With 22,000 Cars Sold, (Half to Themselves)... Can This “Tesla Slayer” Recover from its 48% Plunge?

In the crazy rat race marathon that is EVs, it’s becoming pretty obvious that some of these guys are gonna be left stranded on the side of the road before they even see the finish line. In fact, just a year ago, investors were treating VinFast like the next big thing, ready to dethrone Tesla. The hype was real. The (EV) maker went public on August 15, and by August 28, its market value had soared past $200 billion. For some wild perspective, that’s more than Ford($47 billion) and GM($45 billion) combined. The question on everyone’s mind was: Is VinFast really the next Tesla, or was it just a one hit wonder? 

The Vietnamese EV maker had a lot of promise—a homegrown success story with big plans to conquer the U.S. and Europe. But after some rough Q2 earnings and a delay on their North Carolina factory, VinFast stock has done a belly-flop, dropping a painful 48% year-to-date. Investors are backing away faster than me when my wife says “let’s play a board game”.  

Welcome to the wild world of betting on the next Tesla. Could VinFast still be the answer, or are we looking at something more like a better-funded Bricklin (anyone remember that?). VinFast does have backing from Vietnam’s richest man, Pham Nhat Vuong, which certainly gives it some weight. But like Wedbush Securities analyst Dan Ives said, the EV space is full of opportunities—and pitfalls—as everyone scrambles for a piece of green energy marketshare. The hype around VinFast felt monumental, but they lost over $2 billion last year. Despite that, some investors seem to think it could still be in same league as Tesla or BYD.

It’s important to remember that VinFast is still a baby in the automotive world, having only started in 2017. Its brand is barely known outside of Vietnam, and the country itself doesn’t exactly have a rich history of car manufacturing. The design of its current models are courtesy of Italian firm Pininfarina. Oh, and in case you were wondering, Pham Nhat Vuong, who controls 99.7% of VinFast, is essentially running the show. Sure, Elon Musk didn’t have car-building experience either, but this is a different kind of gamble.

Now let’s talk cars. VinFast’s flagship, the VF8, like all its models, is fully electric. The base model goes for about $47,200, with 349 horsepower and a range of 264 miles. If you want to go bigger, the VF9 starts at $83,000 with a 300-mile range. That’s cool and all, but here’s the kicker: early reviews have been less than kind– like “return to sender”. Complaints have poured in about steering that feels more like a video game than a real car, suspension issues, and of course—those unforgivable body panel gaps. Basically, think of the build quality as being on par with China’s EVs about a decade ago. 

So far this year VinFast has sold 24,000 cars globally. That’s about what Rivian did last year. But In the U.S., they’re only selling the VF8, and only in California, through 13 company-owned showrooms. Here’s the problem: their founder Vuong said that they would make 750,000 cars by 2026, a number that took Tesla 17 years to hit. So, are comparisons to Rivian more fair? Maybe. Rivian’s stock shot up to $170 after its IPO thanks to backing from Amazon and Ford, but we all know how that’s gone since.

And then there’s the whole North Carolina factory debacle. Originally slated to open in 2025, VinFast now says the doors won’t swing open until 2028. Instead, they’re focusing on expanding in cheaper markets like Indonesia and India, because apparently, North America is just too much drama right now. Maybe they got a little too hyped with their initial goals or maybe they’re short on cash.

But here’s where things get even weirder: Of the 22,000 vehicles they’ve delivered so far this year, over half were sold to companies related to VinFast’s parent company, VinGroup. That’s like when a baseball team announces a sell out on free hot dog night —not exactly a pure market win. VinFast is still aiming for 80,000 deliveries by year’s end, which, considering they’ve only hit 22,000 so far, feels as optimistic as thinking “The Fast and the Furious” franchise will ever stop making movies.

So, what’s the takeaway here? VinFast came out swinging, looking like the new kid on the block ready to throw down with Tesla. But its future is uncertain, and while the backing of Vietnam’s richest man helps, they’ve still got to prove they can deliver cars that people will actually want to buy—without relying on related party sales. They’ve got potential, but there’s still a lot to prove. 

P.S. On Thursday, we released an alert exclusively for our premium members, and by market close, the stock skyrocketed 140.45%. If you missed this one, don’t worry—you don’t have to miss the next. Another big opportunity is likely to drop this week. Click here to become a premium member and get in before the next stock takes off!

Stocks.News has positions in Tesla, VinfAst, Rivian, Ford, and Amazon.