2025 VinFast VF 8 Review + Video

VinFast is an automaker from Vietnam that entered the Canadian market a few years ago with the VF 8, an all-electric compact crossover.

While the brand has been around since 2017 — and the Vingroup company that owns the automaker has been in existence since the 1990s — its start in Canada was a bit rocky, with delays, an odd pricing structure, and critical reviews from automotive media. With a few more years of experience, the automaker has addressed some of those initial issues, making the 2025 VinFast VF 8 an interesting but average choice in an electric vehicle (EV) market that’s changing quickly and packed with excellent options.

Styling 7 / 10

The VF 8 is designed by Pininfarina, a world-renowned Italian design house responsible for iconic cars like Ferrari’s F40, Enzo, and Testarossa, but it has also penned some less exotic cars, too. An informal poll of some friends and family suggests that the VF 8’s design is perhaps not Pininfarina’s best work; the styling is a bit generic, and this crossover looks like a mosaic of other models.

Borrowing styling cues from other vehicles and putting them all together, the VF 8 looks busy from the front, with too many seemingly random elements and fake vents preventing it from looking cohesive. The rear three-quarter view is cleaner, but it could benefit from more focus and better proportions.

It’s difficult to be creative with crossover designs, but the lighting elements here are a highlight. Not only do the front and rear LED bars create focal points and unique lighting signatures, but they also frame the V logo that tells people this isn’t something they’re used to seeing.

The interior also isn’t special, with the most interesting elements being the huge touchscreen and the raised gear selector controls. It’s a clean design, but it also looks quite generic for the most part.

Power 8 / 10

Every VinFast VF 8 comes standard with dual electric motors (powered by an 87-kWh battery) that give it all-wheel drive (AWD). Total system output is 349 hp and 369 lb-ft of torque, which is enough to get up to highway speeds quickly but not in an instant. A tune increases torque in the Performance Plus trim to 457 lb-ft, shaving a claimed 1.5 seconds from its run to 100 km/h.

Fuel Economy 8 / 10

The estimated range for the Eco trim is 412 km, while the Plus is rated for 373 km. I tested the Plus, which showed 391 km with a full charge on a comfortable early spring day. While this range can be considered average among competitors, I would have liked to see something closer to 500 km, which would help VinFast stand out in an increasingly competitive EV market.

The VF 8 can accept charging speeds of as fast as 160 kW, which VinFast says can charge from 10 to 70 per cent in about half an hour in ideal conditions at a DC fast-charger.

Driving Feel 6.5 / 10

The VF 8’s driving dynamics are a mixed bag. The steering is OK and it handles decently in a corner, but the ride is unnervingly bouncy and harsh over rough roads. I would have liked a more relaxed, composed, and comfortable ride. 

It features regenerative braking, but even its most aggressive setting wasn’t strong enough to bring the VF 8 to a full stop, requiring the mechanical brakes to finish the job. And when using the mechanical brakes, the braking feel is inconsistent, and you almost have to stomp on it to get any sort of braking action, making it difficult to drive smoothly. 

Practicality 7 / 10

VinFast could have made better use of all the space and flexibility an EV platform provides by including more clever interior storage options like a compartment or pass-through under the gear selector. A frunk with divided compartments is a nice addition, but it’s a bit annoying to open with a lever that’s hidden near the driver's side footwell. There are no buttons on the keyfob or in the cabin to open the frunk, which limits its practicality. 

The door pockets are big enough to hold a water bottle, but there aren’t too many places for small items, especially if the wireless phone charger and cup holders are in use. The trunk has space for 376 L of cargo, which isn’t very much, but it opens up to a decent 1,373 L with the 60/40 split-folding rear seats stowed.

Comfort 7 / 10

The VF 8 seats five and has a roomy cabin, with lots of head- and legroom for both front and rear occupants. The rear seats recline a fair bit to help with headroom, which could be uncomfortable for some people, but the generous legroom helps. The biggest factors impacting comfort are the bouncy ride and the somewhat noisy interior; a lot of wind and tire noise makes its way into the cabin.

User-Friendliness 6 / 10

The majority of the in-vehicle functions are centralized in the massive touchscreen on the dashboard and the cabin has almost no physical buttons, which negatively impacts how user-friendly it is. Physical buttons are always going to be easier and less distracting to use, especially while driving. Even if you’re used to how a Tesla operates, the learning curve to mastering this infotainment system is quite high. Everything from the side mirrors to the steering wheel must be adjusted via the touchscreen, and then there’s a secondary step of using the controls on the steering wheel to complete the adjustments. 

The menus could also be more logically organized to make it easier to navigate. Simple tasks like tuning the radio are buried in menus, the screen needs more shortcuts, the ones provided aren’t always clearly labelled, and there’s no home button, all of which add friction to interactions with the system. Wireless Android Auto and Apple CarPlay are included and improve the user experience considerably. 

While it’s great that this top trim includes heated and ventilated rear seats, a rarity at this price, there are no controls in the second row for them — passengers have to ask anyone sitting up front to control the seats from the touchscreen, which is inconvenient and a glaring oversight.

Having no instruments in front of the driver takes some getting used to, but a head-up display that shows most of the vital information helps a lot. 

Features 7 / 10

The VinFast VF 8 comes standard with all the expected features at this price point, but nothing out of the ordinary. Faux leather seating is standard along with a heated steering wheel, two-zone automatic climate control, head-up display, two USB-A ports in the front and back, one USB-C outlet in the back, ambient lighting, a wireless phone charger, camp/pet/valet modes, Wi-Fi compatibility, wireless Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, and voice recognition.

The Plus trim adds a huge sunroof, an upgraded audio system with 10 speakers, powered steering wheel adjustment with memory, a power tailgate, and more.

Safety 8 / 10

Every VF 8 comes standard with a long list of advanced safety equipment that includes adaptive cruise control with traffic jam assist, lane-keep assist with lane centring, lane departure warning, traffic sign recognition and automatic speed limit adjustments, forward collision warning, blind-spot monitoring, automatic emergency braking, driver monitoring system, front and rear parking sensors, automatic high-beam control, and surround-view cameras in addition to the mandatory back-up camera. 

The back-up camera’s resolution is noticeably poor, with a pixelated image and slower-than-normal refresh rate making it look like it was recorded on a VHS tape. The adaptive cruise control system works well, but the lane-centring made this tester feel like it was bobbing between lanes at times.

Value 7 / 10

The 2025 VinFast VF 8 Eco starts at $53,600 plus the $2,300 destination fee, while the tested Plus trim starts at $59,200 — but they’re only sold in British Columbia, Ontario, and Quebec. The VF 8 gets a pretty decent warranty of 10 years/200,000 km, and 10 years for the battery, regardless of kilometres driven. The VinFast’s size, pricing, and range make the VF 8 a competitor to the Volkswagen ID.4 and Chevrolet Blazer EV, both of which are more well-rounded, more user-friendly, and better executed for around the same price.

The VF 8’s build quality could be improved considering its price, with some creaks and rattles noted throughout this week-long test, which isn’t helped by the large amounts of hard plastics used throughout the cabin. But to put this into perspective, the build quality in the VinFast isn’t too far off from what I’ve experienced in some Teslas.

The Verdict 

The 2025 VinFast VF 8 doesn’t do any one job particularly well, but it’s also not terrible. When you think that this automaker has only been making cars for about eight years, however, that’s actually pretty impressive. 

A lot of my issues with the VF 8 aren’t dealbreakers, and they are similar issues I find with other vehicles, making the VF 8 feel like a perfectly fine EV. I would have loved for this VinFast to really impress me, but it ended up being quite average. That’s not necessarily a criticism, although I think for an automaker that’s new to this market, it either has to be priced super competitively, wow us with some unique and amazing features, have really cool styling, or somehow go above and beyond the established automakers to make a big impact.