Factory build sheet

1997 Dodge Ram

Build 1B7KF26Z-V · 5.9L 8cyl · Four-wheel drive · Pickup

VIN positions 1 through 8 read 1B7KF26Z and position 10 reads V. Those nine characters define this build. Position 9 and positions 11 through 17 differ on every car.

Every Ram whose VIN starts 1B7KF26Z and carries V in position 10 left the plant with the same engine, transmission, drivetrain and equipment listed below. We know of 81 of them.

  • Decoded Jul 7, 2026
  • 81 known VINs

This configuration is identical to 1997 Dodge Ram 5.9L 8cyl Pickup (623 vehicles). That page carries the full record.

Factory specification

As filed by Dodge 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
5.9 L
Cylinders
8
Configuration
V-Shaped
Fuel type
Gasoline

Drivetrain

Drive type
Four-wheel drive
Brake system
Hydraulic

Body & chassis

Body class
Pickup
NHTSA body type
TRUCK
Series
2500
Manufacturer
FCA US LLC

Weight rating

GVWR class
Class 2G
GVWR
8,001–9,000 lb

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

The same build, other model years

Dodge used the VIN pattern 1B7KF26Z for 4 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 1B7 FCA US LLC · World manufacturer identifier
4–8 KF26Z Model, body style, engine and restraint system
9 × Check digit — computed per vehicle, not part of the build
10 V Model year — 1997
11 × Assembly plant
12–17 ×××××× Production sequence number, unique to each vehicle

81 vehicles carry this build

Every VIN we have decoded to 1B7KF26Z-V shares the specification above.

  • 81 Known VINs

Neighboring configurations

Other factory configurations of the Ram, 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 81 VINs of this build we have seen in dealer inventory. They are a sample of the road population, not a production figure.