VinFast: Vietnamese, Pininfarina-Designed Luxury Cars

[Turbo]

A Vietnamese car? You bet. VinFast, a Vietnamese-based car company startup, is seeking Pininfarina to design a sedan and SUV for the company, VinFast is Vietnam's first ever car company, and they plan to launch their first vehicle in September of next year. If everything goes according to plan, VinFast will produce 500,000 units by 2025.

In a statement, Vingroup vice president Quang Viet Nguyen said “The direct involvement of Pininfarina, one of the world’s biggest design brands, is expected to bring modern beauty while retaining Vietnamese identity to the first two VinFast car models.”

A sedan and an SUV are planned, both appealingly in the premium segment, are planned. It is unknown where these cars will end up being sold (besides Vietnam).





Do you think there is a chance this Vietnamese car brand could start building cars and become prosperous?

https://www.carscoops.com/2018/02/vinfast-taps-pininfarina-design-first-vehicles/

 

[JohnBM01]

To be honest, I like how both of these initial offerings look. As long as they don't look as ugly as most cars from Mitsuoka or Ssangyong, they stand a great chance. I will certainly give VinFast a chance.

 

[05XR8]

Look slightly like Lincoln grilles. Hyundai slowly made their way up the ladder. If VinFast can mimic that, no doubt it can be successful.

 

[Robin]

You can be pretty sure the finished articles will look nothing like those pictures.

Even established car companies show interesting artwork then don't deliver.

 

[Tornado]

In a statement, Hyundai vice president guy said “The direct involvement of Italdesign, one of the world’s biggest design brands, is expected to bring modern beauty while retaining Korean identity to the first two Hyundai car models.”

 

[Robin]

Exactly, if you have seen some previous efforts using an Italian design house doesn't guarantee anything!

 

[Northstar]

VinFast sounds like either a sketchy weight loss pill, or a vin number checking service.

Not a very attractive name for a car brand.

 

[JohnBM01]

In a funny sense, I almost thought about Vin Diesel from the Fast and Furious movies when I heard the name "VinFast." I do want to give this company a chance, much like how I gave Borgwand a chance after their long hiatus. I do have some affinity for VinFast since here in Houston we have a large Vietnamese community. It would be interesting to see a relative unknown rise up in the automotive world like Vietnam. Does it mean that Vietnam will challenge the Malaysians, the Chinese, the Koreans, and eventually the Japanese within 10-15 years? Probably not. However, I do think it will be great for this company to build up a portfolio and maybe even grow an auto market in Vietnam.

 

[Swift20B]

I can see them using a similar platform as Infinities Q50 and Q60. Either way, it will be cool to see Vietnam compete with countries like Korea.

 

[AndrewQuebec]

For those who don't know their name brand. It's nothing to do with Hollywood movie Fast and Furious. VinFast is a short version of Vietnamese language
Vin=Vietnam
F (Phong Cach)= style
A (An Toan) = Safety
S (Sang tao) = Innovation
T (Tien Phong) = Pioneer
You can read for more infor about companies that are their part suppliers at;
http://vinfast.vn/?lang=en
Their Prototyped cars are ready for Paris Motor Show this October.

 

[kikie]

SUV looks like a mix of BMW, Volvo and a little bit of Porsche.

 

[AndrewQuebec]

SUV looks like a mix of BMW, Volvo and a little bit of Porsche.

Their target market is domestic. They ran a survey with available sketches from 3 Italian designer companies and most Vietnamese consumers voted for this style. I don't know much about style so I won't comment.

 

[Turbo]

VinFast Sedan And Crossover: Officially Unveiled

This Vietnamese automaker has revealed their upcoming sedan will be called the LUX A2.0. It will be joined by a crossover which will bear the LUX SA2.0 moniker. Both will be displayed at the Paris Motor Show tomorrow.

The names aren’t very memorable, but Vinfast says both start with the word LUX because it indicates the models are “premium” and “sophisticated.” The A, on the other hand, signifies ambition and “very high standards of product quality.” Lastly, the S is simply used to distinguish the crossover from the sedan.

Performance specifications remain unconfirmed, but the 2.0L BMW inline-four engine will reportedly have outputs of 175 hp (130 kW / 177 PS) and 227 hp (169 kW / 230 PS). It will be connected to an eight-speed automatic transmission which sends power to the rear wheels. Both models are also slated to be offered with an optional all-wheel drive system.

Well done, Vietnam, well done indeed.

https://www.carscoops.com/2018/10/vinfasts-upcoming-sedan-crossover-reportedly-based-bmw-platforms/

 

[EngieDiesel]

Nice design there (but ugh, those Honda-ish fake vents on the front of the sedan), hopefully some pictures of the interior will surface soon once the official reveal happens.

Also, this seems pretty ambitious for a startup company. Pininfarina design and BMW engines don't come cheap, so I can't help but wonder where the money is coming from. It doesn't feel like the typical investor cashgrab that we've seen from other firms the last few years.

 

[MockngBrd]

Not bad actually

 

[Snikle]

Nice design there (but ugh, those Honda-ish fake vents on the front of the sedan), hopefully some pictures of the interior will surface soon once the official reveal happens.

Also, this seems pretty ambitious for a startup company. Pininfarina design and BMW engines don't come cheap, so I can't help but wonder where the money is coming from. It doesn't feel like the typical investor cashgrab that we've seen from other firms the last few years.

The money comes from Vingroup, which is a large corporation in Vietnam.

 

[Joey D]

Ya the Vingroup is absolutely massive. It has its hands in virtually everything in Vietnam and is ran by the wealthiest man in the country.

 

[EngieDiesel]

The money comes from Vingroup, which is a large corporation in Vietnam.

Ya the Vingroup is absolutely massive. It has its hands in virtually everything in Vietnam and is ran by the wealthiest man in the country.

Ahh, I see. That puts things into perspective, and explains why they went for top-shelf design and parts from the start. Should be pretty interesting to see how this comes along then!

 

[aguia]

Renault Asia style

 

[AOS-]

The tip of the rear passenger window bezel extending past the center of the rear axle is definitely something I'd have to get used to.

Something about how long the rear and front comes off as a bit unappealing (but it's definitely not commonly used proportions).

 

[Omnis]

Vietnam actually is hiring spammers to defend and educate people about their brand on message boards?

 

[JohnBM01]

I'm just hoping this Vietnamese company doesn't have such as poor luck as, say, Chinese automakers. You know... like the Chinese cars that got 0 out of 5 stars in crash safety. The design is rather edgy for these cars. I dig these VinFast cars.

 

[kikie]

It won't be long before VinFast produces electrified cars.

 

[Joey D]

It won't be long before VinFast produces electrified cars.

Should be good to go by 2020 according to the press release.

 

[AndrewQuebec]

Here they are at Paris Motor Show Oct 2, 2018

This is for those who want to know what kind of engine will be used for these two cars.
https://vietnamnews.vn/economy/4671...engines-in-the-world.html#hQjhPEOAC7FW6wmc.97

 

[EngieDiesel]

I have to admit, the more I see of these the more I like them. Probably because they don't feel massively over-designed like so many recent high end cars do.

 

[kikie]

A bit off topic but still on topic, ... sort of.

 

[EngieDiesel]

A bit off topic but still on topic, ... sort of.

And also five years old, though this bit caught my attention:

To buy a car, Vietnamese have to pay eight types of taxes and fees, including import tax, special consumption tax, VAT, vehicle owner registration fee, car registration fee, car number granting fee and road transport fee.

Experts are worried that by 2018, when Vietnam fully joins in the ASEAN Free Trade Area, the tax on imported cars will be zero.

This means that if the Government does not change its policies, the domestic industry will fail to compete with others in the region.

Anyone got any news on what happened regarding this? Seems like it would be pretty important.

 

[kikie]

And also five years old, though this bit caught my attention:

Anyone got any news on what happened regarding this? Seems like it would be pretty important.

That is the part why I posted the link. It also caught my attention. That it is five years old doesn't mean a thing.

 

[GTracer38]

A bit of thread bump but VinFast now own the old Holden proving grounds.
https://www.motoring.com.au/vinfast-buys-holden-proving-ground-126117/