Is my Tesla a 2026 or 2027 model year?
A Tesla's model year is the tenth character of the VIN: T means 2026 and V means 2027. Between late September and mid October 2026 every Model 3 and Model Y factory switched from T to V. Using orders tracked in Delivery Status, this guide shows when each factory switched and what the letter can tell you about your car, and what it cannot.
By Jaap Rodenburg
Updated · 8 min read
In short
- Since 12 October, 3,792 of 3,985 VINs assigned in the app (95%) carry a V, the code for 2027. 162 carry a T for 2026.
- Berlin switched first: 132 of 143 Model Y VINs had a V in the week of 28 September, against none of 68 the week before. Shanghai Model 3 followed two weeks later, and only 19 of 61 Cybertruck VINs since 12 October had a V.
- Of orders delivered in October, 621 of 877 had a 2027 VIN. For Shanghai-built cars it was 101 of 250, because many October cars were already at sea.
- A 2027 VIN did not slow handover in North America. The median from VIN to delivery was 4.8 days for V cars (353 orders) and 5.4 days for T cars (46 orders).
How does the VIN show the model year?
Tesla's VIN decoding page lists the code for the tenth of the 17 characters [1].
| 10th character | Year |
|---|---|
| S | 2025 |
| T | 2026 |
| V | 2027 |
The same page gives the letter two meanings. For cars from Texas and Fremont it is the "Model Year". For cars from Shanghai and Berlin it is the "Calendar year in which the vehicle was built" [1].
Tesla's 2027 decoder filed with the US safety regulator NHTSA confirms the code for US-built cars: "Digit 10: Model Year V = 2027". That filing covers the Model 3, Model Y and Cybercab, and lists the plant as the eleventh character: F for Fremont, A for Austin [2].
The first three characters give the factory: XP7 is Berlin, LRW is Shanghai, and 5YJ, 7SA and 7G2 are US-built [2]. The six-digit serial number at the end carries on across years. Tesla writes that "The Production Sequence numbering does not start at 000001 with each new model year" [1], so the serial number says nothing about the year.
When did each factory switch to 2027?
At the Model 3 and Model Y factories, the change ran over three calendar weeks, from the week of 28 September to the week of 12 October. Each factory went from almost all T to almost all V within one or two weeks.
| Factory and model | First week over 80% V | V share that week | V share since 12 Oct |
|---|---|---|---|
| Berlin, Model Y | 28 Sep | 92% (132 of 143) | 99% (1,342 of 1,354) |
| Fremont, Model 3 | 28 Sep | 97% (28 of 29) | 95% (111 of 117) |
| Fremont, Model Y | 5 Oct | 94% (33 of 35) | 96% (368 of 382) |
| Shanghai, Model Y | 5 Oct | 88% (30 of 34) | 88% (251 of 284) |
| Austin, Model Y | 5 Oct | 84% (38 of 45) | 95% (339 of 355) |
| Shanghai, Model 3 | 12 Oct | 99% (423 of 427) | 96% (1,362 of 1,416) |
| Austin, Cybertruck | not yet | 31% (19 of 61) |
For each factory and model, the share of VINs assigned that week whose tenth character is V. Weeks with fewer than 20 VINs are left out.
| Week starting | Berlin, Model Y | Shanghai, Model 3 | Fremont, Model Y | Austin, Model Y |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 31 Aug | 0% | 0% | 0% | 3% |
| 7 Sep | 0% | 2% | 0% | 4% |
| 14 Sep | 0% | 6% | 0% | 18% |
| 21 Sep | 0% | 12% | 0% | 10% |
| 28 Sep | 92% | 7% | 62% | 43% |
| 5 Oct | 98% | 50% | 94% | 84% |
| 12 Oct | 98% | 99% | 97% | 98% |
| 19 Oct | 99% | 98% | 96% | 95% |
| 26 Oct | 100% | 84% | 94% | 94% |
| 2 Nov | 99% | 98% | 99% | 98% |
Source: Delivery Status for Tesla, VINs assigned 31 August to 5 November 2026. The week of 2 November runs to 5 November. Read 5 Nov 2026.
Berlin had 1 V among 445 VINs in the week of 7 September, then switched almost completely from 28 September.
Tesla calls the letter the calendar year of build for Berlin and Shanghai [1], yet both issued V VINs from late September 2026. Tesla has not explained why.
Can you still get a 2026 VIN?
Yes, but it is now rare. Since 12 October, 162 of 3,985 VINs in the app had a T (4%).
Berlin had 9 of 1,354 Model Ys with a T, plus 3 with another year code, which makes up the 12 non-V cars in the table above. Shanghai had more: 51 of 1,416 Model 3s and 32 of 284 Model Ys. In the US it was 16 of 355 Austin Model Ys, 10 of 382 Fremont Model Ys and 3 of 117 Fremont Model 3s.
The Cybertruck still mostly gets a T: 41 of its 61 VINs since 12 October. The week of 26 October was the first with a real number of V Cybertrucks in the app, 7 of 20. A post on X on 29 October said the first 2027 Cybertruck VINs were being assigned [8], which fits the app data.
Was a car delivered this autumn a 2026 or a 2027?
Cars are delivered weeks after they are built, so the switch reached deliveries later than new VINs.
| Factory | September | October | November to 5 Nov |
|---|---|---|---|
| Berlin | 0% V (0 of 901) | 83% V (222 of 269) | 95% V (60 of 63) |
| Shanghai | 0% V (0 of 736) | 40% V (101 of 250) | 97% V (30 of 31) |
| US factories | 3% V (13 of 415) | 83% V (298 of 358) | 89% V (85 of 96) |
For orders delivered in October 2026 with a T or V VIN, how many carried each code, per factory.
| Factory | Orders | 2027 (V) | 2026 (T) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Berlin | 267 | 83% (222) | 17% (45) |
| Shanghai | 247 | 41% (101) | 59% (146) |
| US factories | 354 | 84% (298) | 16% (56) |
Source: Delivery Status for Tesla, orders delivered in October 2026 with a T or V as the tenth VIN character. Read 5 Nov 2026.
Most Shanghai cars delivered in October still had a T, because a car for Europe, the UK or Canada spends weeks at sea. By November almost all had a V. US and Berlin cars mostly reach buyers over land, and their deliveries turned over faster.
Does a 2027 VIN change the wait?
In North America the medians from VIN to delivery were close for T and V cars. These are VINs assigned from 5 October and delivered by 5 November.
| Region | Year code | Orders | 25th percentile | Median | 75th percentile |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| North America | V (2027) | 353 | 2.7 days | 4.8 days | 11.6 days |
| North America | T (2026) | 46 | 1.9 days | 5.4 days | 11.4 days |
| Europe | V (2027) | 323 | 14.6 days | 19.0 days | 22.9 days |
Cars still waiting, often the slower ones, are not in the table yet.
Does a 2027 VIN mean the new features?
No. The parts a car gets depend on the factory and the market, not on the year letter alone. Tesla did add new hardware around the same time.
For Shanghai, Tesla announced 2027 updates to the Model 3 and Model Y on 1 October: a 16-inch screen, a black headliner, Zen Gray interior and vehicle-to-load (V2L) on new deliveries in China and Asia-Pacific [3]. For the Fremont Model 3, all versions get the 16-inch screen and AWD versions get a new front motor. V2L was not mentioned [4]. On 9 October Tesla's Spanish configurator listed the 16-inch screen on every Model 3 but no V2L [5].
Tesla's public parts catalog gives mixed results for 2027 VINs. On Tweakers, owners of Berlin Model Ys built on 28 October and 3 November found the older part without V2L. Other buyers found the V2L part listed for their VINs, and a Model 3 Performance buyer reported a V VIN with the 16-inch screen and black headliner in the parts list [6]. On TFF, a buyer found a new battery part number on a late 2027 Berlin Model Y [7].
For a single part such as V2L, the parts list for your VIN is a better guide than the year letter.
How can you check your own car?
Find the VIN
It appears in the Tesla app once a car is matched to your order. Our guide on what happens after a VIN is assigned covers the steps that follow.
Read the tenth character
T is 2026, V is 2027 [1].
Read the factory
The first three characters name the factory, and the eleventh the US plant [2].
Check parts for a feature
For a feature such as V2L, check the parts listed for your VIN [6].
What these numbers do not show
- The data starts in December 2025, so there is no earlier changeover to compare with.
- The VIN date is the day the app first saw the VIN, not the build date.
- November delivery counts cover five days and will change.
- The app cannot see why a T VIN was matched after the switch, or which parts a car has.
- Only app users are counted.
About the numbers
The figures come from orders that thousands of buyers track in Delivery Status for Tesla, read on 5 November 2026. VIN counts cover VINs that first appeared from 31 August to 5 November 2026. The year is read from the tenth character of the VIN and the factory from the first three and the eleventh. A delivery is counted on the first day the app recorded it. Shares and the T and V chart leave out VINs with another year code, about 1%. The October delivery table counts those cars (see its caption). Any group with fewer than 20 orders is left out.
Published · Updated
Sources
- VIN Decoding, Model Y Service ManualTesla
- 2027 Model Year VIN Decoder, Model 3, Y, CybercabTesla, filed with NHTSA
- Tesla updates China-made Model 3/Y with V2L, Zen Gray, 16" screen, and moreNot a Tesla App,
- 2027 Tesla Model 3 gets 16" infotainment screen, V2L, and cosmetic changes in some marketsautoevolution,
- The upgraded Model 3 has reached Spain's configurator. Vehicle-to-load has not.TeslAnt,
- Het grote Tesla Levering topic #2, page 147Tweakers,
- Model Y Juniper, Gerüchte um neue Upgrades, post 1942TFF Forum,
- 2027 Cybertruck VINs are hereDennisCW on X,
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