New VinFast SUV and saloon to launch at Paris Motor Show ~ station of gear

Hugo Griffiths 2018-07-18 11:45

Paris Motor Show to host brand-new Vietnamese carmaker, showcasing new Pininfarina-styled models to go on sale in 2019

VinFast, a brand-new Vietnamese car company, is to launch its first ever models at the Paris Motor Show in October.

The as-yet unnamed saloon and SUV will go on sale in Vietnam in September 2019, with the company planning to launch in other markets in the coming years.

• 2018 Paris Motor Show preview

Details of the models’ technical specifications are noticeably absent at present, but VinFast has commissioned Italian car design firm Pininfarina to style them. The images released by VinFast show both the SUV and saloon have distinctive radiator grilles, with a V-shaped motif formed by a pair of swooping LED running lights.

The computer-rendered images show the saloon (above) to have swollen rear arches reminiscent of the Maserati Ghibli, and a front end that echoes the Levante, while the SUV’s design (below) calls to mind models as diverse as the Volvo XC40, Subaru Tribeca and Citroen C5 Aircross.

Whatever their design cues may be, the two cars were developed following a vote by Vietnamese members of the public, who were given a range of models to choose from. VinFast hopes launching the two cars at Paris will “significantly raise the profile of the brand”.

VinFast says its SUV and saloon will offer “Vietnamese spirit, Italian design and German technology”, promising they will meet international standards for dynamics, in-car features and ownership.

The company is in the advanced stages of constructing a huge 898-acre factory in northern Vietnam. For scale, Ford’s Dagenham plant rests on 475 acres – though VW’s Wolfsburg plant covers 1,600 acres.

VinFast is a subsidiary of Vingroup, a Vietnamese real estate conglomerate with interests as diverse as healthcare, education, farming, shopping malls and holiday resorts. VinFast’s chief executive, James DeLuca, says the company has “the resources, scalability and commitment to become a significant new player in the global automotive industry”.

What do you think of the VinFast saloon and SUV? Tell us in the comments section below…

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