LONDON -- Aston Martin reduced the price of its DBX SUV to create headroom above for other models built on the same platform, CEO Tobias Moers said.
The price reduction was not done to stimulate demand for the SUV, the company's first such vehicle, Moers said. "That was not the motivation. The order book is good," he told Automotive News Europe.
The price reduction, which applies in Europe and the U.S., was to make sure the DBX has competitive pricing for all the portfolio to come. "It was a strategic approach to create headroom," Moers said.
Aston Martin is planning a second car line based on the DBX platform "and possibly a third," he said.
In the U.S., the price of the DBX dropped by $10,000 to $179,986 motoring publications reported.
Aston Martin decided to expand the number of models based on the DBX platform following Daimler's decision last year to increase its stake in the company and give Aston access to more Mercedes technology.
"We saw with the Mercedes technology agreement the possibility of a much broader portfolio on DBX," Moers said.
No timing was given for the launch of new car lines based on the DBX platform, but Moers said to expect "a firework regarding our product roll outs" in 2023.
Marek Reichman, Aston Martin's chief creative officer, has previously hinted at a coupe version and a bigger three-row model aimed at the U.S. and China.
Aston Martin will add a mild-hybrid version of the DBX in the third quarter. The new mild-hybrid engine is expected to be a six-cylinder turbocharged unit supplied by Mercedes' AMG performance division. A V-12 DBX is not expected. The DBX is currently sold with a 541-hp V-8 engine supplied by AMG.
The company will sell its first plug-in hybrid in 2024 and a full-electric car by 2025, a spokesman said. No details were given about which models these drivetrains would be applied too.
Aston Martin plans to roll out its Valhalla mid-engined hypercar in 2023 and Vanquish mid-engined supercar in 2024.
Aston said on Thursday that will almost double production to 6,000 vehicles this year, up from 3,394 in 2020, and move back toward profitability after sinking deeper into the red in 2020 when it made a 466-million pound ($660 million) loss, compared with a 120 million pound loss in 2019.
The company said it sold 1,171 units of the DBX wholesale in the fourth quarter, the SUV's first full quarter on the market.
