How to Find the Date of Assembly on a Dodge Ram Truck

by David Young

pickup truck image by Tonda from Fotolia.com

Knowing the exact date your Dodge Ram truck was assembled is important for a variety of reasons. If you're ordering replacement parts for your Ram, knowing the manufacture date may make the difference between getting the right part the first time and making another trip to the parts store. Knowing the exact date of manufacture can also be an important safety consideration because many recall notices apply to a specific range of manufacture dates. In the United States, vehicle manufacturers are required to affix a vehicle certification label to the driver's-side doorjamb. The label contains all of the information you need.

Vehicle With Certification Label

Step 1

Open the driver's-side door of your Dodge Ram truck and look for the stickers or labels affixed to the door jamb.

Step 2

Examine the certification label, using a flashlight and magnifying glass if necessary, and find the "Date of MFR" heading.

Step 3

Look below the "Date of MFR" heading and make note of the date that is printed there as it is the date of manufacture for your vehicle.

Step 4

Look for the "MDH" heading on the label and make note of the six-digit code following the heading. This code is the two-digit month, two-digit day and two-digit hour (in 24-hour format) that your vehicle was manufactured.

Step 5

Write the manufacture date and hour down in a convenient location for future reference.

Vehicle Without Certification Label

Step 1

Look into the vehicle through the windshield on the driver's side. Find the metal tag affixed to the dashboard near where the windshield and dashboard meet.

Step 2

Make note of the 17-digit code stamped into the metal tag.

Step 3

Identify the 10th digit in the code and cross-reference it to the "Dodge Ram VIN Decoding" page in the Resources section to identify the year of manufacture.