KNE — Kia
A VIN that begins with KNE was built by Kia Corporation in South Korea. Decode a full KNE VIN below to get the exact make, model, engine and origin.
What KNE means
KNE is the World Manufacturer Identifier — the first three characters of every VIN, which identify who built the vehicle and where.
Korea-built Kia SUVs — Niro, Soul. (Absent from NHTSA vPIC.)
How the KNE prefix is built
Under ISO 3780, the three WMI characters break down like this:
“K” places the manufacturer in Asia.
“KN” identifies the assigning country: South Korea.
“E” narrows it to Kia Corporation.
Where Kia KNE vehicles are built
Vehicles with a KNE VIN are associated with Kia Corporation, South Korea. Note that a single carmaker uses different WMIs for different plants, so the KNE prefix points to this specific origin — not simply to the Kia brand.
More about Kia VINs
See how Kia structures its VINs, every common WMI prefix and where to find the number.