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Aston Martin has worked its way into the niche market of luxury large vehicles with the DBX, a crossover that’s officially set for launch in late 2019. The new model will reportedly be a competitor for other high-end SUVs, including the Bentley Bentayga, Maserati Levante, and the upcoming Lamborghini Urus (as well as top-trim Porsche Cayennes, which sell for well over $200,000). According to Aston Martin CEO Andy Palmer, the SUV segment is a must for the Gaydon stalwarts, allowing the brand to move forward after a recent uptrend following a financially-plagued 104-year history.
This project has been a long time coming for Palmer as he claims to have kickstarted the initiative just four days after taking over as Chief Executive, as Autosport reports. Thanks to years of development and refinement, he claims it to be unique to other models in the category “because it has not sacrificed any beauty to achieve its practicality or performance.”
“On my fourth day [as CEO], I got to spend some time with Marek [Reichmann, head of design] and I told him I wanted DBX. That was in October and I told him I wanted a concept car ready to show in Geneva by the following March.”
His objective was to bring Aston out of previous dark years by entering what may be the hottest market in luxury.
“When you are talking about running a company like Aston Martin, you talk through your ideas with the owners before you are hired,” said Palmer. “My message was simple: if Aston Martin wants to survive, it must do a SUV.”
And luckily for the enthusiast crowd, it isn’t a drab redesign on a shared, boring platform. Instead, it’s fresh all the way through, save for the stellar AMG-sourced V-8 and V-12 engine options that only recently appeared in the DB11. Each of these powerplants come equipped with a pair of turbos that help boost power to 503bhp and 600bhp respectively — plenty to boast around to your friends in the Hamptons.
Additionally, the British automaker looks to use the DBX as an avenue for hybrid advancement. The plan to electrify the brand’s entire lineup by the mid-2020s will go into full effect with this new family-hauler, and future high performance variations could be coming as well. Rumor has it that Aston is toying around with the hybrid engine combo from the Mercedes-AMG GT Concept, one that makes a combined power output of 800 horsepower.
“It is probably dynamically the best car in the SUV category,” says Palmer.
Expect to see the DBX pop onto the market sometime in late 2019. With two years to learn the market and make adjustments, Aston seems to have a formidable competitor to the ever-growing segment.
