A few years back, not many would have believed that Aston Martin would actually build an SUV, let alone a good one, but then again, the same was said about Porsche, Lamborghini, Bentley and Rolls-Royce, and look at them now.
Designed to be much more than a high-riding GT, the DBX has widened the company’s portfolio allowing Aston Martin to reach out to a whole new clientele. It promises to offer a great balance between a comfortable intercontinental cruiser, sports car and off-roader.
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By looking at it, you probably wouldn’t think that it can be put through its paces on an off-road course, especially on 22-inch wheels, but if you’re not scared of scratching that expensive paint and cleaning the mud after, then you’ll be in for quite a treat.
And it’s not all about driving on arduous terrains either, because this is still an Aston, so it can cope with tracks as well, and will do so while putting a big smile on those sitting behind the wheel, as the active differential can transmit up to 100 percent of the torque to the rear wheels.
In addition to the Terrain and Terrain Plus modes for off-road driving and Sport Plus for circuits, the DBX can be put into GT mode. This makes it very relaxing and will probably become the drive mode of choice for most customers.
There’s plenty of power under the hood with the twin-turbo 4.0-liter AMG-sourced V8 pushing out 550 PS (542 hp / 405 kW) and 700 Nm (516 lb-ft) of torque, distributed to all four corners through a nine-speed automatic transmission. It won’t send shivers down the spine of a Lamborghini Urus, but with a 0-100 km/h (0-62 mph) dispatched in 4.5 seconds and a 291 km/h (181 mph) top speed, it’s pretty fast for most.
This is what Autocar found out on a challenging course, behind the wheel of a prototype, accompanied by chassis engineer Matt Becker, who took his time talking the reviewer through every important aspect of the SUV.