I note that some of the technical bulletins for the 07 G indicate they are applicable to a specific VIN range, and/or applicable to a "built before" date .

Questions -

a) I have my VIN number (and my car), but how do I find out when the car was built?

b) Why do the bulletins reference both a VIN and a build date? Wouldn’t the VIN number alone be sufficient???...especially as all owners readily have their VIN number more so than their 'build date'..

TMG

 

Open your driver's side door and you'll see a white sticker on the B pillar with the build date.

 

I used to work at an auto manufacturing facility, and I was responsible for the VIN machine. Cars are not produced sequentially by VIN number. Manufacturers build in different ways, but most of the high volume manufacturers build in lots, or batches.

First, the paint shop will build a group of cars in the same color. This does a scramble of the VIN numbers. Then, the cars will be built according to a schedule that reflects market demand. This will further scramble the VIN's. Some cars that have a low VIN will get put on hold for one reason or another, and be built long after the number was initally set.

 

Can we assume that the month on the white sticker is fairly close ( in the same month), or is it possible to be outside that month???

C.

 

It's very interesting that you ask that question...
I went to the dealer to buy a liquid platinum car. I drove it, and immediately noticed that the car had the wind-noise issue really bad in the LH rear quarter panel/roof area. I wasn't interested in buying a car with a problem, much less a problem that is so annoying to listen to. Just for kicks-and-giggles, I checked the compliance label on the door jamb, and noticed that Nissan had double-labled the car.

They had actually put a new compliance/VIN label on top of an old one. The only reason I could think that they did this is that the car was one of the first units that they had built. They must have put all of the first-built (had some defect) cars in a storage lot, and then came back to fix them later. When they came back to fix them, they re-labeled with the current date.

This is a common practice, but usually a manufacturer will remove the old label. I was shocked that they had actually put the new label on top of the old one! :O