Photo: Aston Martin Lagonda
Aston Martin is not going through the best moments right now, its plans once more jeopardized by the current economic woes. But hope is not fading away as the company has kicked off the manufacturing process of a range of important models – including the first-ever production-series DBX, made at the new location facility in St Athan, Wales, in the United Kingdom.
We were certainly more impressed with the announcement that Aston Martin's first DB5 Goldfinger has rolled off the (manual) assembly line – we are fans of both Eon Productions’ long-lived 007 series and of the classic personality of the DB5. But, frankly, the survival of Aston Martin very much depends on the sales success of its first high-riding vehicle, the DBX.
And we reckon things are not really that bad – we have seen British SUVs looking much more out of place than Gaydon’s creation. Aston Martin first revealed its intention to manufacture the DBX at a completely new production facility in St Athan, Wales a little over four years ago. Now they are closing the circle with the first production-series example that rolled off the assembly line with the “Made in Wales” passport.
Aston Martin is certainly betting big on the DBX – the all-wheel drive crossover is perfect for markets where its regular rear-wheel drive sports cars struggle due to specific terrain or climate characteristics. In addition, as is generic with SUVs, the new model is a lot more practical and spacious.
Not to mention fast, given Mercedes-AMG's 4.0-liter V8 that churns out 550 HP and enables a sprint to 62 mph (100 kph) in just 4.5 seconds on its way to a maximum speed of 181 mph (292 kph). The company has also announced it is kicking off global customer deliveries later this month, just as planned.
It will certainly stand for an uphill battle for Aston Martin when considering the current worldwide uncertainty, but the automaker is most likely relying on previously completed pre-orders for the first batches of DBX SUVs.
And we reckon things are not really that bad – we have seen British SUVs looking much more out of place than Gaydon’s creation. Aston Martin first revealed its intention to manufacture the DBX at a completely new production facility in St Athan, Wales a little over four years ago. Now they are closing the circle with the first production-series example that rolled off the assembly line with the “Made in Wales” passport.
Aston Martin is certainly betting big on the DBX – the all-wheel drive crossover is perfect for markets where its regular rear-wheel drive sports cars struggle due to specific terrain or climate characteristics. In addition, as is generic with SUVs, the new model is a lot more practical and spacious.
Not to mention fast, given Mercedes-AMG's 4.0-liter V8 that churns out 550 HP and enables a sprint to 62 mph (100 kph) in just 4.5 seconds on its way to a maximum speed of 181 mph (292 kph). The company has also announced it is kicking off global customer deliveries later this month, just as planned.
It will certainly stand for an uphill battle for Aston Martin when considering the current worldwide uncertainty, but the automaker is most likely relying on previously completed pre-orders for the first batches of DBX SUVs.
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