My gas pickups all have had B in the fifth digit and someone below says this letter designates engine.

 

This is from a 1983 convertible, German made.

 

Thanks. This VIN is from a 1983 convertible engine I'm thinking of buying. It claims to be a 1.7 and when I do a VIN search it is listed as a 1.7, but, a Chilton manual says the 1983 convertible is listed as having a 1.8 JH engine. The Vin search also indicates the vehicle was made in Germany. As far as I know. The VIN # of the truck I'm driving has a B in that position. It came with a 1.6 gas originally. Are all JH engines air shrouded?

 

A) As stated in your other topic, Chilton is wrong... period. No, none, zero Rabbit Convertibles came with the JH until the 1984 model year.

B) All 1979-1993 convertibles were built in Germany... period.

C) As stated in your other topic, only the 1980 Rabbit Convertibles came with a gas 1.6L. The 1983 car in question would have had a 1.7L EN engine installed at the factory. What it has now, 30 years later, who the hell knows unless you obtain the engine code.

D) As stated previously, all 1981-1989 convertibles have an "A" for their designated engines, which merely means "lowest output, gas". For the convertibles, the engines are:
1981-1983: 1.7L EN
1984-1989: 1.8L JH

 

The A or B is not engine, it's body - A - 2 Door Base or B - 2 Door Custom

 

Incorrect.

The 5th VIN digit indicates engine type via a letter code. That letter code depends on model type and year. For example, the German-built 1984 Rabbit Convertible will be A (lowest output gas engine, 1.8L JH), while a USA-built 1984 Rabbit GTI will have a B (highest output gas engine, 1.8L JH). The Rabbit Convertible only ever had one engine for a given model year, hence the 1984 JH being "lowest ouput". The Rabbit hatchback had multiple engine options, hence that same JH engine being "highest ouput" for the GTI.

For the Rabbit hatchbacks/trucks (the ones I know of):
A = lowest output, gas
B = highest output, gas
G = highest ouput, diesel

 

Can tell you on a Cabby.

Try:
http://www.edition38.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=457121

try
http://www.vin-decoder.net/