If VinFast delivers all of the conveniences it claims it will, the VF 8 ought to have an extremely competitive feature set. While CNET isn’t normally in the habit of test-driving prototypes from startups, there’s ample reason to believe VinFast will buck the trend and find success. For one thing, this company has the financials to see things through. It’s part of Vietnam’s Vingroup, a mega corporation that owns and operates dozens of businesses, including luxury resorts, amusement parks, hospitals and even massive housing developments that are more like small cities, replete with skyscrapers and malls. More to the point, Vingroup also appears to have a slew of helpful related technologies in its portfolio, including divisions focused on AI, cybersecurity and cloud computing. The organization even built a new university from scratch to cultivate homegrown talent.
VinFast VF 8 Is an Ambitious Electric SUV From Vietnam
Cash due at signing includes $299 first month’s payment, $695 acquisition fee, $3,230 in down payment and $0 security deposit. Through May 31, 2024, lease offer is available on the new 2024 VinFast VF 8 Eco model leased through VinFast Auto, LLC (offer subject to change based upon availability). The purchase option at the lease end, excluding tax, title, and government fees, is $20,768, https://www.broker-review.org/ plus a purchase option fee of $350. While my very brief drive of VinFast’s electric future took place in a preproduction prototype, you won’t have to wait long to have your chance to buy a VF 8 — plans call for initial examples to land in US driveways by year’s end. In fact, the young automaker even expects to deliver the first units of its larger sibling, the handsome , before 2023.
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Strangely, VinFast plans to release two different battery sizes in both its Plus and Eco variants. I say “strangely” because the separate ranges and prices aren’t well differentiated. For the base Eco Battery Version 1, the company is targeting 260 miles on Europe’s more-lenient WLTP test cycle at a cost of $40,700 (plus a yet-to-be determined destination fee).
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In the short term, however, VinFast appears to be a serious player. The company says it has 55,000 reservations for its EVs worldwide, but hasn’t given a breakdown of how many of those are from the U.S. Anecdotally, on our trip with VinFast to Vietnam, we met several U.S. and Canadian customers who have put down deposits on multiple VinFast vehicles and were invited by the company as VIPs. VinFast is attempting to become a new EV player at a particularly precarious time for the industry. Tesla and its rivals in China have slashed prices to try to juice demand and snap up market share, boosting revenue but threatening profit margins in the process.
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VinFast engineers say a one-pedal drive model is under development and will likely be released to early vehicles via an over-the-air update. These sorts of experiences are relatively common in early prototype vehicles, but given that VinFast plans to hand over production models to expectant owners in a little over six months, engineers clearly have their work cut out for them. In the wake of Tesla’s industry-shaking success and the future promise of electric, autonomous mobility, would-be electric car companies are sprouting up everywhere. The floodgates have opened, with the last decade seeing more startups get off the ground than at any time since the dawn of the automobile. Most are already finding out the hard way that car building is a terrible way to make money. Developing and selling cars is a hugely cash-intensive business, and automobiles are the world’s single most complex consumer goods, subject to the most numerous and varied global regulations and operating environments.
TPG proposed a debt-and-equity deal that would sever EY’s consulting business from its audit arm, the FT reported. Citing a letter sent to EY’s global and U.S. heads, the paper said the consulting unit would then be listed on the stock market at a later date, although TPG did not suggest a value for the business. U.S. stock futures pointed higher on Wednesday, stabilizing after shares on Wall Street slipped in the prior session, with investors digesting stronger-than-projected retail sales figures and awaiting the release of earnings from retail chain Target. In Indonesia, “we expect to begin deliveries of the VF e34 model soon and will launch the VF 5 model within the second quarter,” VinFast said, detailing so far unpublished plans for two of its economy cars. VinFast, which sold fewer than 1,000 cars in North America last year, said in a statement to Reuters it was “conducting a thorough review and evaluation of all aspects of the construction process for our North Carolina factory.” With over-the-air (OTA) updates, your VinFast becomes future-proof thanks to regular automatic or manual updates to the operating system, apps, and system that keep your vehicle up-to-date and always feeling brand new.
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- However, VinFast does not appear to be selling many vehicles so far.
- Anecdotally, on our trip with VinFast to Vietnam, we met several U.S. and Canadian customers who have put down deposits on multiple VinFast vehicles and were invited by the company as VIPs.
- Cannot be combined with any other coupon, direct/email offer, promotion, or other offer unless specifically permitted by that offer.
- 5) Vehicle may show optional accessories that are not included in base vehicle and that are subject to availability.
Tax, title, license, registration, and dealer fees are additional fees due at signing. Through May 31, 2024, lease offer is available on the new 2024 VinFast VF 8 Plus model leased through VinFast Auto, LLC (offer subject to change based upon availability). Not all applicants will qualify for this offer; terms alpari review will be based on credit qualifications. Cannot be combined with any other coupon, direct/email offer, promotion, or other offer unless specifically permitted by that offer. The purchase option at the lease end, excluding tax, title, and government fees, is $23,320, plus a purchase option fee of $350.
The supplier base for components and materials will be primarily concentrated in the US, Vietnam and a few other countries. Future expansion and updates for the factory will be identified in the next phase. Despite such dire conditions, if I had to place my chips on a single new automaker to escape the mire, it’s Vietnam’s VinFast. In fact, there’s ample reason to believe the company won’t just survive, it will likely shortly emerge as a global force, including right here in America. I say this after having flown to Asia to learn about the company and drive its first US-bound model, the 2023 VF 8 electric SUV.
Starting in 2024, buyers will have the option to buy the battery with the vehicle, but the company has not yet outlined prices. Trade confidently with insights and alerts from analyst ratings, free reports and breaking news that affects the stocks you care about. A spokesperson for the county mentioned VinFast’s two revisions to the factory’s general assembly building size, with the latest submitted in April under review by the permits department, Reuters added. The move aimed to leverage the Biden administration’s push for EV subsidies for American-made cars, the report added.
President Joe Biden said the plant would create more than 7,000 jobs. Vietnamese electric car maker VinFast is looking at further delaying a planned $4 billion factory in North Carolina, a person briefed on the matter said, as the loss-making company struggles to gain favor with U.S. consumers. Certain Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) technology features may be subject to delayed availability and be made available as part of a future software update to your vehicle and may be subject to subscription. The plant, which has a Phase 1 total investment of up to $2 billion USD, spans an area of approximately 1,800 acres and is divided into five main production areas, including a body shop, general assembly, press shop, paint shop and an energy center. There will also be other functional facilities in the factory premises. 4) Images and videos shown contain pre-production level vehicles.
There’s a lot of work to be done in a very short time, but critically, the fundamental ingredients are all present. Announced prices are subject to change and do not include destination charge or any applicable tax, title, registration, and license fees. It’s a tough game, for sure, and automaking in general is not for the weak or short-funded.
North America’s compact electric crossover SUV segment is rapidly blooming, and this five-seat model is sized and designed to establish a beachhead in the heart of this emerging market. Ditto for Korea’s Hyundai and Kia, both of which admittedly managed the trick significantly more quickly. VinFast broke ground on its North Carolina plant to build EVs in America. Per the website, the company has opened up 13 showrooms — all in California. VinFast says it has shipped 3,000 vehicles to North America. Initial plans called for Tesla-like direct-to-consumer sales, but VinFast is open to working with dealerships.
All of this illustrates that not only does this company have the resources to become a global automotive player, it develops businesses at a breakneck clip. At 28 years young, Vingroup is barely out of corporate adolescence. Buyers who drive fewer than about 1,000 miles per month might opt to lease the battery at $35 per month for the VF 8 or $44 for the VF 9, which covers 310 miles of range per month. Additional miles cost $0.11 per mile in the VF 8 and $0.15 in the VF 9. It’s rarer still when an all-new automaker arrives, builds a factory, and then begins building cars that people actually like and buy.
Like many of his fellow executives, Chieu joined VinFast recently after decades in the business at established automakers (Chieu worked at General Motors from the late 1990s). Importantly, VinFast is stacked with veteran industry talent from top to bottom — people who know how to design and build cars in volume. Of course, simply delivering those vehicles on time isn’t enough for a company with VinFast’s vast ambitions. Even before the company has sold a single vehicle in the US, officials have already announced plans for a multibillion-dollar EV plant and battery factory outside of Raleigh, North Carolina.
Valued at just under $15 billion, VinFast stock lost $2.3 billion last year, and burned $3 billion in cash. It’s got less than $117 million in the bank at last report — and $3.1 billion in debt. Even the most optimistic analysts don’t see VinFast turning profitable before 2031 at the earliest and, to be perfectly blunt, the company lacks the cash to carry it so far. When VinFast announced in March 2022 its plans for the North Carolina factory, U.S.
North Carolina’s Chatham County, where ground for the factory was broken in July, declined to comment about a possible delay. With exceptional after-sales services, extended warranties, and considerable plug-and-charge solutions. Innovations for life make every journey more than just a drive. Advanced and smart applications let you manage your home, work uninterrupted, and stay entertained. North Carolina Governor, Roy Cooper, Vietnamese Ambassador to the US, Nguyen Quoc Dzung, and representatives from state and federal governments attended the event along with a gathering of VinFast’s partners, customers, industry experts and journalists. VinFast EVs are built with premium craftsmanship and the highest quality parts designed for safety, reliability, and comfort on every journey.
