Reveal: Aston Martin DBX

Arguably the best-looking ultraluxe SUV, the DBX could double

Shot Play

Aston Martin builds a survival vehicle.

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Aston Martin’s characteristic mustache grille looks good on an SUV. Under the hood is a 542-hp

from all angles. Aston’s familiar grille works well on the tall body of the DBX—much better than the grafted-on styling treatments of the Bentayga or Cullinan. “We wanted to make the most beautiful SUV in this space, not necessarily the quickest, ” Aston CEO Andy Palmer says. “Although it is extraordinarily quick. ”

Palmer says he ordered work on an Aston Martin SUV just four days after taking control of the company in 2014. The goal was to create a vehicle that would broaden the brand’s appeal in Asian markets. Despite a sizable 198.4-inch length, the DBX will be the shortest ute in its superpremium segment—a huge 11.9 inches less than the Cullinan. Yet practicality is high, with a good amount of room front and rear, 22 cubic feet of cargo space, and a driving position with enough adjustment to accommodate anyone from a

GETTING DIRTY — Chief engineer Matt Becker admits the DBX’s off-road prowess emerged as a byproduct of the engineering targets the company

R E V E A L O F T H E M O N T H

95th percentile male to a 5th percentile female; Aston thinks the DBX will appeal more strongly to women than its existing lineup does.

While it will be produced in a new factory in Wales, the DBX is constructed using Aston’s long-favored technique of fabricating a bonded and riveted aluminum structure. As with the Vantage and lesser versions of the DB11, power comes from a Mercedes-AMG-sourced twin-turbo 4.0-liter V-8, one that makes 542 horsepower and 516 pound-feet. Mercedes’s nine-speed automatic is employed here, too. Aston claims a 4.3-second zero-to-60-mph time and a 181-mph top speed. Despite Palmer’s insistence that looks trump speed, we’re told that prototypes have been lapping the Nürburgring Nordschleife at a pace that suggests the DBX could near if not beat the famous circuit’s 7:42.2 SUV record set by the Audi RS Q8, should Aston attempt it. 5bTR Rß\_a UN` ORR[ ]ba V[a\ ZNXing sure the DBX delivers an Astonappropriate dynamic experience. Though the SUV is fundamentally rear-wheel drive, a transfer case directs torque to the front axle when required. There is also an electronically controlled rear QVßR_R[aVNY aUNa PN[ R[YVcR[ \_ `aNOVYVgR the handling. Adaptive dampers and air springs are standard and have the ability to increase ride height by up to 1.8 inches or lower it by up to 2.0. The DBX also gets 48-volt active anti-roll bars to S TAT E LY D I M E N S I O N S

DBX Bentayga V8 Cullinan Urus

L E N G T H , i n W I DT H , i n

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RßRPaVcRYf [RTNaR O\Qf _\YY b[QR_ UN_Q cornering. Aston’s chief engineer, Matt Becker, admits his team opted to wind the system back slightly to allow a small amount of body lean. “It felt too unnatural without it, ” he says. In addition to the usual array of on-road driving modes, aUR_R dVYY OR ad\ \ß_\NQ `RaaV[T` AR_rain and Terrain Plus.

The DBX can be ordered now, with aUR ¼_`a B@ Pb`a\ZR_ PN_` `PURQbYRQ to arrive in the second half of the year. Pricing begins at $192,986—more than the Bentayga V8 but not as expensive as the Urus or Cullinan. Aston’s future depends on its success.

—Mike Duff

Profit and Loss

Aston needs the DBX to be a hit. The company ’s stock price has lost 75 percent of its value since its IPO in late 2018. To keep itself solvent, the brand was recently forced to raise $150 million in debt by offering to pay the loan note back at 12 percent. Demand for its sports cars has fallen, but the continued uncertainty of the United Kingdom’s messy Brexit from the European Union has also affected confidence. Palmer is keen to talk up the strength of the business— “in terms of EBITDA [earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization], it’s the most successful it’s ever been” —but admits that the DBX is expected to sell at a rate of more than 4000 a year globally, which would constitute approximately half of total production. “It means the company [doesn’t have] all of its eggs in one basket, ” he says.