Factory build sheet
1989 Chevrolet Caprice Classic Brougham & Brougham LS
Build 1G1BU51E-K · 5L 8cyl · Sedan
VIN positions 1 through 8 read 1G1BU51E and position 10 reads K. Those nine characters define this build. Position 9 and positions 11 through 17 differ on every car.
Every Caprice whose VIN starts 1G1BU51E and carries K in position 10 left the plant with the same engine, transmission, drivetrain and equipment listed below. We know of 100 of them.
- Decoded Jul 7, 2026
- 100 known VINs
- 1 listed for sale now
Factory specification
As filed by Chevrolet 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
- 5 L
- Cylinders
- 8
- Configuration
- V-Shaped
- Engine manufacturer
- CPC
- Fuel type
- Gasoline
Body & chassis
- Body class
- Sedan/Saloon
- NHTSA body type
- PASSENGER CAR
- Doors
- 4
- Manufacturer
- GENERAL MOTORS LLC
Weight rating
- GVWR class
- Class 1
- GVWR
- 6,000 lb or less
Gross vehicle weight rating is the loaded ceiling set by the manufacturer, not the car's own weight.
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 | 1G1 | GENERAL MOTORS LLC · World manufacturer identifier |
| 4–8 | BU51E | Model, body style, engine and restraint system |
| 9 | × | Check digit — computed per vehicle, not part of the build |
| 10 | K | Model year — 1989 |
| 11 | × | Assembly plant |
| 12–17 | ×××××× | Production sequence number, unique to each vehicle |
100 vehicles carry this build
Every VIN we have decoded to 1G1BU51E-K shares the specification above.
- 100 Known VINs
- 1 Listed for sale now
Cars are filed by a fixed rule based on the VIN, so a car never moves between groups.
Neighboring configurations
Other factory configurations of the Caprice, 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 100 VINs of this build we have seen in dealer inventory. They are a sample of the road population, not a production figure.