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Fri Jan 29, 2021 5:16 am

Hi, i recently stumbled on a mexican vw bug of which i believe dates from 1992 base on the papers.
I was looking at the vin number but the only thing i could find was under the back seat. I could nowhere find an id plate or traces of it ever being there (holes )
Does any of you know where it should have been?

It also came with a seperate id plate from the mexican government. does this needs to be fixed on there? it was removed during the restoration but i don't know where it has to be...

Does anyone have experience with this?

https://ibb.co/WD6d53N
==> wasnt able to upload the picture here...

Fri Jan 29, 2021 6:47 am

Hello, I can't see your pic, however no VIN plate proper was used on 90s Mexican bugs for the internal market.

you shoud have a VIN stamped in the following places:

and a VIN tag on the driver's side B pillar:

Fri Jan 29, 2021 10:01 am

Thanks for the information i will check it out right away. I think the vin tag by the b pilar is gone for mine but i will check the one in the trunk asap!

I finally succeeded in uploading the file. Found out that it is the homologation but still not sure where it has to be place. Do you have any idea about this?

Thanks for your support!

Sat Jan 30, 2021 7:29 am

Your car is a 1991 model year, however it was probably first registered in 1992.

The VIN and motor number correspond to the 1991 model year (which is also shown on the homologation plate).

It looks like sometimes cars were registered based on when it was sold new (in Europe), and not the model year as shown on the VIN (as is the practice in North America). My car was registered as a 1997 model (first registered in Germany), even though it was a 1996 model year (sold new in Feb 1997). [Maybe this was the practice for 'out of market' only cars]. (My car was also later registered as a 1997 model in the UK when it was brought there from Germany, but switched to 1996 model year when I brought it to Canada, based on the VIN).

The homologation plate is clearly Mexican issued or issued at the factory, my car does not have anything like that. Instead the importers (in the mid '90s) attached their own ID plate behind the spare tire. Here are a couple different styles:

I don't know the correct placement of your plate, but I would affix it behind the spare tire like the samples shown.

The VIN plate was not affixed to the B-pillar until the 1994 model year, so I would not expect to see one on the B-pillar on your car. I don't know where (or if at all) a VIN plate would have been affixed on your car. The regulations for that type of thing were very lax in Mexico at the time, compared to the rest of the world.

Your car may have had a bar code sticker like this one (from an '84):

Here is some further info about the 1991 model year. I haven't translated this page to English (I did for the 1993-2004 model years) from Nicholas Rosenow's book:

Sat Jan 30, 2021 7:44 am

I found a picture from further back showing the placement of the ID plate:

Fri Feb 09, 2024 3:18 pm

Hello,

I have a 91 Mexican Beetle for which the VIN plates have been removed and the pan has been switched to a 69 pan. I'm trying to fin the original VIN number for the car and I came across your post from 2021 with pictures. I know I'm supposed to have a VIN plate on the B pilar, a number on the tunnel but did not know that there was a stamping on the body in the front trunk area.
I would like to know exactly where the stamping is in front of the gaz tank.

I may be tempted to scratch the paint to see if there's anything underneath but before I start I wan't to make sure that I'm in the right place.

Thank you

Mon Feb 12, 2024 12:34 am

yes, that's the area. has it been repainted?

Mon Feb 12, 2024 4:49 am

GArBa wrote: yes, that's the area. has it been repainted?

I don't think a repaint would obscure those numbers unless they were ground off. It's possible that in '91 they did not stamp the VIN there. (or maybe that was just for the exported [to Europe] cars).

For 1991:
Original VIN range 11M M 000001 to 11M M 077536
Engine Numbers: AF 1093084 to AF 1170619

You may be able to guess-timate the original VIN by subtracting your engine number from the last '90 engine number,
for example if your engine # is AF1170619:
1170619-1093083 = 77536
Therefore calculated VIN would be 11M M 077536 (the last '91 car).

This formula works for some cars, however there are cases where the engine number and VIN assignment were done out of order.

Here are some '91 details from Nicholas Rosenow's book, note that 1991 was the first year of the Golf seats and the new dashboard using Golf switches.
Quote:
VW SEDAN 1600 / U-Kat
• From January 1991: Unregulated catalytic converter with welded rear silencer and exhaust pipe on the driver's side.
• The right opening in the rear end panel is omitted due to the catalytic converter behind it.
• Fuel: Unleaded petrol at least 87 RON.
• Fuel consumption 5.8 liters at 90 km/h, 8.8 liters in the city cycle.
• Tank filler neck with additional restrictive safety flap to only be able to fill up unleaded and spring to prevent evaporation of the benzene vapors.
• Fuel tank made of sheet steel galvanized on both sides.
• New dashboard paneling with illuminated toggle switch for lighting and hazard warning lights (Golf 2) as well as an enlarged standard shaft for the radio system.
• Speedometer lighting also green.
• Headlight glass instead of polycarbonate plastic insert.
• New front seats A2 (seat position 1.5 cm higher).
• Partly Brazilian grooved rims (hub caps cannot be retrofitted here).
• Partial use of the four-spoke steering wheel with four lifting buttons (anniversary beetle).
• Chrome frame around windscreen and rear window, some remainders, otherwise omitted.
• The second horn of the anti-theft alarm system on the driver's side is omitted.
• Paintwork: Alpine White, Brilliant Yellow, Cosmo Blue, Cherry Red.
Germany
• Independent importers such as Beetle Revival in Karlsruhe, RUSS-Automobile in Wiesbaden, NR-Automobile in Munich import brand-new VW Beetles from Mexico to meet the demand in the Volkswagen's home country. Numerous retrofits and technical tests/certificates make importing difficult.
• As a variant, the VW 1600 is offered with a Britax sunroof. Other extras such as heated rear windows etc. can also be selected.
• Right from the start, NR-Automobile offers its permanent corrosion protection package M6 with stone chipping corners made of stainless steel for the rear fenders, replacement of all rust-sensitive screws and screw elements with stainless steel parts and a two-layer preservation according to the DINOL method with penetrant and sealant for the underbody, wheel arches and cavities. All chassis parts are painted black in advance.

Today 2:41 am

Hi guys, just wondering how you go about checking the year of manufacture for Mexican bug. I believe it's 2003 model, but its registered as 2008. Is there a database that I can print of to show local government to re register car. ? Thanks

Today 5:24 am

buggyboyshane wrote: Hi guys, just wondering how you go about checking the year of manufacture for Mexican bug. I believe it's 2003 model, but its registered as 2008. Is there a database that I can print of to show local government to re register car. ? Thanks

I don't think there is a database, however the 17 digit VIN for 1997+ Mexican Beetles is ISO 3779 (North American) compliant, so just like any other car the year of manufacture would be the 10th digit.

For a 2003 model year it should be a "3".

Here are a couple of charts of the VIN ranges for 1993 to 2004 model years along with the engine number ranges per year.