ROAD TEST t was, for years, the ROAD TEST prophecy that every lover Range at a glance I of extravagant supercars, No 5497 epic limousines, sleek ENGINES POWER FROM GTs and exciting sport cars dreaded. DBX 542bhp £158,000 But just as the introduction of an SUV worked like a charm for Porsche, so it TRANSMISSIONS is currently working out very nicely 9-spd automatic indeed for Bentley, Lamborghini and Rolls-Royce. Having for so long The DBX is currently a stand-alone been anathema to so many, the super- model. The Mercedes-AMG V8 luxury, conspicuously consuming represents the sole engine offering, 4x4 has turned saviour of a sort. although there’s every chance Aston Martin has just become that Aston Martin will introduce a Trapezoidal daytime-running lights the latest of the ‘big fish’ luxury V12, along with a more affordable make the car particularly recognisable car brands to launch such an plug-in hybrid, at some point down on the road. They also frame an intake ostentatious SUV. It has done so with the line. A big part of the DBX’s that feeds cooling air towards the a view to stabilising its business, future sales success will no doubt front brakes and then down the to opening up parts of the global car hinge on whether or not the car’s bodysides. market that have hitherto been closed latter materialises. to it and to providing the revenue base on which its wider strategic ambitions can be built. Gaydon’s bonded together, which in turn five-metre-long, five-seater cash makes the car both rigid and light cow – the all-new DBX – has landed. compared with its rivals. That would And what a profitable introduction clearly be the right way to start for it could – indeed, should – prove to the most dynamic-handling car be. The Cullinan has become the in its segment but, compared with fastest-selling new Rolls-Royce some of its competitors at least, it the company has yet known. The may be a questionable claim. Aston Bentayga outsold Bentley’s next most claims a kerb weight of 2245kg, popular model by a factor of at least but we weighed the car at 2328kg. two to one for the first three years of That figure, although less than the its life, and the Urus is enjoying even 12-cylinder Bentley Bentayga we There’s no rear wiper but Aston greater domination by volume of its tested in 2016, was just over 130kg Martin says the car’s aerodynamics Lamborghini showroom siblings. heavier than the Lamborghini Urus automatically keep the window clear With even the mighty Ferrari we tested last year. of water and muck. We drove the car gearing up to enter the super-SUV Aside from being Aston Martin’s in heavy rain and found there was segment in 2022, Aston Martin first SUV, this is also the company’s reasonable truth to that claim. clearly won’t be the last to this first car with air suspension (a three- giant-sized feast. Moreover, if the chamber set-up, height adjustable appearance of its own take on high- by up to 95mm) and also with 48V riding motoring for the wealthy electric system-powered active anti- elite is anything to go by, it hasn’t roll bars. Additionally, the DBX uses been prevented by either convention double-wishbone front suspension or technology from taking its own and a multi-link rear axle. unique slant on providing what this The car’s powertrain consists of rarefied stratum of the utility car a modified version of the Mercedes- market may currently be missing. AMG-sourced 4.0-litre turbocharged Stand by to find out exactly how V8 (with revised turbocharging unique and different the DBX really and cooling systems and a lower is, and whether such a vehicle can compression ratio), which produces still feel like a proper, familiar a peak 542bhp. This isn’t the kind Aston Martin to drive. of figure that will lure people out of There are six alloy wheel designs to choose from, all 22in in diameter. DESIGN AND ENGINEERING quicker rivals on its own, but with engine capacity-based tax rules set Excluding colour and finish, though, AAAAC as they are in important markets there are actually only two rim designs. Aston Martin’s current management such as China, you can see why This is the ‘Ribbon’ wheel; alternative admits that it has not once, in Gaydon might start with a V8 version ‘Sport’ style is less fussy. more than a century of car making, of this car, then perhaps aim for a even tried to produce a car with plug-in hybrid next and save any fire- such a broadly defined mission breathing V12 for later down the line. statement as the DBX. Doing that The DBX is also notable for while simultaneously building a shunning the ZF eight-speed gearbox new factory for the new model to be that other Astons have in favour made in – and all during one of the of Mercedes’ nine-speed torque FTSE’s most disastrous company converter. It’s this transmission’s We like f lotations in recent years – was upper torque limit that is rumoured Engaging, tactile handling makes clearly also a very tough test. And yet to be the reason why the V8’s peak ◊ for more driver appeal than most Aston Martin has succeeded. There’s fast SUVs manage to create also a new boss and a new majority Soulful V8 soundtrack and shareholder and chairman – and, usable, considered performance more importantly, the DBX is now three months into production in Aston Martin DBX We don’t like St Athan, Wales. Ducktail spoiler is a reference to The DBX is in some ways like the one found on the Vantage sports LUC LACEY Design-led interior perhaps isn’t the firm’s range of sports cars and car. An ambitious addition to an SUV’s The most important Aston in a generation undergoes the industry’s toughest test as roomy-feeling as it could be grand touring coupés. Like them, it’s profile, but on what is already an Infotainment system desperately unconventional design it doesn’t grate MODEL TESTED ASTON MARTIN DBX built on an all-aluminium platform needs upgrading which is also all-new, made from as much as it otherwise might. PHOTOGRAPHY Price £158,000 Power 542bhp Torque 516lb ft 0-60mph 4.6sec 30-70mph in fourth 7.0sec Fuel economy 17.0mpg CO2 emissions 323g/km 70-0mph 42.1m a mix of extrusions and castings DBX’s gestation has at times defied odds 30 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 28 OCTOBER 2020 28 OCTOBER 2020 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 31 ROAD TEST Weights and measures DIMENSIONS 0.39 max 0mm 94 632- 1680mm 960mm 1530 litres 800mm 960mm max Kerb weight: 2245kg 915mm 3060mm 1064mm 5039mm The DBX’s metallic paddle shifters are wonderfully There’s a recess at the top of the centre console that Aston continues its long-held tradition of individual Sports seats are derived from those in the DB11 but with a new armrest. Test car’s tactile. They’re cool to the touch and initiate manual can house the DBX’s rectangular key. We just wish it drive selector buttons. They look great and remove PARKING Typical parking space width (2400mm) chairs added £5180 worth of optional quilting, embroidering and broguing work. gearshifts with a satisfying click. had been designed to fit the key a bit more snugly. the need for a flimsy column stalk shifter. T ypical garage height 2260mm Typical leg room 800mm 2230mm (with mirrors) All seats are heated as standard, front and back. Measured typical rear leg room 3680mm figure of 800mm is 40mm more than in the Urus, and there’s more head room. WHEEL AND PEDAL ALIGNMENT Steering wheel sits directly in front of your chest, and you drive with elbows tucked in 65mm close to your sides. There’s 200mm good adjustment in the Width 1060-1150mm steering column and pedals are comfortably spaced. Height 460-680mm HEADLIGHTS Length 1000-1950mm Bi-LED headlights are standard. These certainly provide strong beam spread and depth on dipped beam, although full-beam capability Centre went untested. The DBX’s powered tailgate is opened and closed at the push of a button. Luggage capacity comes in at 632 litres, with an additional 62 litres of underfloor storage. ∆ torque output has been pegged least as important as its function, as on the fascia. Even the bottoms of the they were all adults. For four adults at 516lb ft. The gearbox does allow are its frameless doors and low-cut door cubbies are lined with hide. of average height in all, however, Multimedia system AAACC for a maximum towing capacity A-pillar and roof line. Aston boasts that the car offers the DBX’s cabin would be a very of 2700kg, though, as well as low- Look down as you swing open the rear seat passengers as much space comfortable and accessible place There’s no missing the fact that the DBX’s infotainment system speed torque multiplication – and door and you’ll see a cabin f loor that as those up front, and that the in which to travel – a target the old is built on old Mercedes architecture, even despite a graphical downstream of it the car has an active is perfectly f lat all the way to where driving position was set to allow four-door Rapide certainly missed. reskin that lends the software a distinctly Aston Martin theme.