Have you heard of Vinfast?
Vinfast is the newest brand in the EV segment. Its parent company Vingroup is a conglomerate in Vietnam. Vinfast was founded in 2017 and has since developed their own range of EV offerings. VF8 is their mid-sized SUV that aims to compete with Tesla Model Y and Toyota BZ4X.
Vinfast hosted a test drive event the past week in Vancouver and I had the opportunity to test drive the pre-production VF8. I was told that shipment will arrive around June 2023, so if you’re shopping for an EV SUV, you might want to check out Vinfast.
What stood out the most for me was the 10 year warranty offered by Vinfast. The other thing is VF8 should qualify for full federal rebate as well as provincial rebate (check your provincial website for most up-to-date info).
I was behind the wheel for 3 short laps on a closed circuit at PNE Vancouver. Since the driving time was very short, I don’t really have much driving impression. VF8 wasn’t exactly fast off the line but it was quite nimble around the cones and the brakes felt normal. VF8 offers a pretty spacious interior and trunk; it has a small frunk (front trunk) as well. Being a pre-production model, I noticed there were some gaps by the door and the material quality didn’t feel too premium. The massive screen was bright and seems to be quite responsive.
At full charge, the VF8 offers up to 470km of range, which is plenty. Worth noting, both trim levels offered are AWD and the battery is included in the price ie) they steered away from the ill-received battery subscription model.
Here is the link for more info on Vinfast VF8 https://vinfastauto.ca/en/vehicles/vf-8
