After reading the following last few posts of the thread below, I started to get really concerned:

VIN DISCUSSION

Basically, I placed an order for a 550i with a 6-speed manual transmission, not the SMG. The last few characters of my VIN came out to be:

CN93021

I found it odd that there's a "9" in the VIN when (obviously) 90,000 cars haven't been made since production restarted last month. So I read on. Then I read that SoCalRaven and Heloha posted their VINs which correspond to their SMG orders. Then I started to get really concerned. I called my SA, but since it's Sunday, I couldn't get a hold of anyone to confirm my order. So now I'm on edge!

Has anyone who ordered a 550i with MANUAL transmission received their VIN yet, and if so, was the 5th to last character a "9"??? PLEASE HELP!

 

The last 7 digits of the VIN are essentially the serial number of the vehicle.

I don't think the 9 means anything in particular. Also, vehicles with different transmission types are produced on the same line. As long as you're sure you ordered a manual, and SMG (or Steptronic) are NOT selected as explicit options on your car, you shouldn't have anything to worry about. The car will have a manual transmission unless SMG or Steptronic are selected and listed as options. Do you have your production sheet?

 

Thanks for your response. I do have my production sheet, and the boxes for SMG and Steptronic are clearly UNmarked. I guess now that my 550i is on a ship, I've grown way more anxious. Haha, impatient might be a better word! So when I read the few posts about the VIN #s, you can imagine panic mode kicking in when 2 members who ordered SMG had "9" in their VINs! It's true that the wait DOES drive you nuts!!

 

Well, the production sheet represents the ultimate information that was used to build your car. That's not to say there's never been a mistake made, but if your production sheet is correct, it is very, very likely that your car is correct too.

And yes, I agree that the wait is nerve wracking. What's worse, my car is allegedly on a boat, but I can't track it, so I feel like something got messed up and it's still just sitting at the port...I guess I'll find out soon enough!

 

Well, the production sheet represents the ultimate information that was used to build your car. That's not to say there's never been a mistake made, but if your production sheet is correct, it is very, very likely that your car is correct too.

And yes, I agree that the wait is nerve wracking. What's worse, my car is allegedly on a boat, but I can't track it, so I feel like something got messed up and it's still just sitting at the port...I guess I'll find out soon enough!
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Funny, my car is untrackable as well. It's not on a W/W ship. My dealer forwarded me his info tracking sheet from "DCS Net", and it states that my 550i is on board the CENTAURUS LEADER that left port 10/13 on a 27-day voyage. As for what "DCS Net" is, a search on this forum (and on Google/Alta Vista) came up with nothing. And OC isn't quite accurate either. Only today, OC status changed from "Produced - not shippped" to "In transit to processing center". Since 3 days have passed since the ship left Germany, I guess I have 24 more days till I get something concrete in terms of the car's location/status. Bummer...

 

And if you (or anyone else) knows what DCS Net is, by all means, please share!

 

It's the internal site for BMW service centers and dealers. You can't get access to it yourself.

 

I've heard my dealer refer to "Center Net" in reference to the internal site that they have access to so it's likely that DCS Net is the same or similar thing, as das explained above...

 

Hello.
My 550 with SMG has last digit 9..

 

9 in the 5th to end - Step, not SMG. A 9 in this position is only important relative to other factors in the model and production year - it will not mean the same thing every time and certainly is not indicitive of number of total number of units produced. My build start was about third week in Jan 05.
Just call BMWNA and give them the VIN and they can independantly give you your equipment/options.

See Here: