Vietnamese electric vehicle manufacturer VinFast has launched its most affordable model to date, hoping to boost car ownership in Vietnam through mass-market pricing.
The VF2, a two-door, four-seater, is priced at 188 million Vietnamese dong (approximately US$7,148) including the battery. It will officially launch on July 15th, placing it in the same price range as the Chinese Wuling Hongguang MINI EV, which costs approximately 200 million Vietnamese dong in Vietnam. VinFast stated in a statement on Sunday that the VF2 is an important step in the company's "strategy to promote car ownership among the Vietnamese people."
While the VF2's price is still higher than the world's cheapest car, it is about 20% lower than VinFast's previous cheapest model, the Minio Green, and roughly equivalent to 1.5 times the average annual income in Vietnam (approximately US$5,000).
Despite Vietnam's rapid economic growth in recent years, car ownership remains low. According to industry and government data, Vietnam has approximately 68 cars per 1,000 people, lower than Indonesia's approximately 99, Thailand's 275, and Malaysia's 490.
