EARTH MOVER
MOTOR Magazine Australia|October 2020
THE FUTURE OF ASTON MARTIN RESTS ON THE ROAD SHOULDERS OF THE DBX, THE BRAND’S FIRST SUV. ITS SUCCESS IS PIVOTAL TO THE FIRM’S FUTURE FINANCIAL FOUNDATIONS. NO PRESSURE, THEN
BEN MILLER
EARTH MOVER

MOMENT OF CLARITY number one: if you were asked to create a luxury SUV that drove with the alacrity the Aston Martin name demands, you might seek to pull together a team and a parts toolkit not dissimilar to those behind this car, the most important model in the marque’s history.

The pandemic torpedoed Aston’s original DBX Californian launch plans, leaving ever so slightly less exotic Silverstone to host our first meeting with the car in production guise. Aston has an engineering centre on the Stowe circuit, nestled within the curves of the F1 track, and I get a guided tour with chief vehicle attribute engineer Matt Becker. We head past banks of studious engineers at their desks, up the complex’s airfield-style control tower – “Imagine a couple of deck chairs on the roof for the Grand Prix” – and on into the bustling pit garage-style workshops.

We pause in the last of these garages, its space filled with dampers hung like Spanish hams and, between them, the equipment to strip and rebuild them. It’s here, where the DBX’s enormous air-sprung shocks dwarf those of the Aston sports car hung nearby, that the enormity of the project – “New platform, new factory, new everything,” says Becker – is made abundantly clear. Even my dog is well aware that Aston’s future depends on the success of its first SUV, but ponder for a moment all that’s gone into the DBX and you can’t help but feel optimistic – and a little sad that ex-CEO Andy Palmer, the father of the DBX, has left the building.

This story is from the October 2020 edition of MOTOR Magazine Australia.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.

This story is from the October 2020 edition of MOTOR Magazine Australia.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.

MORE STORIES FROM MOTOR MAGAZINE AUSTRALIAView All
Ged Bulmer
MOTOR Magazine Australia

Ged Bulmer

THE ACCOMPANYING YARN WAS A RIB TICKLER, BUT THE SUITS AT PORSCHE DIDN'T SEE IT THAT WAY

time-read
5 mins  |
July 2022
Dylan Campbell
MOTOR Magazine Australia

Dylan Campbell

WE WERE LIVING THE DREAM. WE ALL WANTED TO WORK FOR MOTOR AS TEENAGERS

time-read
5 mins  |
July 2022
HONDA NSX
MOTOR Magazine Australia

HONDA NSX

Honda's alloy missile - a friendly firecracker

time-read
8 mins  |
July 2022
TESLA MODEL S
MOTOR Magazine Australia

TESLA MODEL S

Looking back on the automobile's iPhone moment | TESLA AIMS TO ELEVATE THE ELECTRIC CAR FROM INTRIGUING CURIOUSITY TO A VIABLE MEANS OF EVERYDAY TRANSPORT

time-read
5 mins  |
July 2022
PORSCHE 959
MOTOR Magazine Australia

PORSCHE 959

Weissach rethinks the supercar

time-read
6 mins  |
July 2022
PCOTY LEGENDS - 1996-2022
MOTOR Magazine Australia

PCOTY LEGENDS - 1996-2022

HOW THE ANNUAL QUEST FOR AUSTRALIA'S BEST PERFORMANCE CARS HAS DELIVERED A ROLL CALL OF EXCELLENCE

time-read
10+ mins  |
July 2022
THE UNDEFEATED
MOTOR Magazine Australia

THE UNDEFEATED

HONDA'S FK8 CIVIC TYPE R IS OUR LINEAL CHAMP, WINNING EVERY MOTOR COMPARISON AS WELL AS BOTH PERFORMANCE CAR OF THE YEAR AND BANG FOR YOUR BUCKS. WE PAY OUR RESPECTS WITH A FINAL DRIVE IN THE END-OF-THE-LINE LE SPECIAL

time-read
6 mins  |
July 2022
THESE ARE OUR PEOPLE
MOTOR Magazine Australia

THESE ARE OUR PEOPLE

IN A CULTURE OVERFLOWING WITH POSERS AND TRY-HARDS, WE FIND A HAVEN FOR THOSE THAT LOVE DRIVING ABOVE ALL ELSE

time-read
8 mins  |
June 2022
OPEN WIDE, SAY R
MOTOR Magazine Australia

OPEN WIDE, SAY R

VOLKSWAGEN'S GOLF R LANDS IN AUSTRALIA AND IT ALREADY HAS THE SWAGGER OF A GIANTKILLER ABOUT IT. WE LINE UP SOME ASYMMETRIC ALTERNATIVES TO SEE IF THE GOLF HAS THEIR RESPECTIVE TALENTS COVERED

time-read
10+ mins  |
June 2022
SING FOR YOUR DINNER
MOTOR Magazine Australia

SING FOR YOUR DINNER

As the motoring world undergoes seismic shifts in focus, Rob Dickinson's vision for Singer remains clear

time-read
3 mins  |
June 2022