The hot wheels favored by Vietnamese head honchos

A popular Vietnamese saying goes something like this: 'Like durability, drive a Japanese car; If sincere, buy an American car; style-savvy, buy Agerman car". Given this, many people would be curiuos to know what kinds of cars famous, talented and influential Vietnamese CEOs choose.

East or west, cars are of ten seen as companions and in many cases, reflect their owner's social class, position and wealth. It is almost an unwritten law that the first thing one does after starting a business is to buy a car. A luxurious car can add shine to its owner and make him/her more successful in the eyes of his/her partners.

However, at the “superrich” threshold, a CEO’s choice is not all that predictable. Some do choose super luxury vehicles with top-class, sophisticated design and modern technology amenities like Mercedes, BMW and Lexus lines. Others consider cars as just a means of transport, opting for much more humble models and even drive the same car for a decade and more.

Le Viet Hai, Chairman of Hoa Binh Construction Group

Le Viet Hai, Chairman of Hoa Binh Construction & Real Estate Corp., has chosen Vietnamese cars after many years of using many different vehicles. The car that Hai has chosen last is from VinFast. At the special car handover event at VinFast’s factory in Hai Phong city over two years ago, Hai was one of the first nine guests to test drive the LUX SA2.0.

Stepping out of the LUX SA2.0, Hai said: “I greatly admire VinFast, not only for the lightning speed of construction within 21 months to create a “miracle in Vietnam” – the VinFast car factory – but also for its products of very good quality, which are on par with German luxury car lines. They are truly "national" cars.

In the "Vietnamese support Vietnamese goods" spirit, the businessman has chosen a VinFast car to accompanyhim on all roads.

Pham Nhat Vuong, Chairman of Vingroup

The curious will be particularly curious to know what cars are used by Pham Nhat Vuong, the richestman in Vietnam by stock market assets.

Soon after starting a successful business career in Eastern Europe decades ago, Vuong bought a car. The first car he owned was a Lada, world famous in the 1980s and 1990s. When he moved to Vietnam, the dollar billionaire was attached to a luxury Bentley sedan.

In March 2019, during the launching ceremony of VinFast Lux SA2.0, Vuong revealed that he owned a Lexus LX570 and called it “my beloved car”. Also at the launch, he was the first to try driving the VinFast LuxSA2.0 model. He said that the “made in Vietnam” cars are no different from imported ones, and that he was willing to replace his Lexus LX570 with a VinFast LuxSA2.0. VinFast is a subsidiary of Vingroup.

The chairman of Vingroup said what he cared most was not about what car to ride or how big a house to live in, but about how to raise Vietnam’s position in the international arena and how to make Vietnamese products well received by international customers. This is why he is preparing to sell VinFast brand electric cars in the U.S. and European markets next year.

FPT Telecom Chairman Hoang Nam Tien

While Pham Nhat Vuong of Vingroup chose a car created by his own company and is proud that it is a product of Vietnamese people, FPT Telecom Chairman Hoang Nam Tien also chose a car because of “a pride not light at all”.

Tien is a familiar figure among many young people because he is a regular speaker at start-up talks. In a seminar on the future of automobile technology and robotics in the Industry 4.0 era, Tien recalled a business trip to Munich, Germany in 2014, where BMW’s headquarters is located.

While sitting in a BMW, a marketing director with the famed German auto maker told Tien: “Do you know that this car is operating safely thanks to FPT Software’s software? This car is operating safely thanks to the motion and brake systems, including software from FPT Software.

”Soon after returning to Vietnam after the business trip, Tien sold his Lexus and bought a BMW. “I decided to switch because I’m very proud the software in this car is made by FPT Software staff.”

Entrepreneur Nguyen Quoc Cuong

Cuong, 39, is a board member and Deputy General Director of Quoc Cuong Gia Lai Joint Stock Company. He does not work in the entertainment industry, but is extremely famous thanks to his association with showbiz celebrities and a collection of rare supercars. It has been said that he changes supercars like shirts.

Cuong is known as the first person to buy a supercar in Vietnam. His collection now mounts to hundreds of supercars, luxury cars and sports cars. To date, it is difficult to enumerate the luxury car lines that have passed through his hands. In 2007, the businessman was the first to import the Lamborghini Gallardo supercar to Vietnam and create an underground competition in the Saigon car world.

Nicknamed Cuong Dollar, the entrepreneur was also the first person to own a Mc Laren 570S supercar. The special feature of this supercar is not its price, but the fact that it came to Vietnam quite early, soon after its launch in the international market in mid-2015. Cuong’s yellow Lamborghini Huracan supercar was previously owned by a real estate company boss. The value of the used car in Vietnam is estimated at over VND10 billion ($439,000), while a brand-new one is sold for about VND13 billion.

In addition to supercars, Cuong Dollar also owns super luxury cars like a genuine Rolls-Royce Wraith priced at about VND18 billion. If equipped with a few bespoke accessories, the price of this car rises to about VND21 billion. He also owns super-luxury sedan Maybach 62S. Now that Maybach has been terminated to be replaced by the cheaper Mercedes S600 Maybach, the former has become a rare commodity. In addition to super cars and super-luxury cars, he also owns a Mercedes G55 AMGSUV and a S500 with a body kit.

Cuong has recently ordered a Ferrari SF90 Stradale supercar, the latest product of the Italian car company, fueling the race to bring a line of hybrid engine supercars to Vietnam.

Luxstay CEO Nguyen Van Dung

Luxstay CEO Nguyen Van Dung has also based his car choice on national pride. As soon as billionaire Pham Nhat Vuong’s VinFast introduced the first Vietnamese brand cars, the CEO of Luxstay, born in the eighties, sold his Merc S500 and ordered 18 Lux SA2.0 SUVs and 18 Lux A2.0 sedans with a total value of VND40 billion ($1.76 million). These cars, Dung said, are for Luxstay services and his travel purposes.

“I am doing a start-up in the Internet field, so I have great confidence in the products created by start-ups, especially those by the professional VinFast. I had used the S500 for a long time, but sitting in a VinFast Lux I felt it was not only luxurious, but also a matter of pride and excitement,” he said.

Entrepreneur Pham Tran Nhat Minh

Minh Plastics, whose real name Pham Tran Nhat Minh, is the son of Pham Van Muoi, General Director of the famous Long Thanh plastic company. Minh Plastics is known for his wealth and his astonishing supercar hobby, buying up cars worth tens of billions of Vietnamese dong each (VND10 billion = $439,000).

The cars he owns include a Rolls-Royce Cullinan and Aston Martin V8 Vantage, priced at more than VND15 billion each, Pagani Huayra worth VND80 billion, a set of three cars BMW X7, X3 and Z4, Mercedes-AMG G 63, Porsche Cayenne Coupe and a VinFast Lux SA2.0.

Cuong has recently ordered a Ferrari SF90 Stradale supercar, the latest product of the Italian car company, fueling the race to bring a line of hybrid engine supercars to Vietnam.