At this year's Los Angeles Auto Show, Vietnamese automaker VinFast promised that it would have cars in the US by the end of the year.

999 units of the 2023 VinFast VF 8 electric crossover were loaded on a boat just under a month ago, heading towards California. Those cars have officially arrived at the Port of Benicia 26 days later after making the long voyage from Vietnam on the Silver Queen Ocean vessel. These are the first Vietnamese cars to officially arrive in the US. With VinFast receiving its final certifications later this month, deliveries should begin before the close of 2022.

"Today marks a very important milestone for VinFast. Early this year in Las Vegas, we announced our lineup of all-electric SUVs and made a bold promise to deliver them to the market by the end of 2022," said Madam Le Thi Thu Thuy, Vice Chairwoman of Vingroup and CEO of VinFast Singapore. "Today, that promise is fulfilled. Starting with this first delivery of 999 VF 8s City Edition, VinFast has made another giant step in its ongoing mission to bring all-electric transportation to everyone."

The first 999 cars are called the VF 8 City Edition, a limited edition model sold to early VinFast pre-order holders. Like Tesla, VinFast sells vehicles directly to customers, but the automaker has opened several stores in California that will provide service and product information.

Every VF 8 City Edition comes with a 10-year warranty, including 10-year coverage on the battery. The VF 8 is rated for 179 miles of range on Eco and Plus models, but a software update is expected to increase that number in January 2023. A future VF 8 with a larger battery pack should get close to 300 miles on a charge.

After the VF 8, the larger VF 9 should go on sale in early 2023 followed by the VF 6 and VF 7 later in the year.