YES! That clears up some of the confusion. It's NOT an EX or an LX at all. It's an Accord VTi-S.

Honda has always made up different designations for trim & engine, for different countries. And the engine choices that go along with that are all different for different countries. So the original "EX vs. LX" question only really applies to to USA.

Later years it gets even more confusing, because starting in 1998 it's not even the SAME CAR in different parts of the world.

Where your car has a VTi-S badge, a USA car would have an EX, LX, or DX badge. There's plenty of threads on here, that are conversations between 2 USA people. It's common to think that the EX/LX/DX designation is worldwide, but it's not.

The VIN will decode about the same way, but all the combinations are different.

7A3 would be the Nelson factory.
7 = region of the world (1=USA)
A = ????
3 = specific factory or maybe specifically which line

CD5 is Accord 4-door sedan

next digit (6) is the transmission (not the doors)

next digit (7) is the trim level which apparently translates to VTi-S. Each car company is free to make up any letter or number to designate their own worldwide list of available trims.

You probably cannot put your VIN into that website for OwnerLink, because it'll translate it as NOT a valid USA car. Maybe Honda of NZ has their own version of that website?

That stuff under your steering wheel might be a part number for a trim panel, not any kind of whole-car serial #.

Sorry if I seem a jerk when I replied about you not reading your VIN yet. We've got a growing number of members outside of USA & personally I think that's great. We just have to remember that USA isn't the whole world.

 

Ok thanks. I have been searching for lowering my car and many are CD6 not CD5. Does that mean my car wont go with it since its a 4 door accord? thanks

 

So my Vin is 1HGCG56682A1***** the 8 is throwing me off since you didn't mention what an 8 would mean but the number right after the 8 is a 2 so mine is a DX? It has a sunroof which is also confusing. I'm going to change my MCU and I just realized the current MCU says EX on it but when I purchased it I was told it was a DX.... help?

 

At the top of the forum lists is a post about "VIN decoder". Try that.

I think that wasn't posted yet when this 4-year-old thread was started.

Not sure, but I think when you are in a different "generation" of Accord, those code numbers can have different meanings.

 

Originally Posted by PAhonda View Post
"The EX is the only model that has a Vtec engine, so you car has an EX engine.

You can also determine if the car is a EX/LX/DX by the VIN on the metal plate on top of the driver's side of the dash board. The eighth digit is the one that will determine the Vehicle Grade (lx, dx, etc).

1HGCD566*SC000001

1HG = Honda of Americal
CD5 = Accord Sedan
6 = 4door automatic
6 = EX (2=DX, 3=LX, 4=LX with ABS, 5=EX, 6=EX with leather seats) "

This is mainly correct. However, the EX is NOT the only trim with VTec. The LX comes with it as well.