Vietnamese automaker VinFast continues its rollout on to the North American market with the announcement it will present three more new all-electric models at the next Consumer Electronics Show in early January.
The company presented its first two models, the VF e35 compact and VF e36 mid-sized SUVs, last month at the Los Angeles Auto Show. (Those models initially went under the VF e32 and VF e33 monikers but have since been renamed). The three follow-ups coming to CES 2022 remain unnamed, but they will fit into the A, B and C segments, the automaker says.
So what are we talking about exactly, then? We know that back in January, the company previewed three models, including the two later presented in Los Angeles as well as a smaller C-segment SUV, the VF e31, now renamed VF e34. At the time, reports had the model getting a 150-kW motor with maximum torque of 320 Nm (in a premium version) or an 85-kW motor with maximum torque of 190 Nm (in a standard version). Battery capacity was given as 42 kWh, with a range of up to 300 km.
That leaves two unidentified, A- and B-segment models. For the moment, there’s no word on what those models will be and what names these smaller vehicles will get, but we’ll find out in early January (and possibly before, courtesy leaks or teasers).
VinFast recently announced that as part of its big leap into North America, it intends to build a domestic assembly plant that should be operational by 2024. Its goal is also to price its all-electric models as aggressively as possible to make them attainable to as many consumers as possible that are ready to make the leap to electric in the coming years.
Also as previously reported, the company plans to open some 60 stores in the United States and 38 centres in Canada with a significant presence in Quebec. Some will offer comprehensive service, others will simply be points of sale.
About the two VinFast models presented at Los Angeles Auto, they were not accompanied by any figures regarding range at that event, but last week company CEO Michael Lohscheller did share some of those in an interview with SAE media. He explained that the “two (BEVs) have the same architecture but they have different ranges, different battery pack sizes. The e36 goes up to 422 miles [using the global WLTP standard; EPA range likely will be closer to 300 miles].” That EPA figure works out to roughly 483 km.