November 20, 2019 02:29 AM

Aston Martin expands lineup with DBX

The DBX has design details that link it to the rest of Aston Martin's lineup. The headlights and grille are recognizable as an Aston Martin.

Aston Martin's DBX SUV will expand the British automaker's portfolio into a key new segment but does not stray from the brand's design language.

The DBX, debuting simultaneously at events in Beverly Hills, California, and Beijing, marks the latest entrant into a growing group of SUVs from some of the industry's most exclusive brands.

Bentley started the latest SUV stampede with the launch of the Bentayga in 2016 while the Lamborghini Urus and the Rolls-Royce Cullinan went on sale in 2018. A Ferrari SUV is expected in 2022.

For Aston Martin, the DBX has been a long time coming.

First teased as a concept at the 2015 Geneva auto show, the DBX has morphed from what at first looked like a high-riding sporty coupe into a more traditional SUV, complete with four doors, a large rear gate, room for five inside and 22-inch wheels. It's built on a new, dedicated platform.

But the design details tying the DBX to the rest of Aston Martin's lineup remain strong. The headlights and grille are instantly recognizable as an Aston Martin, while the rear styling mirrors the Vantage coupe.

The DBX is powered by a 4.0-liter twin-turbocharged V-8 engine making 542 hp and 700 newton meters (516 pound-feet) of torque. The engine is the same Mercedes AMG-supplied unit that Aston Martin drops in the Vantage and DB11 sports cars, but it is tuned to give more power in the SUV.

It comes with a nine-speed automatic transmission and all-wheel drive.

The DBX accelerates from 0 to 100 kph (62 mph) in 4.5 seconds and on to a top speed of 295 kph (181 mph).

The DBX will give "many people their first experience of Aston Martin ownership," Aston Martin CEO Andy Palmer said in a statement. "As such it needed to be true to the core values established in our sports cars, while also providing the lifestyle versatility expected of a luxury SUV."

The DBX will start at 158,000 pounds in the UK, 193,500 euros in Germany and $189,900 in U.S., pricing it alongside most of its competitors such as the Bentayga, the Lamborghini Urus and the Rolls-Royce Cullinan.

The DBX can be ordered now, with first deliveries scheduled to begin the second quarter of next year.

The rear styling of the DBX mirrors the Vantage coupe.

Inside, the DBX has equipment such as a 10.25-inch infotainment screen, a 12.3-inch instrument cluster, Apple CarPlay, heated seats and four USB ports.

Safety equipment includes forward-collision warning, lane-departure warning, blind-sport warning and, for the first time in an Aston Martin, adaptive cruise control and lane keep assist.

The DBX will be built at Aston Martin's new factory in St Athan, South Wales.

The automaker is aiming to lift annual global output to 14,000 vehicles by 2023 with the help of the DBX. The brand's 2018 global sales totaled 6,441 and the company is targeting 6,300 to 6,500 deliveries this year.

The DBX comes at a critical time for Aston Martin.

The automaker was sold by Ford Motor in 2007 and is now largely owned by Kuwaiti and Italian private equity groups.

Aston Martin listed in October last year at 19 pounds per share but that has since plunged by around 75 percent, hit most recently by falling demand in Europe and lower demand for its Vantage model.

The company reported a pretax loss of 92 million pounds ($118 million) in the first nine months.

Reuters contributed to this report