May 25, 2023 4:47 PM GMT+7
The
logo of VinFast is pictured at the 2022 Paris Auto Show in Paris, France
October 17, 2022. REUTERS/Stephane Mahe
HANOI, May 25 (Reuters) - Vietnamese electric vehicle (EV) maker
VinFast said it is recalling all of the first batch of vehicles it shipped to
the United States last year following a safety warning issued by U.S.
authorities.
The move came after the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration (NHTSA) said 999 of VinFast's VF 8 vehicles suffered a software
error in the dashboard display that prevented critical safety information from
being shown and "may increase the risk of a crash".
More than 700 of the
999 units are still in VinFast's hands and have not been delivered to customers
or fleet services, the NHTSA estimated.
In a statement to
Reuters, VinFast said it issued a voluntary safety recall of the VF 8 City
Edition on which the dashboard screen goes blank while driving or stationary.
"VinFast is not
aware of any field reports of incidents. The company is issuing this recall out
of an abundance of caution," it said.
The recall statement
comes less than two weeks after VinFast announced it would list in the United States via
a merger with special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) Black Spade
Acquisition Co (BSAQ.N).
The two companies
estimated the new entity would have a potential equity value of $23 billion,
assuming no Black Spade shareholders elect to cash out.
In February,
VinFast recalled 2,781 VF 8 cars sold
domestically over an issue with the front brake of some models.
VinFast, which was
founded in 2017 and began selling EVs in California this year, has shipped two
batches of VF 8 cars to the United States totalling 2,097 units. It is also
planning to send its first vehicles to Europe in July.
In documents filed
with the NHTSA, VinFast said it first became aware of the dashboard issue on
April 27 while reading customer comments and concerns. According to the safety
agency, the problem has been documented 18 times.
The NHTSA said VinFast
will introduce a software update that should fix the issue. The software fix is
scheduled to go live on May 25 with notification letters being sent out to
owners by May 29.
Last month, VinFast
said it had received a fresh round of funding pledges worth $2.5 billion from
parent Vingroup JSC (VIC.HM),
Vietnam's biggest conglomerate, and founder Pham Nhat Vuong, Vietnam's first
billionaire and richest man.
Reporting by Phuong
Nguyen and Sheena K Thomas; Editing by Martin Petty
https://www.reuters.com/business/autos-transportation/vietnams-vinfast-recalls-all-first-batch-evs-shipped-us-over-security-risk-2023-05-25/
First Drive: The 2023 VinFast VF8 Is
Unacceptable
https://www.roadandtrack.com/news/a43875030/2023-vinfast-vf8-first-drive-unacceptable/
2023 VinFast VF8 City Edition First Drive:
Just Don’t
https://www.theautopian.com/2023-vinfast-v8-city-edition-review-it-breaks-do-not-buy/
Review: Don't buy the
2023 Vinfast VF 8 City Edition
https://www.greencarreports.com/news/1139636_2023-vinfast-vf-8-city-edition-test-drive-review
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