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I know the question is kinda stupid but yesterday I bought a Kia Optima 2015, there's no initials on the back of the car like (EX, LX, SX, SXL). It's a used car and I'm from Iraq. I checked all the VIN decoders websites the only thing I got is that:

Manufacturer: Kia Korea
Brand: Kia
Model: Optima III
Engine: N/A
Region/Plant: Hwa-Sung Korea
Check: B
Year: 2015

And I checked some videos on Youtube, All the models have phone dialer buttons on the steering wheel but my car don't have these buttons there's only radio control and the service control buttons on the steering wheel? And I checked the VIN on Kia website didn't recognize the VIN? So I don't know what is the model and where it made for (USA, Canada, Europe, Asia)?

UPDATE: the first eleven characters of the VIM is KNAGN418BFA. and these are some specs of the car: for the engine I'm not sure about it but I think it's 2.0 LT turbo. for the wheels it's 18. and for the lights it's not LED but it has a LED tool over the fog lights. for the interior, the steering wheel half leather and half wooden, and for the seats are all black leather. and the door trims are wooden.

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  • Welcome to Motor Vehicle Maintenance & Repair! If you have a Kia dealership nearby, you can take the VIN into them and they can check it for you directly in the corporate systems. I'm curious, though, if it might be segregated by country. IOW, since it was sold in Iraq, if it would only register on Iraqi systems. No clue how Kia does their "stuff" but would think it should be centralized somewhere. All you can do (if accessible) is go ask and see. All they can do is tell you to shove off, eh? :o)
    – Pᴀᴜʟsᴛᴇʀ2 ♦
    Nov 30, 2017 at 21:47
  • it would help if we knew which engine you had. in the US the trim levels are determined by which engine you have or vice versa. it would also help if you supplied the first 11 characters of the vin.
    – Ben
    Nov 30, 2017 at 23:00
  • @Ben The VIN is KNAGN418BFA and for the engine I'm not sure about it too because it's not written on the engine but I think it's 2.0 turbo
    – user2682025
    Dec 1, 2017 at 11:37

1 Answer 1

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There's a few things you can use to try and work it out if you can't get hold of a Kia dealer to decode the VIN.

Assuming the specs match the US versions then you can probably puzzle it out from the options:

Engine:

If it's the 2.4 then that narrows it down to LX, EX or SX spec, the 2.0T means it's SX Turbo or SXL Turbo.

Wheels:

If it's 16" Wheels then it's an LX, 18" means it's SX or SX Turbo, 18" Chrome wheels means SXL Turbo

Lights:

If the car has LED front fog lights then it's an SXL Turbo

Interior:

If the steering wheel and seats are NOT leather and it has manual air-con then the it's an LX spec.

If the door trim inserts are wooden then it's an EX

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  • Thanks for the great guide, But I'm still confused. for the engine I'm not sure about it but I think it's 2.0 LT turbo. for the wheels it's 18. and for the lights it's not LED but it has a LED tool over the fog lights. for the interior, the steering wheel half leather and half wooden, and for the seats are all black leather. and the door trims are wooden too.
    – user2682025
    Dec 1, 2017 at 16:45
  • Engine specs can change quite a bit in other countries, and so can options. I'd suggest contacting a dealer and if you can't at least use this post as a guide to try and narrow down what options belong to which packages in your country. In other words, the process used here is correct - you just need to work out the details for your country/region.
    – JPhi1618
    Dec 1, 2017 at 16:50

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