VinFast car owners in Vietnam conquer 6 Southeast Asian countries

Video: How much does it cost to charge a Vinfast electric car across 6 Southeast Asian countries?

Starting from Hanoi on April 5, 2025, a group of 8 members, all VinFast electric car owners, successfully completed the second Vietnam EV Rally journey of 10,000km through 6 Southeast Asian countries with the message "Green Journey - Connecting ASEAN".

The journey using two VinFast VF8 and VinFast VF6 models went through 6 countries including Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, Thailand, Singapore and Malaysia. The long journey, although full of challenges, was a great success and each country passed through left many unforgettable memories for the members of the group.

28-day journey of more than 10,000km

The members departed from Hanoi to Ho Chi Minh City before exiting at Moc Bai border gate (Tay Ninh). Traveling in harsh hot weather conditions, there were times when the car could only run 200km on a full charge, however, thanks to the experience of traveling across Vietnam many times, along with VinFast's widespread charging station system, the group did not encounter any difficulties during the first days of the journey.

During their stay in Cambodia, the group had the opportunity to explore Angkor Wat and rest in Siem Reap - O Smach. Although they had experience charging cars in Cambodia, the group was surprised when the cost of charging cars at some charging stations was too expensive at an electric charging station of the Total gas station system (The cost is calculated by the number of charging minutes ~ 500,000 VND for 16 electricity numbers). In Cambodia, the group had the opportunity to meet and talk with Mr. Vathna - a businessman developing a system of electric car charging stations in Cambodia and heard him share the difficulties in developing charging stations in the country of pagodas.

After leaving Cambodia, the convoy moved to Thailand. Coming to Thailand means coming to a country with a left-hand drive, which took the members some time to get used to and move comfortably on the road. However, all difficulties and fatigue were eased when the group had the opportunity to participate in the Songkran Water Festival - the biggest traditional festival in Thailand.

Arriving in Malaysia, the group had the opportunity to visit the capital Kuala Lumpua, check-in the famous Petronas Twin Towers, visit the ancient city of Malacca and explore the sea in Kuatan. This is a country that is not too fond of electric vehicles due to the low cost of gasoline, so the group was also limited in charging points because the charging station infrastructure is still underdeveloped.

The fifth country the delegation visited was Singapore. This was also the first time that VinFast electric cars were imported and driven in Singapore by Vietnamese owners. Many Singaporeans were curious and asked the delegation members: "Why can you drive from Vietnam to here?"

Finally, the group returned to Laos and then to Vietnam through Cau Treo border gate, safely ending the 28-day journey of more than 10,000km in 6 countries.

Many difficulties but all resolved quickly

The first difficulty arose when the group moved from Cambodia to Thailand. Arriving in Thailand during a period when the country was tightening security for foreigners entering by land, the group had to seek the assistance of a tourism agency to complete the entry procedures. However, it still took them 12 hours to meet all the requirements of Thai Customs.

“The country’s customs said that the VinFast convoy was the only Vietnamese to pass through this border gate in the past 3 months,” said Ngo Loc, a member of the group, excitedly.

In addition to administrative issues, the VinFast VF8 had a temperature error during the trip, causing a decrease in power. "After calling the company for technical advice, we learned that the cause was because the VF 8 had been used for a long time, and had been driven in hot weather and charged continuously, so some of the air conditioner's contact ports were dirty," said Le Truong Giang, the owner of the VF 8 in the group. Fortunately, the group had prepared full vehicle repair tools so they could disassemble and clean these parts themselves.

Regarding the VinFast VF 6, Mr. Phung The Trong said that the car operated stably throughout the journey: "When preparing to go, I was quite concerned about the space of the VF 6, because there were 4 people sitting, not to mention the luggage. But in reality, it was not that bad, the capacity of 170 horsepower still gave me a sense of confidence when accelerating and overtaking at high speed even with a 'full load', on highways with a speed limit of 140-150km/h like in Thailand or Malaysia", he commented on the VF 6.

Charging electric cars in these countries is not too complicated or difficult, according to Mr. Trong. "Currently, there are apps (phone applications) and payment via Visa card, so it is very convenient. Southeast Asia is in the stage of developing electric vehicles, so it is not too difficult to find public charging stations," Mr. Trong added.

However, in hot and heavy conditions, the actual distance of an electric vehicle will hardly be as announced by the manufacturer. For example, the VF 6, under testing conditions, can travel a maximum of 399km per full charge, but in Mr. Trong's journey, the car only traveled about 300km. This requires members to balance their schedules and travel distances in the most reasonable way.

Many beautiful unforgettable memories

Besides the opportunity to visit some famous places in the countries, the most impressive thing for the members of the delegation was experiencing the traditional Thai water festival. At the same time, the delegation also had the opportunity to interact with local people to promote the image of Vietnamese electric vehicles as well as learn about the development of electric vehicles in the neighboring country.

“On this journey, we experienced driving in three right-hand drive countries: Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore. This is also the first time that VinFast electric cars have been imported and driven in Singapore by Vietnamese owners,” Hai Quan shared.

"Not only car owners met at charging stations on the road, but also car groups on social networks of other countries were excitedly discussing when they saw the VinFast convoy appear in their country. Some Thai and Singaporean youtubers also had videos about our journey, very viral with more than 600,000 views at the moment," Mr. Trong proudly shared.

Mr. Phung The Trong added: “The most impressive thing was that we met Mr. Justin, who is over 65 years old, in Singapore. He contacted and made an appointment to meet me to experience the VinFast VF 6 car in person. Not stopping there, after returning home, he texted me a very interesting message. He said that Vietnam is also an ASEAN member like Singapore, we are a family. He was very impressed with VinFast, because from a car brand that borrowed the platform from BMW, but now can produce its own car models. Finally, he said that brands like VinFast will help the “ASEAN family” not to depend on car brands from the West, Japan, Korea or China. After reading this message, I suddenly felt really proud.”

Cross-country travel by electric car is completely possible.

Mr. Phung The Trong shared: “Before going, I also imagined that there would be many difficulties when traveling through 6 countries like this, especially when my companion is an electric car. But in reality, it was much simpler, from immigration procedures to charging. So if you feel that traveling domestically is too familiar or not challenging enough, you can confidently plan to explore other countries in the Southeast Asian region by car like us. Honestly, after this long but very successful trip, my mind is starting to light up with further routes with my electric car.”

Source: https://khoahocdoisong.vn/vinfast-vehicle-owner-in-vietnam-conquers-6-country-of-east-nam-a-post1543823.html