What does the No. 1 automobile weekly in North America evaluate about the battery rental policy of Vietnamese car company VinFast?

Mar 14, 2022 10:50 GMT+7

It is the application of a unique battery rental model that both eliminates worries for customers and brings the cost of electric vehicle ownership to a reasonable level.

Unique solution that resonates loudly

Automotive News weekly assessed that, although it has just started setting up showrooms in the Canadian market, the electric car company from Vietnam has created a “shock” with consumers thanks to its unique battery rental policy, which is applied. for both VF 8 and VF 9. These are two SUV models that have just been launched globally at CES in January 2022, and are expected to reach customers by the end of this year.

Automotive News quoted Huynh Du An, CEO of VinFast Canada, as saying: “VinFast has collected customer opinions on the battery subscription policy, by both qualitative and quantitative methods. The outstanding results show that customers consider the price of VinFast cars to be attractive in the market. At the same time, they also appreciate the customer support policies that the battery subscription policy brings.”

Article published by Automotive News Canada

The No. 1 Automotive Weekly in North America also quoted Michael Vousden, an automotive analyst at GlobalData, a data analysis company based in London (UK), as saying that VinFast’s battery leasing strategy will bring many benefits. benefits for customers.

“Obviously, these electric cars have big batteries and are expensive,” Vousden said. “For high-end and expensive cars, separating the battery from the price to bring it to a reasonable price is a very good and meaningful way to do it.”

Also according to Vousden, the financial burden of having to pay a large sum of money to own a battery will be removed when customers only have to pay a monthly subscription fee.

Currently, the Canadian government is expected to expand the list of vehicles that meet zero-emission standards – a move that will increase the chances of customers accessing the country with Vietnamese brand electric vehicle products. .

However, VinFast’s sales strategy is not “based solely on government incentives”, Mr. Du An told Automotive News. “The offer may support a certain number of consumers, but we will have a market-leading range of products for our customers.”

Good quality, reasonable price and excellent after-sales service are considered the three competitive advantages of VinFast electric vehicles in the international market.

Double benefit from battery rental policy

According to information published in the US in January 2022, Ms. Le Thi Thu Thuy, General Director of VinFast worldwide, said that the monthly battery rental cost will be equivalent to the gasoline that users have to pay for the same number. kilometers traveled. VinFast will also replace the battery for free for customers if the capacity drops below 70%.

Separating battery costs will help VinFast bring the selling price of electric cars to close to the price of internal combustion engine models in the same segment. VinFast will also conquer more customers when completely eliminating worries about battery replacement costs when owning a car for a long time. In particular, the battery rental policy does not affect or reduce the depreciation value of VinFast electric cars.

“On the contrary, electric vehicles sold with batteries will be depreciated more because the battery has to be depreciated and the value of the battery is also very large, so the loss of customers is great. As for VinFast, the value of the battery is unchanged because if the battery’s charge-discharge capacity is below 70%, the customer will be able to change the battery for free,” said Huynh Du An.

The VinFast representative also said that the company is developing a policy to buy back used VinFast cars so that customers can clearly see the advantages of the battery subscription policy.

After only 1 month of global sales, VinFast has received more than 40,000 orders for 2 models VF 8 and VF 9.

Vousden expert assessed that the rental solution also helps manufacturers better manage and control the life cycle of battery packs instead of “letting it go” after selling it off to users. This gives customers peace of mind that their vehicle’s battery will be properly recycled and won’t go to waste or end its life in a landfill.

“The battery rental policy will definitely be a selling advantage of VinFast,” Vousden analyzed.

VinFast’s showrooms at two malls in the Toronto area as well as stores in Vancouver and Montreal are expected to open in the next few months. According to the plan, by the end of 2023, the Vietnamese car company will open dozens of showrooms and service workshops across Canada.

According to Automotive News