Factory build sheet

2018 Buick Encore Preferred II

Build KL4CJFSM-J · 1.4L 4cyl · All-wheel drive · Sport Utility Vehicle (SUV)

VIN positions 1 through 8 read KL4CJFSM and position 10 reads J. Those nine characters define this build. Position 9 and positions 11 through 17 differ on every car.

Every Encore whose VIN starts KL4CJFSM and carries J in position 10 left the plant with the same engine, transmission, drivetrain and equipment listed below. We know of 61 of them.

  • Decoded Jul 7, 2026
  • 61 known VINs
  • 2 listed for sale now

Factory specification

As filed by Buick with NHTSA for this build. Fields the filing does not record are left out entirely — a missing row means no recorded value, not a missing feature.

Engine

Displacement
1.4 L
Cylinders
4
Configuration
In-Line
Engine model
LE2 - Direct Injection, Variable Valve Timing, ALU
Engine manufacturer
GMNA
Valve train
Dual Overhead Cam (DOHC)
Turbocharged
Yes
Fuel type
Gasoline

Drivetrain

Drive type
All-wheel drive
Transmission
Automatic
Forward speeds
6
Brake system
Hydraulic

Body & chassis

Body class
Sport Utility Vehicle (SUV)/Multi-Purpose Vehicle (MPV)
NHTSA body type
MULTIPURPOSE PASSENGER VEHICLE (MPV)
Doors
4
Seats
5
Seat rows
2
Manufacturer
GENERAL MOTORS LLC

Weight rating

GVWR class
Class 1C
GVWR
4,001–5,000 lb

Gross vehicle weight rating is the loaded ceiling set by the manufacturer, not the car's own weight.

Driver assistance, as built

  • Blind spot warning Standard

Systems the filing does not record are not listed above. Check the window sticker of the exact car before you rely on any single feature.

The same build, other model years

Buick used the VIN pattern KL4CJFSM for 2 model years. Nothing but the year changes between these pages, so the price gap between them is depreciation on an identical car.

How this VIN pattern is read

A 17-character VIN carries two kinds of information: what was built, and which one it is. This page is the first kind — the nine highlighted positions.

Positions Characters What they encode
1–3 KL4 GENERAL MOTORS LLC · World manufacturer identifier
4–8 CJFSM Model, body style, engine and restraint system
9 × Check digit — computed per vehicle, not part of the build
10 J Model year — 2018
11 × Assembly plant
12–17 ×××××× Production sequence number, unique to each vehicle

NHTSA safety ratings

Crash-test results are published per model year and body style, so they cover the 2018 Buick Encore as a whole rather than this build alone.

Overall

★★★★★ 5 / 5

Frontal crash

★★★★★ 5 / 5

Side crash

★★★★★ 5 / 5

Rollover

★★★★ ★ 4 / 5

61 vehicles carry this build

Every VIN we have decoded to KL4CJFSM-J shares the specification above.

  • 61 Known VINs
  • 2 Listed for sale now

Neighboring configurations

Other factory configurations of the Encore, each with its own build sheet. The set is fixed by the VIN patterns themselves, so it does not shuffle as prices or inventory move.

Keep going

Where this data comes from

Specification fields are decoded from the manufacturer's filings in the NHTSA vPIC database, keyed on VIN positions 1–8 and 10. We publish the filed values as they stand and leave out anything the filing does not record.

Vehicle counts come from the 61 VINs of this build we have seen in dealer inventory. They are a sample of the road population, not a production figure.