- The Aston Martin DBX707 is a new variant of the $200,000 DBX SUV.
- With 707 metric horsepower, Aston claims it's the most powerful luxury SUV in the world.
- We drove one recently. It's for a driver who wants everything, all at once, and wants to be noticed.
To stay on top of your game, you've got to constantly improve — at least, that's what people on social media will tell you. For Aston Martin, that improvement comes in the form of a new SUV.
The Aston Martin DBX707 is a newer, slicker, updated version of the $200,000 DBX, and Aston says it's the most powerful luxury SUV in the world. The DBX707 starts at $232,000, and it boasts 707 metric horsepower, 664 pound-feet of torque, a 193-mph top speed, and a 0-to-62-mph time of 3.3 seconds.
To put it simply: It's got quite a lot of power, and it's quite fast.
The DBX707 has been given a fresh look over the standard car — a much bigger grille feeds its motor air, it has a rear diffuser so large a child could use it as a seat, and neat tweaks help it stand out from the crowd. Quad tailpipes hint that it might be a little shouty, and changes under the skin — such as tweaked air suspension, new dampers, upgraded turbochargers, a new gearbox, and much, much more — mean it handles its power rather well too.
Inside, a new sports seat designed to hold passengers better in corners stands out thanks to big bolsters and bold colorways. The interior is now simpler than the standard DBX (which feels a touch button-heavy), and it's easier to use when you're in a hurry, which you probably will be in the DBX707.
Aston's big crystal start button invites you to stab it, firing up the car and letting its V8 growl gently. Pop it in to drive, and its new nine-speed automatic gearbox silently engages, rolling you forward. GT mode, its most inert, maintains an illusion of elegance, dignity, and restraint. It's as under the radar as the DBX707 gets.
The moment you decide you want to play with the gas, the DBX707 bellows, waits a moment as its new turbos build pressure (and therefore monstrous power), and any attempt at gliding quietly through life silently goes out the window. You're fired forward, the car leans on its rear wheels, and a cacophony of V8 noises flies from the rear of the car.
Taking it to a straight bit of road, I decided to see what the 707 could do with space to breathe. I flicked the car into Sport mode, then I set it up for launch control — a setting that primes the car for its quickest possible start. The engine builds power, the gearbox readies itself for a hard start, and the powertrain braces for 707 horses wanting to get out the gate before the rest.
A chat with an Aston Martin engineer the evening before revealed that the company "made launch control easy," and he wasn't lying.
At standstill, you lean on the brake, then stand on the gas. The DBX707's digital instrument binnacle lets you know to lift off the brake when you're ready, the car primed. The moment you do, you feel the car's nose rise up, and physics does its thing.
You'd expect 707 (metric) horsepower to feel overwhelming, but the DBX707 doesn't, at any point, make you feel out of control. Numbers go up on the speedometer, and the car behaves like it's no big deal to the driver.
There's a decadent noise, and the driver is at the mercy of physics. Those on the outside see a human get pinned to a seat, then a space where a DBX707 used to be. The motion is so quick that if a passerby blinks, they'll probably miss it.
With 23-inch wheels and some truly massive carbon-ceramic brakes, which are more effective with repeated high-stress use, wiping that speed off is easy. They'll react to gentle inputs just fine, but they also do a damn good job of getting you to a quick stop if you stamp on them.
On curvier roads, the car doesn't lean or wobble as you'd expect from an SUV of its size. It'll never feel like a sports car by virtue of being massive, but it steers smoothly, rides well even with its suspension set to its toughest settings, and is savagely quick.
SUVs with big power aren't a new thing, and the template for them has been set for decades. But the Aston Martin DBX707 does feel special.
Whether it's the noise or general presence of the thing, the DBX707 isn't the kind of Aston you'd associate with James Bond. It's for a newer driver — one who wants everything all at once and wants to be noticed.