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Aston Martin is considering the development of a lighter, stripped-back version of its DBX SUV, CarExpert reports. While the British luxury carmaker has not confirmed plans for such a model, Aston Martin’s senior vehicle engineering manager, Andy Tokley, stated that a lighter DBX has been considered since the beginning of the project.
Tokley added that it would be quite easy to remove some mass from the vehicle. This could be done by taking out some of the standard yet non-essential features, such as swapping the rear bench for two individual seats. They can also remove the standard glass roof and electric power blind to shave 55 pounds (25 kilograms) on the top end of the super SUV.
Of note, Aston Martin accounts for 220 lbs (100 kg) of roof load on the car, which affects the electronic stability program (ESP)’s tuning as it always has to assume there is weight on the roof. By removing this weight, the company could improve the car’s ESP tuning and overall performance.
According to Tokley, the body structure of the DBX is modular, making it easy to adjust the platform’s length and height. This could allow Aston Martin to develop a stripped-back version of the SUV without having to re-engineer the underpinnings of the vehicle.
Customers seeking a high-performance SUV with a sportier edge would probably be drawn to a lighter DBX. Additionally, it would enable Aston Martin to take on the Lamborghini Urus Performante. Aston Martin may be able to expand its customer base while cementing its image as a luxury automaker capable of building high-performance vehicles.
The DBX707 is the hottest member of the DBX range. It’s powered by the same 4.0-liter V8 engine but uprated to churn out up to 697 horsepower and 663 pound-feet (900 Newton-meters) of torque. The company has also expanded the DBX range with an inline six-cylinder variant for China.
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