Reference

Identify a MK7

How to identify a Golf MK7 or MK7.5 from its VIN, plates and data sticker, how to tell the facelift apart, how to check that an R is a real R, and how VW part numbers are built.

VIN, position by position

A VIN has 17 characters. European and US VINs for the same car read differently in positions 4 to 6 and 9.

Position	Meaning	Europe	US	Source
1–3	World manufacturer identifier	WVW: VW passenger car, Germany/Europe (WVG is SUV)	3VW Mexico, 1VW USA, 9BW Brazil	[1] [2]
4	Vehicle attributes	Z (filler)	Golf R: W manual, V DSG; early manuals may show U	[1] [2]
5	Engine	Z (filler)	F = 2.0 litre, 292 hp Golf R	[1] [2]
6	Restraints	Z (filler)	7 = Golf family restraint system	[1] [2]
7–8	Model	AU	AU	[1] [3]
9	Check digit	Z (filler, no check digit)	Real check digit	[1] [2]
10	Model year	Letter, see below		[1]
11	Plant	Letter or digit, see below		[1] [2]
12–17	Serial number	Six digits		[1]

AU in positions 7 and 8 covers the whole Golf 7 family: hatch, estate, GTI, R, e-Golf and Alltrack. VW's internal type code 5G (also seen as AU or BA5) is not part of the VIN³. Unverified

Model year letters

Position 10 gives the model year, not the build year¹.

Letter	Model year	Source
D	2013	[1]
E	2014	[1]
F	2015	[1]
G	2016	[1]
H	2017	[1]
J	2018	[1]
K	2019	[1]
L	2020	[1]
M	2021	[1]

Plant codes

Code	Plant	Source
W	Wolfsburg, Germany	[1] [2]
8	Dresden, Germany	[1]
M	Puebla, Mexico	[1] [2]
C	Chattanooga, USA (US MY2018 list)	[2]
D	Bratislava, Slovakia	[1]
B	Brussels, Belgium	[1]
E	Emden, Germany	[1]
H	Hanover, Germany	[1]
P	Mosel / Anchieta	[1]

These are VW plant codes. The claim that every Golf R was built at Wolfsburg is not confirmed. Unverified

Worked example: WVWZZZAUZHW113613

Characters	Reads as	Source
WVW	Volkswagen passenger car, Europe	[1]
ZZZ	European filler, no attribute coding	[1]
AU	Golf 7 family	[1] [3]
Z	Filler, no check digit	[1]
H	Model year 2017	[1]
W	Wolfsburg	[1]
113613	Serial number	[1]

What this VIN cannot tell you

R or GTI. AU covers every Golf 7, and the European filler ZZZ carries no engine or drivetrain coding. A European R and a GTI share the same VIN pattern. Only a US VIN marks an R, through position 4 (W, V or U) and position 5 (F)².
MK7 or MK7.5. Model year 2017 spans the facelift. The facelifted Golf R was priced in Europe on 22 December 2016⁴, and the UK facelift price list took effect on 14 February 2017⁵. An H car can be either. Check the lights and cabin (see below) or the data sticker.

Where the VIN, plates and sticker are

Item	Location	Source
VIN (visible)	Lower corner of the windscreen, readable from outside	[6]
VIN (stamped)	In the body, in the right-hand water drain channel between the suspension turret and the wing	[6]
Type plate	Lower door pillar	[6]
Vehicle data sticker	Spare wheel well, on the floor beside the tyre at about 10 o'clock; a copy is in the service book	[6] [7] [8]
Engine and gearbox code stamps	Location not confirmed Unverified

What the data sticker shows

The vehicle data sticker lists the VIN, vehicle type, engine power, gearbox type, engine code, gearbox code, paint number, interior code and the car's PR codes⁶⁸. It is the quickest way to confirm engine, gearbox and factory options on a car with no paperwork.

PR codes

PR codes are three-character option codes printed on the data sticker. The meanings below come from a VAG PR code list⁹.

Codes with a sourced meaning

Code	Meaning	Notes	Source
1X0	Front-wheel drive		[9]
1X1	Four-wheel drive	Expected on a Golf R	[9]
2H1 / 2H9	Driving profile selection (drive select)		[9]
2H7	Drive select with magnetic dampers	Which code a Golf R with DCC carries Unverified	[9]
2H8	Hydraulic damper control	As above Unverified	[9]
1BQ	Closed-loop suspension		[9]
G03	Sport running gear		[9]
U80	Suspension range 179	Reported on UK Golf R stickers Unverified	[9]
1LJ	Golf 7 GTI 340 mm brakes		[9]
1LM	Brake code listed for the MK6 R	Also reported on a MK7 R sticker Unverified	[9]
0P5 / 0P6	Tailpipe variants		[9]
0P8	Exhaust sound	Link to the Akrapovič exhaust Unverified	[9]
7MM	Pre-WLTP Euro 6 emissions		[10]
7CS	WLTP emissions	On a Golf R, marks the later 300 PS car	[10]

Not confirmed

No sourced PR code was found for these options. Do not rely on codes seen online without checking them against your own sticker. Unverified

Active Info Display (9S8 has been suggested)
Dynaudio sound
Discover Pro and Discover Media
ACC, Lane Assist and Park Assist
Panoramic roof
Heated seats
Golf R Performance Pack

MK7 or MK7.5

The facelift was shown in November 2016¹¹. Most sources describe the change on the R and GTI; the list below marks which cars each point applies to.

Feature	MK7 (to late 2016)	MK7.5 (facelift)	Source
Headlights	R: bi-xenon with double-U LED daytime running lights	LED headlights with LED DRL and cornering light. UK R: LED with dynamic curve light standard	[12] [11] [13] [5]
Tail lights	R: smoked LED with a light stripe (international); North American cars had halogen tails Unverified	LED with dynamic (sweeping) indicators, hatch only	[14] [12] [3] [11] [5]
Standard UK screen	Composition Media 5.8-inch (2014 list); the 2016 UK R press pack gives 6.5-inch Sources differ	Composition Media 8.0-inch (2017 list)	[15] [16] [5]
Top navigation	Discover Navigation option	Discover Navigation Pro 9.2-inch with gesture control	[16] [5] [11]
Instruments	R: analogue dials with blue needles, 320 km/h speedometer	Active Info Display (12.3-inch) available; standard on UK R from Feb 2017 with a no-cost delete	[12] [5]
DSG on 2.0 engines (R, GTD, 2.0 TDI)	6-speed DQ250	7-speed DQ381	[17] [11] [5]
R output (EU/UK)	300 PS (280 PS in hot markets Unverified)	310 PS; 300 PS again from the 2018 WLTP change, with a petrol particulate filter	[12] [3] [5] [18]
R options	–	Performance Pack (267 km/h hatch, 270 km/h Variant, performance brakes, roof spoiler lip except Variant, 19-inch Spielberg or Pretoria); Akrapovič titanium exhaust, 7 kg lighter, not on the Variant	[11] [13]

US model years: MK7 R is MY2015–2017, MK7.5 R is MY2018–2019¹⁹.

Is it a genuine Golf R?

A European VIN will not settle it (see the worked example). Check these in order.

1. Engine code

Read the engine code from the data sticker. All are EA888 Gen3 2.0 TSI.

Code	Output	What it is	Source
CJXC	300 PS / 221 kW	UK and EU MK7 R	[20] [21]
CJXA / CJXB	280 hp / 206 kW	Hot-market R (for example Australia); CJXF also listed at 280 hp by Bar-Tek	[20] [21]
CYFB	–	US R, without port injection Unverified	[21]
CJXG	310 PS / 228 kW	Facelift R	[20] [21]
DJHA	310 PS	EU facelift R with port injection	[20]
DNUE	300 PS	WLTP R with particulate filter and no port injection. Bar-Tek lists 310 PS Sources differ	[10] [20] [22]
CJXD	290 hp	Listed by Bar-Tek	[20]
CJXE	265 hp	Not an R code	[20]
DNUC	290 PS	GTI TCR, not an R	[20]

2. Gearbox and drivetrain

PR code 1X1 (four-wheel drive) on the data sticker⁹.
Haldex Gen5 coupling; the pump is part 0CQ598549¹⁹.
Manual: 6-speed MQ350. FCP gives the gearbox code as 0FB¹⁹; 02Q is also quoted but not confirmed. Sources differ
MK7 DSG: 6-speed DQ250 (02E / 0D9). MK7.5 DSG: 7-speed DQ381 (0GC)¹⁷.

3. Exterior

Four chrome tailpipes¹⁴¹⁹.
Black calipers with R logos; brakes 340 x 30 mm front, 310 x 22 mm rear (ventilated)¹²¹⁹.
Matt chrome mirror caps on the MK7¹⁴; the MK7.5 also offered gloss black or carbon¹³.
R badges on the grille, front wings and boot lid; R grille and large-inlet front bumper¹⁴¹⁹.
MK7 standard wheel: 18-inch Cadiz¹⁴.

4. Interior

R logos on the front seat backrests; Top sport seats in Race fabric and Alcantara¹⁹.
Blue-accented sill plates, stainless steel pedals, R steering wheel¹⁹.

US cars: VIN position 4 (W manual, V DSG, early manuals U) together with position 5 = F identifies an R². For a European car, the engine code and 1X1 on the sticker are the best evidence. See the Golf R page for full specifications.

VW part numbers

A VW part number has up to 11 characters plus optional suffixes. It is usually written in groups, for example 5G6253609CQ reads 5G6 · 2 · 53 · 609 · CQ²³²⁴.

Position	Meaning	Source
1–3	Where the part was first designed for: vehicle, engine or gearbox type. The third character is odd for left-hand drive and even for right-hand drive where the part differs.	[23] [24]
4	Main group, from 1 (engine) to 9 (electrics)	[23] [24]
5–6	Subgroup within the main group	[23] [24]
7–9	Part number. Odd for a left-hand part, even for a right-hand part	[23] [24]
10–11	Index letters	[23] [24]
Suffix X	Exchange (reconditioned) part	[23] [24]
Colour suffix	Colour code	[23] [24]

Common prefixes on a MK7

Prefix	Origin	Source
5G	Golf 7 (for example 5G6 on the Akrapovič part 5G6253609CQ)	[23] [24]
5Q0 / 3Q0	Shared MQB parts; exact meaning Unverified	[23] [24]
06K / 06L	EA888 Gen3 engine	[23] [24]
0CQ	Haldex Gen5 coupling	[23] [24]
0BY	Haldex rear differential	[23] [24]
0D9	DQ250 DSG (all-wheel drive)	[23] [24]
0GC	DQ381 DSG	[23] [24]

Parts are listed with their numbers on the parts and torque and electronics pages.