Aston Martin DBX review

Let’s say you’re in the mood for a plate of premium food. A fillet steak, perhaps? Well, the Aston Martin DBX is to sports SUVs what A5 wagyu beef is to your local steak house. It’s expensive, yes, but damned tasty.

Aston Martin’s first SUV still offers the practicality you’d hope for – it has five seats, a raised driving position so you can see over its long bonnet, and enough boot space to take your holiday suitcases – but also has the kind of performance you’d expect from something carrying the Aston badge. Indeed, in DBX S form, it’s the most powerful non-electrified SUV you can buy. And that alone could have wealthy buyers vying to put one on their driveway.

The DBX used to be offered in standard and DBX707 forms, but since most people opted for the latter, the regular car was discontinued. And with the advent of the DBX S, the same could well happen again. For now, though, the DBX707 gets 697bhp from its 4.0-litre twin-turbocharged petrol engine, while the DBX S ups that to 717bhp.

Recent updates to the DBX have also upgraded the car’s interior, and added a new infotainment system to replace the Mercedes-sourced version fitted to earlier models. 

So, is the Aston Martin DBX worth a spot on your sports SUV shortlist, or would you and your family be better served by rivals such as the Ferrari Purosangue or Lamborghini Urus? Read on to find out… 

While the DBX707 and DBX S use the same engine fundamentally, the latter features technology borrowed from the Aston Martin Valhalla sports car to up its power by 20bhp. Indeed, the 717bhp produced by the DBX S is 2bhp more than you get from a Ferrari Purosangue, and quite a lot more than you’ll experience in a Lamborghini Urus or Porsche Cayenne Turbo.

But let’s start with the DBX707, and with 697bhp and 663lb ft of torque, the Aston Martin DBX is capable of accelerating from 0-60mph in a supercar-like 3.3sec. Or, to put it another way, it will out-sprint any Bentley Bentayga or Porsche Cayenne and is as fast as the vastly more expensive Ferrari Purosangue and Lamborghini Urus Performante.

A sports SUV is about more than just Top Trumps stats, though – it should also be fun. Happily, the DBX’s V8 petrol engine makes a thunderous noise. It’s not as musical as the high-revving Purosangue, but in Sport or Sport+ mode, even small accelerator inputs have it gurgling, snarling and crackling from its twin exhaust pipes. Fortunately you can switch to GT mode to quieten things down markedly and avoid upsetting your neighbours.

The nine-speed automatic gearbox is similarly dual natured, changing smoothly in normal driving when you leave it to its own devices, but really banging gears home when you select Sport+ and use the manual shift paddles behind the steering wheel.

As for handling, the DBX's naturally-weighted steering is wonderfully communicative and allows you to place the car with real precision. And while the lower-slung Ferrari Purosangue feels even more nimble and tightly controlled, the DBX compares well with all its other rivals over fast and undulating B-roads.

The more comfort-oriented Bentley Bentayga bobbles around less on tatty town surfaces, but the DBX gets surprisingly close in GT mode and is impressively cosseting on the motorway. In fact, the differences between GT and Sport+ feel more pronounced than before, increasing the car's depth or appeal, while Sport is a good middle ground.

The big tyres drum up some road noise but it’s not loud enough to leave you worn out after a day behind the wheel, and standard acoustic side glass also helps refinement by cutting out wind noise. A button for the exhaust also means you can turn the volume back down to GT levels if you’re in one of the sportier drive modes.

The DBX S turns things up to 11, but you’ll need to be on a track to really see its potential. It matches the DBX707’s 0-62mph sprint time, but is slightly faster to 124mph to the tune of 0.3sec.

At normal speeds, the S feels a little more lively than the DBX707, thanks to quicker steering. If you add the right option boxes, it’s also lighter than the DBX707 to the tune of 47kg. That’s thanks to myriad changes including a front grille made from polycarbonate, a carbon fibre roof, and 23in alloy wheels made from magnesium.

The DBX S’ Sport and Sport+ driving modes have also been tuned over those in the DBX707 to provide even more performance, meaning there’s a far bigger contrast in using them compared with the tamer GT driving mode.

What's the DBX like as an off-road vehicle? Well, select “Terrain” mode and the air suspension rises to transform the car into a surprisingly capable mud-plugger. It has hill-descent control, enough ground clearance for rough country trails and can wade through half-a-metre deep water.

“Given how fast and heavy the DBX is, I think the fact that it has fade-resistant carbon-ceramic brakes is very welcome.” – Dan Jones, Senior Reviewer

Despite its sporting nature, the Aston Martin DBX treats you to a high driving position that’s on a par with the lofty Bentley Bentayga. You feel a bit more enclosed than you do in that car due to a more heavily raked windscreen, comparatively wide pillars and shallower side windows – although it's airy compared with the Ferrari Purosangue and Lamborghini Urus.

Likewise, the DBX's aggressively tapered window-line and chunky rear pillars mean the rear view is more restricted than in a Bentayga. Still, with all-round parking sensors and a 360-degree camera fitted as standard, manoeuvring is easy enough.

All that is combined with a driver’s seat that manages to cosset you like the Bentayga’s but also holds you in place much better through high-speed bends. It’s electrically adjustable in 16 directions, which includes adjustable lumbar support and side bolsters. Plus, there’s a memory function and an electrically adjustable steering column that offers plenty of reach extension.

Before its 2024 update, the DBX had a Mercedes infotainment system which was showing its age. That's now been replaced with a bespoke touchscreen (measuring 10.25in) similar to the one in the Aston Martin DB12 and Aston Martin Vantage.

The small font could be easier to read at a glance, while some of the icons are quite small and bunched closely together, making them difficult to aim for when you’re driving. However, the system is much quicker to respond than the one it replaces, and the menu layout is mostly logical. 

While wireless Android Auto and Apple CarPlay come as standard, you can also take advantage of Apple CarPlay Ultra if you have an iPhone 12 or later. This lets you control almost every function of the DBX – including its driving modes, climate controls and driver assistance features – without ever leaving the CarPlay interface. The system looks good, and even lets you place information from CarPlay onto the car’s digital instrument cluster. 

You can control many functions or reconfigure the lay-out of the digital driver's display using touch-sensitive pads on the steering wheel, although they're a bit too sensitive, making them fiddly to use.

By contrast, the separate scroll wheels on the centre console for adjusting the audio volume and climate control are as user-friendly as they are tactile. In fact, build quality in the DBX is almost universally good, with soft hand-stitched leather covering most surfaces, and details like the speaker grilles made from stainless steel. It’s not quite up to the level of the Bentley Bentayga, though.

The one disappointment in our test car was that the glossy black trim below the touchscreen – where you naturally rest your hand when using the infotainment system – flexed and creaked under pressure.

“Previously, you had to push the Aston Martin DBX's flush exterior door handles to get them to pop out, which I found fiddly. Now they present themselves automatically when the car is unlocked.” – Stuart Milne, Digital Editor

The Aston Martin DBX is five metres long and nearly two metres wide, so it shouldn’t come as a surprise that it offers lots of interior space. Even with the standard-fit panoramic sunroof, front head room is really impressive and the front seats slide a long way back on their runners. There's plenty of elbow room and numerous storage spaces are dotted around the interior. 

In the back of the DBX, things are just as impressive. The rear doors open wide and the sills are low, so it’s easy to climb in without getting your clothes dirty. Two six-footers will have leg and foot room to spare, even when the front seats are slid right back and in their lowest setting. Head room is much better than in the Lamborghini Urus – let alone the Ferrari Purosangue. Fitting a third person on the DBX’s rear bench will be a bit of a squeeze, though, because they’ll need to place their feet either side of a prominent centre tunnel.

The DBX's boot size doesn't let the side down. With a wide aperture and a square load area that’s fractionally longer and wider than in a Porsche Cayenne, it’s easy to pack. 

In terms of capacity, at 491 litres (below the parcel shelf) it’s slightly bigger than the one in the Bentley Bentayga (484 litres) but is pipped by the Cayenne's (772 litres). We managed to fit eight carry-on suitcases in the boot, matching the Cayenne and swallowing three more than the Purosangue’s five cases.

Adding to the practicality are 40/20/40 split-folding rear seats. When you fold them down using the buttons by the rear headrests or in the boot, they leave you with an almost flat extended load bay right up to the front seats. A standard-fit electric tailgate adds to the convenience.

“There’s a range of options that mean you can tailor the Aston Martin DBX to your lifestyle. As a dog owner, I like the sound of the Pet Package, which includes a portable washer for cleaning muddy paws, while skiers might prefer the Snow Package, with boot warmers to make winter holidays more luxurious.” – Steve Huntingford, Editor

 For the same price as the Aston Martin DBX, you could buy a Porsche Cayenne and still have enough left over to get yourself a Porsche 911 sports car to use as a weekend toy. That's a little hard to swallow for those of us with more modest means – as is the fact that the DBX also looks rather pricey compared with a Bentley Bentayga. But it doesn’t cost as much as a Lamborghini Urus Performante or the extraordinarily expensive Ferrari Purosangue.

Mercifully, the DBX is far from sparsely equipped. As standard, it comes with 22in alloy wheels, heated front and rear seats, rear climate control, keyless entry, a powered tailgate, 64-colour ambient lighting and power-folding door mirrors.

That's on top of the electric seats, panoramic glass sunroof, and leather and Alcantara interior trim. Finally, if you're exceptionally well-heeled, Aston Martin lets you create your own bespoke, money-no-object specification.

You might imagine that choosing the DBX S would up the price considerably, but that’s not the case. In fact, the two cars cost exactly the same, the theory being that choosing the S opens up more options for buyers to choose – such as the weight-saving measures we mentioned earlier. Which model you choose, then, will depend purely on how hardcore you want your DBX to be.

In terms of running costs, the official fuel economy figure suggests a meagre 19.9mpg is possible, which in real-world driving easily drops into the low teens. Indeed, we managed just 16mpg on a spirited test drive which took in country roads, town and motorway driving. Unsurprisingly, with a 4.0-litre V8 engine under the bonnet, the CO2 emissions are on the high side, placing it in the top 37% bracket for company car tax.

Still, the closest rivals have similar thirst and tax ratings. Meanwhile, a Porsche Cayenne might lose its value a little more slowly over three years, but the DBX still manages to fare better than a Bentley Bentayga S.

Euro NCAP hasn’t safety-tested the DBX but it gets plenty of kit to help prevent you from getting into an accident in the first place. That includes adaptive cruise control, automatic emergency braking (AEB), a forward collision warning system, lane-departure warning, lane-keeping assistance, rear cross-traffic warning, traffic-sign recognition and blind-spot warning. There are also Isofix child seat attachments on the outer rear seats.

“While the Aston Martin DBX has lots of equipment as standard, I’d be tempted to tick the box for the optional 23-speaker, 1,600-watt Bowers & Wilkins stereo upgrade.” – Doug Revolta, Head of Video

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