Hanoi (VNS/VNA) - Many car manufacturers have recentlyunveiled new car models, offering significant discounts to boost consumerinterest, further complicating the already challenging second-hand car market.

Over just the latter half of September, the Vietnamese auto sectorhas seen the introduction of over 10 brand-new car models from various brands,comprising both internal combustion engine vehicles and electric ones.

Automakers are persistently enhancing their offerings to providecustomers with the latest and most advanced vehicles. Due to technologicaladvancements, these newly launched models come with numerous exceptionalfeatures, catering to the growing demands of consumers.

Besides rolling out entirely new models, several manufacturershave also revised the price tags of their new cars, ranging from a few tens ofmillions of dong to 534 million VND (22,250 USD).

Hyundai Thanh Cong has revised the prices of two of its carmodels, Santa Fe and Tucson, with a maximum reduction of 191 million VND.

Honda is offering price cuts that equate to 100% of registrationfees. Toyota is providing a 50% subsidy on the remaining registration fee forcustomers purchasing Vios cars.

Volkswagen is offering support by covering 100% of registrationfees, up to a cap of 400 million VND. Mercedes-Benz is giving a discountequivalent to 50% VAT on the retail price for most of its models, which bringsdown the car prices ranging from 76 million VND to as much as 534 million VND forthe G63.

Used car market’s difficulties

The introduction of a multitude of new car models coupled withsignificant discounts has intensified the challenges faced by the alreadystruggling second-hand car market.

As a result, numerous car owners and dealers in the used carsector have been forced to make significant reductions, yet they still struggleto attract buyers.

A variety of factors contribute to the challenges in the used carmarket. However, a primary issue has been the intricate procedure fortransferring used car titles (implemented from August 15, 2023) that can spanseveral months, dampening consumer enthusiasm.

Nguyen Hoang, who runs a second-hand car showroom on Truong CongGiai Street in Hanoi, told the Vietnam News Agency that from August 15, 2023,the identification plate number would be officially governed by Circular24/2023/TT-BCA, which pertains to the issuance and revocation of vehicleregistration and number plates. This development had led to a downturn in theused car market, making operations even more challenging.

In the past, transferring names and changing licence plates forcustomers only took a few days or at most a week, even for vehicles from out ofprovince, said Hoang. Thanks to that, each month his facility sold severaldozen cars.

However, since the circular took effect, the process of revokinglicence plates and registering and completing procedures for customers hadtaken longer.

Sometimes it took several weeks or even more than a month tocomplete. This made customers impatient to wait to buy used cars, leading to asharp decrease in car sales compared to before.

Meanwhile, Manh Hung, a used car dealer on Nguyen Chanh Street in Hanoi,said that the used car market was facing not only the recall of identificationnumber plates but also difficulties due to general economic difficulties.

With new car prices frequently being promoted and discounted,consumers were less inclined towards purchasing second-hand cars. As a result,the used car trading sector had seen a drop of roughly 20-30% since beforeAugust 15.

Spokespeople from several second-hand car businesses had voicedtheir hopes for regulatory bodies to introduce suitable regulations that wouldfacilitate the process of transferring used car titles.

Such measures would enable prospective buyers to undergo theprocedure more swiftly and effortlessly, potentially aiding in the revival andgrowth of the used car market, they asserted./.