VinFast announced at CES that pricing for the VF 8 would start at $41,000, excluding the battery, which must be leased. Pricing for the VF 9 will start at $56,000, also excluding the battery.
The automaker plans to rent batteries to customers at a price similar to a monthly gasoline expense — about $100 to $150 a month, depending on the battery chosen, according to Le Thi Thu Thuy, the company’s newly appointed global CEO.
But understanding the leasing plan of an already unknown brand could be a stumbling block for consumers, said Stephanie Brinley, principal automotive analyst at IHS Markit.
“VinFast will be challenged by needing to raise, first, consumer awareness and then consumer consideration,” Brinley said.
“For consumers who already intend to make an EV their next purchase, it’s a little too soon to tell if the battery-leasing scheme will prove attractive or confusing.”
VinFast also will be entering a U.S. EV market that will include dozens of new models from Ford, General Motors, Toyota, Hyundai, Honda and every luxury brand in the next few years. Brinley thinks the U.S. market initially will have more EV supply than demand, further complicating VinFast’s path to success.
“However, VinFast has commitment, ambition and funding, and it is not afraid to move very quickly,” Brinley added. “VinFast has proven it has speed and agility and a certain fearlessness.
“But we will see if it also has the patience necessary to grow U.S. volumes,” she said, “including enough to support the 150,000-unit plant they just announced.”
