Vietnam’s VinFast looks to tiny EV, priced at less than $10,000, to change its fortunes

By ANIRUDDHA GHOSAL
Associated Press

HANOI, Vietnam (AP) — Vietnamese automaker VinFast has a big problem: It just can’t sell enough cars. Idle factories bleed money and the company’s financial health is at stake. Vinfast is hoping its tiniest and cheapest car yet — a roughly 10-foot-long mini-SUV priced at $9,200 and called the VF3 — will become Vietnam’s “national car” and win over consumers in Asian markets. Bad reviews and poor sales after VinFast plunged straight into the hypercompetitive U.S. market have compelled it to focus more on potential customers in neighboring countries. VinFast is building factories in Indonesia and India and considering launching the VF3 in the Philippines, Indonesia and Thailand as well as the U.S. and Europe.