Factory build sheet
2018 Chevrolet Sonic LS
Build 1G1JB5SG-J · 1.8L 4cyl · Front-wheel drive · Sedan
VIN positions 1 through 8 read 1G1JB5SG and position 10 reads J. Those nine characters define this build. Position 9 and positions 11 through 17 differ on every car.
Every Sonic whose VIN starts 1G1JB5SG and carries J in position 10 left the plant with the same engine, transmission, drivetrain and equipment listed below. We know of 220 of them.
- Decoded Jul 7, 2026
- 220 known VINs
- 7 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
- 1.8 L
- Cylinders
- 4
- Engine model
- LWE - MFI, Variable Valve Timing
- Engine manufacturer
- GME
- Valve train
- Dual Overhead Cam (DOHC)
- Fuel type
- Gasoline
Drivetrain
- Drive type
- Front-wheel drive
- Transmission
- Automatic
Body & chassis
- Body class
- Sedan/Saloon
- NHTSA body type
- PASSENGER CAR
- Doors
- 4
- Seats
- 5
- Seat rows
- 2
- 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.
What this build asks today
Asking prices of live dealer listings decoded to this exact configuration — narrower than the trim-level figure, because every car counted here shares the same engine, transmission and drivetrain.
$9,985 median asking price · 11 listings · as of Aug 30, 2026
Too few listings to publish a price range — with 11 cars on the market, the cheapest and the dearest are single cars, not a spread. The median above is what they ask in the middle.
The same build, other model years
Chevrolet used the VIN pattern 1G1JB5SG for 4 model years. Nothing but the year changes between these pages, so the price gap between them is depreciation on an identical car.
- 1981 LS 1.8L 4cyl Sedan · 25 vehicles code F
- 2013 LS 1.8L 4cyl Sedan · 67 vehicles code D
- 2014 LS 1.8L 4cyl Sedan · 29 vehicles code E
-
2018 You are here code J $9,985
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 | JB5SG | 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 Chevrolet Sonic as a whole rather than this build alone.
Overall
★★★★★ 5 / 5
Frontal crash
★★★★★ 5 / 5
Side crash
★★★★★ 5 / 5
Rollover
★★★★ ★ 4 / 5
1 recall campaign is recorded for the 2018 Sonic. Recalls are issued per VIN range — check the VIN of the car you are looking at, not the model.
220 vehicles carry this build
Every VIN we have decoded to 1G1JB5SG-J shares the specification above.
- 220 Known VINs
- 7 Listed for sale now
- 11 Priced listings
- $9,985 Median asking
Vehicles of this build
A fixed sample of 2 vehicles carrying this configuration — each with its own history page. The sample refreshes quarterly, not nightly, so it stays put between visits.
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 Sonic, 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.
- 2018 LS 1.8L 4-cyl · Sedan saloon · FWD 940 vehicles · $6,995 median
- 2018 LT 1.4L 4-cyl · Sedan saloon · FWD 45 vehicles
- 2018 LT 1.4L 4-cyl · Hatchback liftback notchback · FWD 44 vehicles
- 2018 LT 1.8L 4-cyl · Sedan saloon · FWD 2,721 vehicles · $8,499 median
- 2018 LT 1.8L 4-cyl · Hatchback liftback notchback · FWD 972 vehicles · $7,200 median
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.
Prices are asking prices from 11 live dealer listings decoded to this build , last updated August 30, 2026 . They are what sellers ask, not what buyers paid.
Vehicle counts come from the 220 VINs of this build we have seen in dealer inventory. They are a sample of the road population, not a production figure.