New Aston Martin DBX S unveiled with 727hp

We’ve been repeatedly told Aston would be doing a better job of iterating in the coming months, as it seeks to emulate Porsche’s uncanny ability to generate profit from a comparatively limited lineup – and so it begins. Roll out the red carpet (and possibly your tongue) for the DBX S, the new 727hp flagship for Aston’s underperforming (from a sales perspective) luxury SUV. It covers all the familiar bases: more power, more badge, more bling – and less weight, too, assuming you’ve ticked the right boxes. A dealer’s wet dream, in other words. 

Despite the newcomer being a million conceptual miles from a mid-engined supercar, Aston even slips in mention of the incoming Valhalla – albeit in relation to the V8, which is apparently where the DBX gets its revised ‘turbo technology’ from. We’ll eat our PH chequebook and pen if the manufacturer really needed hardware changes to extract an extra 20hp from the 4.0-litre unit, but no matter: the headline figure is what’s important here, nudging the most expensive DBX very marginally and pointedly beyond the output of a Ferrari Purosangue. And as any Top Trump addict would say, that’s good enough for us. 

Aston keeps up pressure on the collective imagination of conquest buyers with the fitment of a modified exhaust system, one better able to add ‘even more character to the natural voice of the thunderous V8’ via those vertically stacked quad exhausts. A task likely made easier by its decision to adjust the change-up points on the nine-speed auto to reflect the car’s ‘extended rev range’ and downshift even more aggressively when set to Sport or Sport+. You’re getting the vibe, right? Think DBX707 – but better. 

And lighter, too. Or it will be if you choose to spec a new carbon fibre roof, which, at almost three metres square, is easily the largest single element of composite ever fitted to an Aston Martin. This deletes the DBX’s roof rails too, meaning you save 18kg. Opt for the 23-inch magnesium wheel (yes – on an SUV) and the S sheds another 19kg. There’s even a polycarbonate honeycomb grille on the option list, just in case you want to help shift the weight distribution (very fractionally) rearward. 

Now, when we drove the 707 back in June of 2024, Aston said it weighed 2,245kg; the S, with everything ticked, tips the scales at 2,198kg – so you’d imagine it’s not completely game-changing in a beyond two-tonne SUV, although Aston insists that by removing bulk from the highest point of the car (thereby reducing its centre of gravity) and delivering a reduction in unsprung mass, it has meaningfully targeted a dynamic improvement in the range-topper. Or for those who want it enough to pay extra for it, at any rate. 

Even for those who don’t, the S gets the revised calibration of the air springs and electronically controlled dampers that was introduced on the 707 last year to great acclaim, and boasts a steering ratio that’s said to be four per cent quicker, not only improving agility but also knocking half a metre from the DBX’s turning circle. Braking, unsurprisingly in an SUV capable of 193 mph, is still courtesy of giant carbon ceramic discs, measuring 420 mm at the front and 390 mm at the rear. 

Finally, if you’re unconvinced by the implication that you’d be physically going any quicker in the S, there’s always the chance you might be persuaded by it looking physically better. We’ll spare you the designer’s justification for all the tweaks; suffice it to say, you get a new splitter and diffuser (alongside a black vaned grille if you don’t like the polycarbonate alternative) at the front, upturned air splitters on the sills, and, at the back, a reprofiled rear bumper and diffuser to accommodate the repurposed exhaust. Plus the signature ’S’ badging, of course – the letter signifying (if you hadn’t already guessed) a special, high-performance version in much the same way it has done previously with the Vantage and Rapide. 

You’ll see the suffix repeated several times on the inside, not least in embroidery, although Aston suggests the most notable bespoke feature is the ‘distinct herringbone design’ that comes as standard on the seats. Elsewhere, Alcantara proliferates, as do speakers: 14 by default, but up to 23 if you choose the 1,600w Bowers and Wilkins surround sound system. 

“The introduction of DBX S not only reaffirms our commitment to producing the most exciting, rewarding, and beautiful cars, it also sends a powerful statement of intent about our ambitions not just for DBX, but for the Aston Martin brand,” reckons CEO Adrian Hallmark. He has ordered the starter pistol fired; you’re looking at the b of the bang. And while there is no official confirmation on price (though, clearly, it will eclipse the £205,000 a 707 started at last year), you won’t have to wait long for the end result either: the new flagship is available to order immediately, with deliveries expected in the last quarter of 2025.