Vietnamese transportation company Green & Smart Mobility (GSM) has just debuted its fleet of VinFast VF e34 taxis in the Philippines. The country is the fourth in Southeast Asia to receive the electric taxis after Vietnam, Laos, and Indonesia.
GSM was founded by VinFast CEO Pham Nhat Vuong, Vietnam’s wealthiest billionaire.
Though there are many cabs and ride-hailing services like Grab (the local version of Uber), taxi services in the Philippines are plagued by old vehicles, unsafe and inefficient cars, and discourteous and corrupt drivers contracting fares instead of using taxi meters. GSM hopes to change this bad reputation with its fleet of EVs, trained drivers, and an app so the service is available both by booking and on the street.
Green Ambassadors
To fix the issue of discourtesy, drivers are given full-time positions with fixed salaries and incentives instead of daily “on-call” contracts and “boundaries” (an unfair system of paying drivers based on a percentage of total fare collections). It will also offer an Uber-style partnership model for those who own their electric vehicles.
A GSM “Green Ambassador.” (Photo from VinFast)
In Vietnam, GSM drivers are called “green ambassadors.” According to executives at the company, they are developing a “deep sense of pride and purpose that extends beyond simply earning a living, and actively shaping a modernized transportation landscape and delivering eco-friendly, refined, and high-quality services to customers.”
GSM also chose to partner with R&E Taxi, Manila’s largest taxi service company. It is at the huge R&E compound in the North of Manila where GSM has over 30 charging stations for the EV fleet.
Car of Choice — VF e34
GSM chose the VinFast VF e34, a compact crossover SUV, as its main transporter.
The 41.9 kWh lithium-ion battery powers a single electric motor. Power is rated at 110 kW (147 hp) and torque at 242 Nm. On a full charge, the claimed range is 197 miles (318 km). This is good enough to cover the streets of Manila for up to 10 hours of nonstop driving. GSM will provide DC fast charging capable of bringing the battery from 10% to 70% in about 27 minutes. Though, it is not yet clear where these charging stations are located.
The VF e34’s size — 4,300 mm in length, 1,768 mm in width, and 1,615 mm in height, with a wheelbase of 2,610 mm — is ample room for five passengers and is almost the same dimensions as the many Toyota Vios and Mitsubishi Mirage in Manila streets.
GSM taxis were recently launched in Manila beginning with a fleet of 100 cars. (Photo from VinFast showing the taxi fleet in Laos.)
Photo from VinFast.
Photo from VinFast.
For cabin safety, the VF e34 comes with 6 airbags (front, front sides, and curtain), ABS with EBD, vehicle stability control, and a 360-degree surround-view monitoring system, rear cross-traffic alert, and blind-spot detection. The cars are painted in a special color called “Nerio Green.”
Secure via AI
Another key differentiator for the GSM fleet is the S2S (Secure to Safe) active monitoring system. Each taxi is equipped with surveillance cameras monitoring the interior and exterior. In Vietnam, Indonesia, and Laos, the system automatically heightens its threat and road crash detection during high-risk hours from 10:00 PM to 6:00 AM. In case of an emergency, accessible emergency buttons are available for both drivers and passengers to instantly alert the company’s central operations center.
The proactive AI-powered analysis systems is a product of another VinGroup company, VinAI. The smart sensors monitor trips in real-time for anomalies like unusual route deviations or signs of distress. If the AI detects a potential threat or an emergency button is pressed, it immediately flags a dedicated 24/7 monitoring team.
According to GSM officials in the Philippines, this system is already in place. And to ensure compliance to Philippine data privacy laws, all camera footage is encrypted and automatically deleted after 48 hours unless required for an official investigation.
In the future, GSM will also deploy a fleet of VinFast VF 5 and create a luxury taxi segment with the VF 8 as the prime mover. This according to CleanTechnica sources inside VinGroup, parent company of VinFast.
The VF e34 GSM taxi. (Photo from VinFast.)
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