Notable developments in the auto market in early 2024

Registration incentives for domestically assembled cars end

The biggest change is that the 50% preferential registration fee policy for domestically assembled cars under Decree No. 41/2023/ND-CP of the Government has expired. This development may cause car sales in the first month of the year to not be as expected, because the group of customers who want to buy cars "for Tet" have taken advantage of booking cars since December 2023 to take advantage of the support policy.

After 2023 with nearly 70 new car models launched, the domestic auto market has many advantages entering the new year.

As a result, the domestic automobile business system continues to promote and implement programs to stimulate consumer demand, in order to "salvage" sales in the month before the traditional Tet holiday. Instead of reducing 50% of registration fees as before, initial records show that many dealers are now implementing "giving gifts" equivalent to 100% of registration fees.

An example is Honda, with a program to give 100% of the registration fee throughout January for Honda City (L, G versions). Meanwhile, the preferential policy equivalent to 50% of the registration fee is still applied to City RS, HR-V, Civic, Accord. For its part, Subaru in January reduced up to 250 million VND for the Forester iS EyeSight version.

Many car models have adjusted prices
In the first month of 2024, many car lines on the market also began to apply new prices. The biggest change is Toyota, with the small crossover Raize having a new price from 498 million VND (instead of 552 million VND as before). Similarly, the Yaris Cross is only from 650 million VND for the gasoline engine version, and from 765 million VND for the hybrid version. This level is significantly lower than the previous levels of 730 million VND and 838 million VND, respectively.

Toyota Fortuner 2024 release image.

Most notably, Fortuner will have only 5 versions from 2024; 2 variants will be eliminated: 2.4 MT 4x2 (manual transmission) and 2.8 AT 4x4 (near high-end). This change will increase the starting price of the 7-seat SUV, currently from 1.118 billion VND (2.4 AT 4x2 version). Meanwhile, the suggested retail price has been adjusted down by 63-120 million VND on most versions.

Meanwhile, Hyundai has chosen to increase the price of cars sold in Vietnam, due to changes in the component supply chain. Specifically, Tucson increased from 30-90 million VND depending on the version, to a new price range of 799-959 million VND. SantaFe increased from 60-70 million VND depending on the version, corresponding to a new price of 1.299-1.369 billion VND.

Previously, Mazda Vietnam also adjusted the selling prices of a series of cars. Notably, the CX-5 increased from 5-10 million VND depending on the version, the Mazda 2 Sport 1.5L Premium version increased up to 33 million VND... Another car line also distributed by THACO is the Peugeot 408, from the beginning of 2024, the new price will be 20 million VND higher, of which the lowest Allure version, priced from 1.019 billion VND.

More new cars launched
Toyota Fortuner became the first car model in Vietnam to enter the new 2024 generation on January 2, with the difference being that it meets Euro 5 emission standards (for both 2.4L and 2.8L diesel engines), has a larger entertainment screen (9 inches) and supports wireless Apple CarPlay/Andorid Auto.

According to the announced schedule, Mitsubishi will also launch the small crossover X-Force on January 10. Initial information shows that the car will have four different versions.

Another notable model that has an "appointment" with Vietnamese consumers is the Volkswagen Teramont X, with only one version: a 2.0L 220 horsepower gasoline engine and a 7-speed dual-clutch transmission.

Volkswagen Teramont X.

Stating that the price of the new car is “between the Hyundai Palisade and Ford Explorer”, which is around 2 billion VND, some dealers of the German brand also confirmed that customers who order Teramont X now can receive the car right before the traditional Lunar New Year.

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