The name VinFast might ring a bell - not because you’ve likely seen its auto badge out on the road, but because the company has made some headlines over the past few years.
This Vietnam-based EV maker, in 2022, pledged to build a $2 billion factory in Chatham County, North Carolina. The goal of this plant was to open in 2026 and produce 150,000 VinFast vehicles each year, a task they said would employ 7,500 workers.
Since then, the plant project has amounted to little more than a pile of dirt. In May, after building permits had lapsed, North Carolina’s attorney general Jeff Jackson revealed that the state was suing VinFast over the unbuilt factory, with the goal of reclaiming both its investment in clearing the plot and the land itself.
For its part, VinFast said that the factory would be there, now just not until 2028. Oh, and those 7,500 jobs? Let’s call it 1,400 now. Still, VinFast said the state’s lawsuit was premature, even accusing North Carolina of “failure to cooperate.”
Since then, VinFast has continued to emphasize its commitment to North America.
On Oct 3, CEO of VinFast North America Brian Finnerty called the company’s vision “clear.”
After securing several more dealerships, Finnerty described the next phase of growth as “investing in the customer experience, strengthening our team, continuously enhancing our products, policies, and sales and service network,” adding “This is more than an expansion of our network. It is a long-term commitment by VinFast to the U.S. market as we enter our next chapter of growth.”
Did we miss something? Honestly, no.
Carscoops reports on how bleak things have been for VinFast in North America. For one, they say dealerships are still trying to unload 2024 model year vehicles.
And sales have gone from bad to worse: Through the first seven months of this year, said the report, “VinFast sold just 389 vehicles, a 63 percent decline from the previous year.”
VinFast dealers are also offering massive discounts in order to move these vehicles. The average incentive on a VF8 is reportedly $19,000 and on the larger VF9 it’s $20,000 – a scenario that led Carscoops to note “the writing is on the wall” for VinFast.
VinFast just might not know it.
