Page 48 - MotorTrend (March 2020)
P. 48
THE BEST-
HANDING ,
BEST-RIDING
LUXURY
SUV IN THE
WORLD?
PROBABLY.
WORDS ANGUS MACKENZIE
he guttural V-8 growl is as familiar Suspension is by way of triple-chamber air
The Aston Martin DBX has an impressively
as the iconic winged logo on the springs with active anti-roll, and 22-inch roomy and properly luxurious interior.
leather-clad steering wheel. But wheels are standard.
overlaying it are sounds never The DBX we’re driving is what Aston
before heard in an Aston Martin: a calls a 1PT—a first production-trial build—
Tdistant ticking of gravel peppering which means it’s one of the first cars to
the underside, the muffled thud of rubber come off the line at the newly opened
on rock, the swoosh of muddy water factory in St. Athan, Wales.
cascading over the hood. Riding shotgun is Aston Martin vehicle
We’re dancing an Aston Martin DBX attribute engineering chief Matt Becker,
prototype through the wilderness of who points out the steering and suspen-
Oman, on the southeastern coast of the sion calibrations are still being finalized, as
Arabian Peninsula. It feels right at home. is the software that controls the pops and
We’ve covered the oily bits of Aston’s bangs from the exhaust in Sport+ mode.
first-ever SUV on MotorTrend.com, but Otherwise—apart from the usual manufac-
here’s a quick recap: The DBX is built on a turing process tweaks to ensure things like
brand-new all-aluminum body structure the door fits and wiper locations are opti-
engineered and developed in-house at mized to reduce wind noise—it’s close to
Aston Martin. the final spec of the DBXs that will arrive
Under the hood is the ubiquitous in the U.S. in the second half of the year.
4.0-liter twin-turbo V-8 that powers Prepare to be impressed. The DBX is
sundry Mercedes-AMG models as well as quick—claimed 0–60 acceleration takes
versions of Aston’s own DB11 and Vantage 4.3 seconds en route to a top speed of 181
sports cars. Developing 542 hp and 516 mph. It doesn’t really feel like it, though,
lb-ft of torque, it’s hooked up to Daim- perhaps because we’re now spoiled for
ler’s smooth nine-speed automatic and choice when it comes to 500-plus-
a performance version of the company’s horsepower SUVs (see also page 58).
4Matic all-wheel-drive system, with an And it will go around corners. Becker
active center differential and rear e-diff. says it will pull more than 1.00 g lateral
48 MOTORTREND.COM MARCH 2020
