A new Vietnamese automotive company by the name of VinFast has released teaser images for its first products – a sedan and an SUV – which it says were “developed by Pininfarina” and are due to be revealed at the 2018 Paris Motor Show in October.
VinFast – a subsidiary of Vingroup, one of Vietnam’s largest privately held businesses – says its range of “world-class vehicles” will be produced at a new 335-hectare “state-of-the-art manufacturing facility” in Hai Phong, northern Vietnam.
The Vietnamese brand promises that its vehicles have been “developed to international standards” and interestingly adds that they will boast “German technology”. Sales of the initial models are expected to start in Vietnam in September 2019.
VinFast added that it is “rapidly developing” other vehicles with a plan to export to foreign markets in “the coming years”.
“We have the resources, scalability and commitment to become a significant new player in the global automotive industry,” said James DeLuca, CEO of VinFast Trading and Production LLC.
“We are immensely proud to be the first volume automotive manufacturer in Vietnam, and the first to participate in a major international motor show. We look forward to introducing our new brand and two new models in Paris.
“Our show stand will also prominently feature the best of Vietnam, demonstrating the passion and tenacity that we will bring to the global automotive stage,” DeLuca added.
In June 2018, VinFast signed a deal with General Motors to become the exclusive distributor for the Chevrolet brand in Vietnam. Under the deal, VinFast assumed ownership of GM’s Hanoi factory, and said it planned to implement a “significant investment programme to build an all-new, global small car licensed from GM and manufactured and sold under the VinFast brand”.
