VinFast VF7 pre-production prototype driven

New day, new car, and in this case, new car maker! This is the first time we’re getting behind the wheel of a VinFast, and I can’t be more excited. VinFast is counting the weeks to its first car launch in India and it is going to start with this — the VinFast VF7. VinFast’s plans for India are big and the car maker doesn’t do things in half measures, rather it is coming in with all guns blazing. A short trip to their facility in Hai Phong, Vietnam was an opportunity to get behind the wheel of a couple of the cars coming our way – namely the VinFast VF7 and the VinFast VF6. Both will roll-out within two weeks of each other, and expect them to launch right before the festive season in India, but let’s hone in on the VF7.

VinFast VF7 design

The VinFast VF7 is the bigger of the two SUVs that the car maker is planning to bring to India, and it is 4.5-metres long. For context, a Hyundai Creta is 4.3-metres in length and a Hyundai Tucson is 4.6-metres in length. First impressions when it comes to the styling are that it is distinctive. It features VinFast’s signature lighting element up front — two DRL elements that sweep from the centre of the nose to the flanks to make a V, shared not just with all VinFast cars but the scooters and buses as well. The nose has an overbite and then the lower bumper juts out again, making it look quite sharp up front. On the side, you notice body coloured cladding and flash door handles — both neat touches. The wheelbase is long. At 2840mm, it is a whole 50mm longer than the Skoda Kodiaq’s wheelbase! The rear is a more appealing angle than the front, the V-shaped lighting elements continue at the rear and the VF7 does look very chiselled from here. Strong haunches, a wide stance and just the right amount of chrome do make it look good. For those worried about the batteries in the floor, the 190mm of ground clearance should suffice.

VinFast VF7 interior

Step inside and the interiors do surprise you at first — there’s no instrument cluster behind the steering wheel! VinFast relies on an HUD to convey information to the driver, with additional info being displayed on the large 12.9-inch infotainment screen. Similar to what Mini does. All well and good until you decide to wear polarised glasses, rendering the HUD useless. There’s an easy solution to that though. Don’t wear polarised glasses. The cars we were driving were the India-spec RHD cars, and were equipped as we should see them in India. VinFast has actually made a number of changes for India. For example, swapping out regular leather upholstery to vegan leather, adding in ventilated seats, a wireless phone charger, more USB ports and upgrading the HVAC compressor to deal with our heat. You also get the comfort and niceties you would expect of a large SUV — electrically adjustable driver seat, an air purifier, a wireless phone charger, a panoramic sunroof (which doesn’t open), a powered tailgate and ADAS.

Interestingly, the sunroof doesn’t have a sunshade which could be a problem with our heat, however their chief engineer did indicate that they’re working on a solution for that. Think of a wire-framed foldable screen that can be clipped in place on the roof to block out the sun. I also found the USB Type-A ports instead of USB Type-C up front to be an odd choice for a new platform, but they did say that those should be swapped out too by the time the cars launch in India. Mind you, these are pre-production prototypes — production is still three months away and these cars are far from fully finished. Another criticism I have, and this is unlikely to be addressed, is that all controls are nestled in the screen — drive modes, AC controls, mirror settings, headlamp settings, everything. Not ideal, but it doesn’t seem to be a deterrent — the MG Windsor is the same and it is the best-selling electric car in India right now.

The VF7’s backseat was really surprising. The room at the back is generous, with more than a few inches of free knee room. The seats are plush, you have good under-thing support (unusual for an EV) and have adjustable recline as well. The backseat does have a near flat floor, so squeezing in three shouldn’t be a problem. To top it off, you get an air vent (no separate zone or fan control) and a USB Type-C port joining the Type-A ports. There’s nothing extraordinary about the spec — it is par for the course. That said, it is nice to see VinFast take note of the Indian customer’s requirements and add in a few features not available in their home / global market cars. What did stand out at me was the quality levels and fit / finish levels. It feels very well sorted. Not rough around the edges, not half baked, not waiting for a software update, nothing of the sort. The UI / UX is well thought out and works well, the quality of materials on the inside feels nice, the way it all comes together feels solid. You wouldn’t think that this is a company that began making cars in 2017, with this being their first fully-in-house platform. Our Indian carmakers should take note.

VinFast VF7 powertrain and performance

The VF7 will come with two drivetrain options for India — a front-wheel drive and an AWD. Both get the same battery capacity — a 70.8kWh unit in the floor. The FWD variant gets a single motor on the front axle putting out 201bhp (150kW) and 310Nm, which I found to be just about adequate. You do get drive modes (eco / normal / sport), but even the sportiest drive mode didn’t really give the VF7 too much of a kick. It is enough for every day driving and milling about town, but at mid to high speeds, it won’t be the usual effortless overtakes we’re used to on EVs. Blame the big (read heavy) battery for that.

What you get instead is range. VinFast hasn’t quoted any figures yet, but this car with this drivetrain has a WLTP range of 450km (estimated), so expect something in that region. The AWD will be the more enthusiastic of the two, with a solid 349bhp (260kW) and 500Nm. The claimed 0-100kmph time on the AWD is 5.8 seconds, and that should be plenty to make quick overtakes and make your passengers squirm. Both also get regen modes (off / low / medium / high) and they work as advertised. I found it relatively comfortable even in the highest setting, without too much of that head-toss that happens off-throttle and was able to modulate it smoothly. No one pedal driving mode though, and I wish it had paddles to control this instead of having to dive into the screen menus.

VinFast VF7 ride and handling

Ride and handling is a little hard to comment on with the short time on a very flat, straight-line track that we tested the cars on. What I can say is the VF7 rides with confidence at high speed. It feels planted, hunkered down and composed. VinFast will be softening up the suspension from the European / Vietnamese spec for India which should allow for it to ride comfortably in our road conditions, but I will only be able to verify that once we drive the final production cars in our conditions. So hold on for that. There are still some niggles to be sorted out — there is a vibration from the HVAC system that is transferred into the cabin. This is a result of the RHD conversion and the new AC compressor which sits on the same side as the steering system. However, chief engineer Vincent Pendlebury says that these are issues that “don’t keep me up at night” and will be ironed out before launch.

VinFast VF7 verdict

Overall, the VF7 is an interesting proposition for India. In terms of rivals, it will go up against the Mahindra XEV 9e and the Tata Harrier.ev — the only other electric cars of that size and space. The VF7 doesn’t have the insane wow factor and over-the-top tech that the BE has, but is a more restrained approach to the same problem. It focuses on getting the few important bits right, and I think it has done that. VinFast would do well to undercut the other two, but the company has stayed quiet about price and positioning for now. On initial impressions, I am quite impressed with the VinFast VF7 but I’m going to hold back from a definitive verdict till we drive the India-spec cars, in Indian conditions. Expect more from VinFast in the next few months, but in the meantime, you can click here to read about their second car for India – the VinFast VF6.