Frame Number

HondasRun4ever

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This might be a stupid question. What is the purpose of the frame number beneath the passenger-side floor mat? I never saw that on any other car I owned.
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jeremiah

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This might be a stupid question. What is the purpose of the frame number beneath the passenger-side floor mat? I never saw that on any other car I owned.
Thats a good question, I would like to know as well. :hmm:
 
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HondasRun4ever

HondasRun4ever

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Someone told me it's so law enforcement can identify the frame if the car is stolen and disassembled in a "chop shop." But if that's the purpose, wouldn't it be better to hide the number instead of putting it right out in the plain sight where car thieves can easily grind it off?
 

jeremiah

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Someone told me it's so law enforcement can identify the frame if the car is stolen and disassembled in a "chop shop." But if that's the purpose, wouldn't it be better to hide the number instead of putting it right out in the plain sight where car thieves can easily grind it off?
I was vacuuming the car and thought it was peculiar place for it.
 

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I think it also gets used in production as well as for theft recovery.
Old beetles had the same thing, stamped under the rear seat
 


Jens_sedanEX18

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I was going to ask the same question. What is the purpose? Does it serve a legitimate purpose? It’s weird how they put it in plain sight.
 

kimtyson

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Isn't that the VIN number?
 

BriteBlue

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I'm presuming it's the Confidential VIN.
http://www.vintageautomotive.net/?tag=hidden-vin

I always thought the Confidential VIN. was supposed to be Confidential. The location known only by the manufacturer & law enforcement. If a stolen car was recovered, the police could verify the real VIN by looking at the Confidential VIN in some obscure location.

The number stamped into the frame or unibody is the real VIN. Thieves would buy a totaled out or scrap vehicle just to get the VIN tags from the windshield & door jamb & install them on a stolen car. Unsuspecting buyers would never know if these matched the Confidential VIN and therefore could be buying a retagged stolen vehicle.

Apparently things have changed over the years & now the number is stamped into the body structure where everyone can see it, at least on some vehicles.
 

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I was going to ask the same question. What is the purpose? Does it serve a legitimate purpose? It’s weird how they put it in plain sight.
It’s just the VIN stamped on the sheet metal. It’s been stamped on the firewall on older models. It’s also on a plate visible through the windshield and on stickers on all the panels, bumpers, engine, trans. There’s nothing confidential about it.
 


BriteBlue

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It’s just the VIN stamped on the sheet metal. It’s been stamped on the firewall on older models. It’s also on a plate visible through the windshield and on stickers on all the panels, bumpers, engine, trans. There’s nothing confidential about it.
The VIN itself is not confidential but that one particular VIN location was, hence the name Confidential VIN or Hidden VIN. Google has a lot of info on this.

Years ago through my job I had interactions with the State Police regarding stolen cars & sometimes they had to slightly lift the body off the frame in order to look at the Confidential VIN. This was before unibody vehicles dominated the scene.
 

Jens_sedanEX18

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I'm presuming it's the Confidential VIN.
http://www.vintageautomotive.net/?tag=hidden-vin

I always thought the Confidential VIN. was supposed to be Confidential. The location known only by the manufacturer & law enforcement. If a stolen car was recovered, the police could verify the real VIN by looking at the Confidential VIN in some obscure location.

The number stamped into the frame or unibody is the real VIN. Thieves would buy a totaled out or scrap vehicle just to get the VIN tags from the windshield & door jamb & install them on a stolen car. Unsuspecting buyers would never know if these matched the Confidential VIN and therefore could be buying a retagged stolen vehicle.

Apparently things have changed over the years & now the number is stamped into the body structure where everyone can see it, at least on some vehicles.
You can definitely see it under the floor mat in the car on the passenger side. Just lift the little tab up. It’ll have some foamy stuff attached to the lid. Insulation I’m guessing. I just never seen that on any of the cars I had. I had a old Nissan Sentra, a 92’ Ford Ranger, two newer Nissan Sentras and my last car I had that I used for a trade in was a 2010 Chevrolet Equinox.
 

redcoats1976

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possibly its more of a way to discourage chop shops as its so easy to find and check?why else would it be labelled and easy to get to?
 

BriteBlue

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possibly its more of a way to discourage chop shops as its so easy to find and check?why else would it be labelled and easy to get to?
That's what I'm guessing. And if the number is ground off then you know something is fishy.
 

zroger73

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My 2020 Mazda CX-5 has the VIN stamped in this location as well covered by the same type of door that Honda uses.
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