Aston Martin DBX Crossover Will Be Built On A Completely New Platform

Aston Martin’s first ever SUV will launch in 2019.

Launched in 2016, the

DB11 marked the first of seven new models

Aston Martin will launch within the next seven years. After that came

the all-new Vantage

, and more recently, the

DBS Superleggera

. The next model launching in 2019, however, will be Aston Martin’s first ever luxury SUV. Currently known as the DBX, it will be built on a completely new platform.

Speaking to Road and Track at the Goodwood Festival of Speed, Aston Martin chief engineer Matt Becker confirmed the DBX’s new platform "takes learnings" from the company's other cars, "but there's a lot more suspension technology going to go into [the DBX]." Becker didn’t go into any more detail about the suspension technology, but he did confirm the DBX will feature an active anti-roll system and triple-volume air springs.

Aston Martin has never used this technology before, but the chief engineer said it was necessary for a high-riding and heavy SUV like the DBX. "It's physics at the end of the day and you need additional help to overcome those physics," he said. Other SUVs like the Audi SQ7, Bentley Bentayga, and the Porsche Cayenne, which Becker considers to be the DBX’s main competitors, use the same systems. Like these cars, the DBX won't sacrifice practicality for performance. "Accommodation is a big thing because people, they want the badge, but they want the utility as well," Becker said. "The Cayenne and all the other cars are an example of that."

Little is currently known about the DBX. Aston Martin has confirmed the SUV will use the same extruded and bonded aluminum construction as the company’s sports cars. While 2015's DBX concept featured an electric powertrain, the production SUV will launch with a combustion engine and most likely a hybrid option. Instead, pure EVs are being reserved for Aston Martin’s ultra-luxury Lagonda sub-brand, which is developing a separate SUV that will rival the Rolls-Royce Cullinan in 2021.

After the DBX launches next year, Becker confirmed Aston Martin’s next car will be the company’s mid-engined Ferrari 488 fighter.

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Porsche And Audi Are Joining Forces For New EV Platform

Why spend double when both share common goals?

There are many benefits of being part of the Volkswagen Group. Not only is there a solid parent company but also the ability to work on joint projects with other brands. Case in point: Porsche and Audi. Reuters reports the two premium performance and luxury brands are joining forces to develop a next generation electric vehicle platform. Assuming all goes to plan, the first EVs riding on this architecture will be ready to go for 2021. The reason for the partnership is, as you’ve probably already guessed, cost related.

The jointly developed architecture will save both Porsche and Audi significant sums. “If both would act on their own, costs would be 30 percent higher,” Porsche CEO Oliver Blume said. Audi is planning to hire 550 developers for the project and Porsche 300. So, what will specific vehicles will each brand respectively build on this EV platform? For starters, no, it won’t be a 911 EV, unless Porsche changes its mind at a later date. Audi has plans to build two sedans and two SUVs. Porsche meanwhile remains mum on details, but we wouldn’t be surprised to see this platform underpinning similar vehicles to what Audi has planned.

Blume believes Porsche’s factory in Leipzig, Germany is a strong contender for where the first EV will be assembled. Right now, Leipzig builds the Cayenne, Macan and Panamera. The upcoming production spec Mission E, however, is slated to be built at Porsche’s Stuttgart manufacturing facility, which will see an additional 1,400 employees hired for the task. We wouldn’t be surprised to see Porsche planning a smaller, more affordable all-electric sedan to rival the Tesla Model 3, as well as a compact SUV, roughly the size of the Macan. Both Porsche and Audi are very much laying the groundwork for an EV future, but don’t assume gasoline-engined vehicles, such as the 911, will be completely eliminated, at least not yet.