Japanese car codes decoded: model codes, engine codes and grades on your auction sheet

In one line: a Japanese import carries three codes worth reading, a model code like DBA-ZRE162G, an engine code like 2ZR-FAE and a grade like 1.5 G, and together they tell you the car's age band, fuel, engine, drive and equipment level.

Checked on 29 October 2026.

Words to know

• Model code: the code on Japanese papers, like DBA-ZRE162G. Japanese call it the katashiki (型式).
• Emissions prefix: the three characters before the hyphen, like DBA. The Japanese government sets them.
• Engine code: the name of the engine, like 1NZ-FE.
• Grade: the trim level, like TX, G or X. It decides the equipment.
• Chassis number: the car's unique number. On Japanese cars it is usually the model code plus a serial number, not a 17-character VIN.
• Export certificate: the paper Japan issues when a car leaves its register to be exported.
• Hybrid: a car with a petrol engine and an electric motor working together.

Japanese names vs export names

Many cars sold in Japan wear a different name from the same car elsewhere. Kenyan sellers use both, so it helps to know the pairs:

• Mazda Demio = Mazda2. Mazda renamed the Demio "Mazda2" in Japan in 2019 (Mazda).
• Mazda Axela = Mazda3. The new Mazda3 went on sale in Japan in 2019 without the Axela name (CarGuide.PH).
• Toyota Vitz = Yaris. The first Yaris of 1999 was sold in Japan as the Vitz. The new model took the Yaris name in Japan too, on sale from February 2020 (Openers).
• Honda Fit = Jazz. Honda says "Fit" is used in Japan, North and South America and China, and "Jazz" in Europe and Asia/Oceania (Honda).
• Nissan Note and Toyota Probox keep the same name. The Probox is a Japanese commercial van; its sister model, the Succeed, was sold until 2020 (Wikipedia).

A Demio and a Mazda2 from the same year are usually the same car underneath, but Japanese-market equipment can differ, so check the grade.

The model code: two halves

Japan's transport ministry (MLIT) explains that the part before the hyphen is the government's emissions ID and the part after it is chosen by the maker (MLIT). So in 3DA-GDJ150W, "3DA" comes from the government and "GDJ150W" from Toyota.

The emissions prefix

MLIT's official table gives each of the three characters a job:

• 1st: which exhaust rules, and how clean. A, C and D = the 2005 rules (no rating, 50% lower, 75% lower). L = the 2009 rules, for diesels. 3, 4, 5 and 6 = the 2018 rules (no rating, 25%, 50% and 75% lower).
• 2nd: fuel. A = petrol hybrid, B = petrol, C = diesel hybrid, D = diesel, L = plug-in petrol hybrid.
• 3rd: use. A = passenger car. Goods vehicles get other letters.

The prefix is a quick age clue. Toyota said its 2015 diesel Prado met the 2009 diesel rules, so those cars usually read LDA-GDJ150W, while a Japanese dealer catalogue lists later ones as 3DA-GDJ150W: same car, newer rules. Codes from before 2005 (such as GH- or TA-) follow older tables that this one does not cover. Fully electric passenger cars start with ZAA.

The maker's half

Toyota's codes usually start with the engine family, then a platform letter, then the series number (Wikipedia, citing Toyota manuals):

• GDJ150W: GD = the 1GD-FTV diesel, J = Land Cruiser family, 150 = the 150-series Prado. Toyota does not say what the final W means.
• ZRE162G: ZR = the 2ZR-FAE 1.8 petrol, E = Corolla family, 16 = this Fielder generation, 2 = the variant. The final G probably means wagon. The 1.5 Fielder, with a 1NZ-FE engine, is NZE161G (Toyota).
• MXPH10: the Yaris hybrid (M15A-FXE engine). The petrol Yaris is MXPA10 (Toyota Japan).
• HE12: Nissan's Note e-POWER. The petrol Note is E12. Nissan publishes no key for the letters (Nissan Japan).

Tap the codes below to decode them piece by piece, including a Lexus badge:

Engine codes: 1NZ-FE, 1GD-FTV, 2ZR-FXE

Toyota has never published an official key, but Japan's Motor-Fan magazine explains the long-standing pattern:

• The first digit is the order of development, not the size. 1NZ is the first NZ engine. A 2ZR is 1.8 litres and a 1GD is 2.8 litres.
• The letters before the hyphen are the engine family (NZ, ZR, GD, TR).
• The letters after the hyphen describe the build. F = economy twin-cam head, G = performance twin-cam, T = turbo, E = electronic fuel injection, X = Atkinson cycle (the efficient type used in hybrids), S = direct injection, V = common-rail diesel injection, A = variable valve lift (Valvematic).

So 1NZ-FE is the first NZ engine with an economy twin-cam head and fuel injection: 1,496 cc and 80 kW in the 2012 Fielder. 1GD-FTV is a 2.8-litre turbo diesel with common-rail injection. 2ZR-FXE is the 1.8-litre hybrid engine in the Prius. Newer engines such as M15A do put the size in the middle: 15 = 1.5 litres. Letters like K (as in M15A-FKS) have no confirmed meaning.

Grades: TX, TX-L, VX, G, X, Z

Grade letters are rungs on a ladder, not abbreviations, and the ladder changes by model, market and year:

• Prado 150 (Japan, 2015): TX, TX "L Package" and TZ-G. The "TX-L" on Kenyan imports is the TX L Package: it cost more than the TX, and Toyota made LED headlamps standard on the diesel L Package (Toyota). Kenyan dealers also use VX and VX-L.
• Land Cruiser 250 (Japan, 2024): ZX, VX and GX (Toyota Japan).
• Yaris (Japan, 2019): X, G and Z, with Z at the top.
• Corolla Fielder (2012): 1.5 X, 1.5 G and 1.8 S. The X and G share the same 80 kW 1NZ-FE engine. X is the cheapest grade; on later Fielders the G adds items such as Toyota Safety Sense C, automatic air conditioning and auto-folding mirrors (car-me.jp).
• Honda Fit (2013): 13G and 15X, where 13 and 15 are the engine size (Honda).

Where to find the codes

• Export certificate: issued by MLIT; New Zealand's transport agency notes it carries the model code (NZTA).
• Auction sheet: lists the model code and chassis number. Our auction sheet guide shows where.
• On the car: the chassis number is stamped on the body; ask the seller or your mechanic to show you. It should match every paper, including the logbook after transfer.

Things buyers often miss

Same name, different engine

From April 2015 Toyota fitted a new 2NR-FKE engine to the front-wheel-drive CVT versions of the 1.5 Fielder, while other 1.5 versions kept the older 1NZ-FE (Car Watch). The Note can be a petrol E12 or an e-POWER HE12. The code tells you which.

4WD hides in the code

Toyota's Yaris sheet lists MXPH10 as two-wheel drive and MXPH15 as E-Four (electric 4WD). Nissan's Note is E12 in 2WD and NE12 in 4WD, with "FOUR" in the grade name.

DAA and 6AA mean hybrid

If the second letter is A, the car is registered as a petrol hybrid, whatever the advert says. Nissan's Note e-POWER carries DAA too, even though only its electric motor turns the wheels.

Importing? Read how to import a car from Japan, the 8-year rule and the import calculator. MNM also has stock still in Japan, and our own mechanic inspects every car we sell.

Questions buyers ask

Is the Mazda 2 the same as the Demio, and the Mazda 3 the same as the Axela?

Yes. Mazda dropped the Japanese names in 2019. Same-generation cars are usually the same underneath; check the grade.

What does DBA mean on a Japanese car?

A petrol, non-hybrid passenger car certified 75% cleaner than Japan's 2005 exhaust rules.

What does 1NZ-FE mean?

The first NZ-family engine, with an economy twin-cam head (F) and electronic fuel injection (E). It is a 1.5-litre petrol.

What is the difference between a Prado TX and TX-L?

Equipment, not engine. TX-L is the TX "L Package", the better-equipped and dearer version.

Does the first number in an engine code tell me the size?

No. It is the order the engine was developed in. A 2ZR is 1.8 litres.

Can two cars with the same name and year have different engines?

Yes. A 2015 Fielder 1.5 can have a 1NZ-FE or a 2NR-FKE. Read the model code and engine code on the papers.