, body style, engine, transmission, trim level, factory options, country and plant of origin, and any recall actions issued against that VIN. It does not record colour (which is on the build sheet), current mileage, accident history, or ownership chain. For those, you need a paid vehicle history report.

Does Scion still exist, and who handles recalls now?

Scion was discontinued as a brand in 2016 when Toyota folded it back into the main Toyota lineup. Toyota Motor Corporation was always the legal manufacturer behind every Scion, so warranty coverage, parts, and recall obligations transferred directly to Toyota. Any open Scion recall can be checked and scheduled through a Toyota dealer using the same VIN-based lookup Toyota uses for its own vehicles.

Can a Scion VIN be faked?

The 17 characters themselves can be retyped, but the check digit at position 9 makes silent tampering nearly impossible: any single-character change breaks the math. Scion VIN plates used the same tamper-resistant federal standard as every other Toyota product. If you suspect a cloned VIN, our guide how to check if a car is stolen by VIN walks through the next steps.

Decode any Scion VIN free

Type your 17-character Scion VIN into the decoder at the top of this page and get a full breakdown instantly. To learn more about VIN structure in general, see our guides:

• How to read a VIN number
• What every character in a VIN means
• Classic car VIN decoder (pre-1981)
• VIN decoder vs. vehicle history report