VinFast, which is expanding its footprint in the United States, recently debuted its new DrgnFly electric bike at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas. But as soon as the curtain was lifted, concerns began to circulate about how close is too near when replicating other well-known e-bike designs.
The bike's specifications are less essential in this situation. Sure, it has a 750W motor and can reach speeds of 28 mph (45 km/h), but so do a hundred other e-bike models in the United States alone, let alone throughout the world.
What's more, VinFast's new electric bike looks to be a carbon clone of SUPER73's classic e-bike design.
SUPER73 may not have invented the moped-style electric bike, but they were certainly one of the first firms to adopt the concept. SUPER73's huge investment in marketing and its own rider culture has catapulted the 20′′ wheel moped-style electric bike design to prominence ever since. SUPER73 has spent years cultivating a dedicated client base and transforming itself into more than simply an e-bike firm, but rather a whole lifestyle brand, by drawing on motorcycle inspiration and e-bike cost effectiveness.
It also worked. At a distance, almost any other e-bike is impossible to discern. A Rad and an Aventon don't appear that different from 50 yards away. Anyone who has spent more than a few days in the e-bike sector, on the other hand, can probably detect a SUPER73 from half a football field away.
There appear to be innumerable SUPER73 copies these days, just as there are countless 750W e-bikes. And imitating is one thing. E-bikes like the Ride1Up Revv1 have undoubtedly copied SUPER73 while including their own brand's appearance and functionality. However, blatant copying is a very different thing, and the VinFast DrgnFly case is beginning to veer more to the copier end of the spectrum than the creative end.
It most closely resembles the SUPER73-ZX, which I had the pleasure of checking out firsthand. It's impossible to find an area on the bike that doesn't appear like it was changed over from SUPER73's spare parts warehouse, from the virtually similar handlebars and saddle to the largely same frame (without the S73 cutouts).
An underslung battery adds to the resemblance, and while it doesn't scream carbon copy on its own, it adds to the expanding list of elements that are almost identical or very similar.
Interestingly, the DrgnFly has not only adopted the exterior design, but VinFast looks to be aiming after SUPER73's lifestyle brand status as well. SUPER73 is likely most known for its passionately committed riders, who have embraced the SUPER73 lifestyle more than any other e-bike brand on the market. SUPER73 motorcycles have had more customisation and personalization than nearly all other brands combined.
"VinFast's DrgnFly is not just an e-bike," says Tran Mai Hoa, Deputy CEO of Sales and Marketing at VinFast Global. "It's a lifestyle option for modern users who seek to express their personality." That sounds very similar to me.
To be honest, VinFast most likely played a minor impact in the DrgnFly's design. The bike's design was helped, according to the business, by "Eskild Hansen, an innovative Danish studio with multiple Red Dot Design awards."
But, at the end of the day, the nameplate still says VinFast.
We've seen e-bikes that look just like other well-known brands before, and they frequently get away in a mostly uncontrolled market. However, when the designs are too close for comfort, legal fights might develop.
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