2022 Aston Martin DBX 707 Review : The Emperor’s new trainers
Singapore – It began with Porsche, Bentley and then Lamborghini. That sacrilegious high-performance luxury SUV, produced by brands better known for sports cars, are likely the very thing which saved them. So we were not surprised when Martin, Aston Martin, jumped onto the SUV bandwagon with the DBX. After-all, the company needed a new product for a sales boost, post IPO.
Till today, I would probably still not understand the idea of a quick SUV. But perhaps because there is a certain appeal of getting to the edge of the road as quickly as you can, so that you’d be the first off the beaten path? Maybe. But while I say this, getting something that tall, weighing in at easily over 2 tonnes around a race track. Now there is some crazy engineering that goes into taming all that inertia.
The difference between the “vanilla” DBX, and the 707, is really a case of WOW! and WOW WEE! Remember the Volkswagen Golf GT? Among the bourgeois, it would be a difference between that and a full-fat GTI (that is if you were to ignore the mechanical flaws of the former).
2022 Aston Martin DBX707 Singapore – Engine cover – Inspected by Ben Fenn
2022 Aston Martin DBX707 Singapore – Engine cover – 4.0 twin turbo V8
So this is the full-fat DBX. The 707 runs on a tweaked version of Affalterbach’s favourite highly-acclaimed hand-torqued Mercedes-AMG M177; the same one which also sits in the regular DBX. What else is new? Well, there are new turbos, which ups power from from 542hp to 697hp (707PS – that is where it gets its name). Torque is also given a bump, from 700Nm, to a road-warping 900Nm. That AMG-sourced 9-speed gets a wet clutch upgrade to handle the added kick, and a shorter final drive for quicker acceleration.
The powertrain is nestled within a bonded aluminium chassis of Aston Martin’s own doing. The latter is impressive, as AM, which produces on a much smaller scale, could have chosen to lean on Mercedes to provide them with its SUV architecture. But just by looking at the Merc’s pillars, it would have been the least convincing Aston… since the Cygnet. The British marque would have much less freedom with regards to balance, overall behaviour, and yes, they might even have to do away with those unique swan doors.
Visual enhancements to match the upped performance, include a larger front grille for improved airflow, and rear bumpers which house quad pipes. Our test car receives optional larger 23-inch rims, paired with the enhanced stopping consistency of carbon-ceramic brakes to match. You’d only know that it’s a 707, if you know what to look for… it’s a Q car that way.
Behind the wheel, you can sense that all the important bits for driving are within easy reach. They have also done away with the cumbersome drive mode buttons, and added a more intuitive knob, for easier access to six different drive modes (Sport+, Sport, GT, Individual, Terrain, Terrain+), and a “Manual” mode.
2022 Aston Martin DBX707 Singapore – Driven
The V8 delivers a firm wave of forward motion almost instantaneously. It covers earth, wind and tarmac quickly, reaching the yardstick 100km/h in 3.3 seconds; or in the same time as a 911 Carrera 4 GTS, or as-quick-as a certain David Ting can down a pint. As the revs build, it brings forth a throaty soundtrack from the rear of the cabin, which is best described as soulful characteristic crossplane ASMR, easily capable of making the hairs on your arm stand on end.
2022 Aston Martin DBX707 Singapore – Driven
2022 Aston Martin DBX707 Singapore – Driven
At speed, the suspension still delivers a certain amount of play, even when it is switched-over to hunker that chassis down. While we feel that this is almost comfortable enough to drive at its firmest on a daily basis, we sling the 2245kg monster around a bend, and turn up the juice, and you can sense that the rear would want to step out, the moment you’re not paying attention. It lumbers, while the suspension does its best to defy all that inertia, so it does feel less precise than say a Porsche Cayenne. What also bugs me is that the gearbox likes downshifting at the wrong time, essentially putting you in an unnecessary lower ratio, when you are already happily “in the zone”.
2022 Aston Martin DBX707 Singapore – Driven
With an on-the-road price tag crossing easily over a million, you have the privilege to pick from a vast selection of supple mono or duotone leather surfaces, coloured seat belts and even your preference between two shades of chrome or carbon fibre trim. You’d also expect some of the best in other materials, but on this, it falls disappointingly short. Perhaps the best element here would be those frosted metal air-conditioning vents.
It simply lacks that quality “homespun” feel. While it does make sense to borrow from others, it isn’t a case of “old is gold” with the Mercedes COMAND touchpad together with its navigation wheel. It is ancient, even when it is surrounded by the best in hand-stitched Scottish leather. And oh-did I mention the Mercedes A-Class light switches? While Aston had nailed the right sort of clean graphics for its infotainment display, I find it disappointingly sluggish, and more so when it lacks on-screen touch navigation.
But allow me to add more user frustration. There is no Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity – a feature which you would expect out of something this lux-o-lux.
2022 Aston Martin DBX707 Singapore – Infotainment screen
Aston Martin may have addressed the need to improve on their infotainment. I mean they tried, and they even threw in a fairly decent 800W 14-speaker sound system for good measure. But in a time where this one feature could easily make or break a product, they have simply not done enough.
I mean sure.. Aston Martin can thump its chest about the 707 being among the quickest and most powerful. But I feel they have (still) lost the plot. Despite its throaty roar, with the right kind of numbers to match, the luxury SUV simply doesn’t come together in a satisfying way. It really is just… The emperor’s new trainers.
PHOTOS Clifford Chow, Jay Tee (the rolling ones)
2022 Aston Martin DBX 707
Engine 3982cc, V8, biturbo Power/rpm 707hp/6000rpm Torque/rpm 900Nm/2600-4500rpm Transmission 9spd AMG-sourced 0-100km/h 3.3secs Top speed 310km/h
Fuel consumption 14.2l/100km
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