Friday 28th June 2019

Aston Martin caps DBX production at 5,000 a year

CEO Andy Palmer doesn't want to cannibalise production of existing line-up or devalue the brand

---

Aston Martin will cap annual production of the upcoming DBX to 5,000 cars to ensure its vehicles remain an uncommon sight on the road. Company CEO Andy Palmer said that he has “purposefully restrained production” of Aston’s first SUV so demand will always outstrip supply, protecting Aston’s status as a luxury brand and preventing it from slipping into the realms of a higher volume, “premium” car maker.

Palmer said that DBX production capacity would actually be reduced to free up space for the following Lagonda All-Terrain model, which will also be produced at Aston’s new St Athan factory. He told carsales.com.au that “there's always a tendency when you've got an order book to turn everything up, and when you do that, you start making mistakes in my experience”.

From 2023, the plan is for the new Welsh production facility to produce 4,000 DBXs and the rest of its capacity will go to 3,000 Lagondas per year. Aston’s Gaydon HQ, on the other hand, will remain focussed on production of its GT models and the Vanquish and Valhalla supercars. Total annual production today stands at 14,000 cars, so come 2023, the firm could easily surpass the 20,000 mark for the first time.

Palmer believes many of the extra sales could come from faithful existing customers who “already have an SUV in the garage”. He said “getting to our existing customers who are already in love with Aston is not a bad starting place” to facilitate growth. As for those who are fans of the Rapide, that model will not get a direct successor, with the DBX essentially filling the void - which it will start to do from this December, when the covers are officially pulled off for the first time…

[scottygib553]

I’m still laughing at how bad it looks

[anonymous-user]

Hang on..that goes against the whole point of making an SUV in the first place, doesn't it? To sell more cars? But they're capping production?

Why didn't they launch a 'hot' hatch or estate? That's closer to the ethos of the brand than a high riding jeep.. You telling me thy couldn't charge a lot for those or sell 4000 of them. Why do this?

[0a]

What engine will it get?

Hopefully not a diesel!

[LasseV]

scottygib553 said:

I’m still laughing at how bad it looks

Same. I would never buy that. It looks like a Quaisimodo with lipstick,

[Maldini35]

Would they sell more than 5000 a year?

[unsprung]

This announcement may be intended to spur interest among prospective buyers. A sense of the exclusive and all that.

And it's not unreasonable to assume that such a plan has been influenced by lukewarm interest discovered in consumer research. There's also the matter of timing; AM are rather late to the super-luxury SUV party.

[sam_jw]

Just seconding the comments above. Even as someone who tends to like the somewhat gauche super-SUV; this is just plain ugly.

[Nerdherder]

PRND said:

Hang on..that goes against the whole point of making an SUV in the first place, doesn't it? To sell more cars? But they're capping production?

Why didn't they launch a 'hot' hatch or estate? That's closer to the ethos of the brand than a high riding jeep.. You telling me thy couldn't charge a lot for those or sell 4000 of them. Why do this?

Should be their moneymaker this indeed, awful strategy to cap production.

[powerstroke]

Maldini35 said:

Would they sell more than 5000 a year?

If we start seeing adverts for PCP deals then NO me thinks ..

[Quarterly]

Aston Martin often caps production numbers, unless they can sell some more.

[oilit]

with 195 countries in the world, 5000/195 is only 26 per country per year - admitted not all will have the TAM to sell 26 but it's hardly a lot is it.

Many AM owners complain of depreciation due to over-supply so this can only be a good thing. If they think the SUV owner may become a sports car owner of the future then huge depreciation will not endear them to the AM brand. If you subscribe to the argument that young famiies buy a SUV before they buy a high end sports car then maybe the strategy is right ?

Hard for me to comment until all the camo is removed, but I don't find it offensive as some obviously do.

Edited by oilit on Friday 28th June 20:23

[85Carrera]

Looks like a badly tarted up E-Pace.

And, as for not devaluing brand, isn’t it a bit late to be worrying about that ...

[moldy]

Basking Shark springs to mind, hopefully look better in the flesh ,
Just seen on Evo website Lotus are joining the SUV party .........,,,,, lights blue touch and stands well back !!!!

[B17NNS]

Article said:

Aston Martin admits there is a complete lack of interest in its hideous blancmange of an SUV - DBX production capped at 5,000 a year because literally nobody seems to want one

Palmer confirms his attempted cash grab has not only failed but has also devalued the brand

Company CEO Andy Palmer said that he has “purposefully restrained production” of Aston’s first SUV because he "just can’t imagine being able to shift the bloody things". “By employing the team who styled the SsangYong Rodius we feel we’ve prevented ourselves from slipping into the realms of becoming a higher volume car maker”. Palmer added that DBX production would eventually be stopped when the St Athan factory car park was full.

Palmer believes some sales could come from the blind or visually impaired. As for those who are fans of the Rapide, that model will quietly fade into insignificance because nobody buys that either, with the DBX essentially filling the void left by the original 1974 Lagonda - we’ll have plenty of sick buckets to hand for when the covers are officially pulled off for the first time…

At least he's being refreshingly honest.

[Turbotechnic]

That thing is fking tragic! What the hell was AM thinking?

[Europa1]

moldy said:

Just seen on Evo website Lotus are joining the SUV party .........,,,,, lights blue touch and stands well back !!!!

That touch paper was lit a long time ago.

Having seen what the Cayenne has done for Porsche's bottom line, it may be a pill worth swallowing, despite the inevitable wailing and gnashing of teeth.

I just hope it's not as goppingly ugly as the Cayenne, especially in its first iteration with its clumsy attempt to look like a 911.

[Mr-B]

Didn't they release some undisguised shots of a blue one earlier in the week? Or was that the Ford Puma? Sad times.

I know these low volume makers have to do what they can to make profits but it just sullies the brand IMHO.

[Doofus]

If Palmer doesn't want to "devalue the brand", why is he building something that has no brand values?

[RobDown]

Typical PH thread full of miserable idiots who either:

1. Try to judge a car wearing heavy camo (like duhhhh)

2. Make crass comments about lack of demand from consumer feedback (as if you have access to that data)

3. Or my particular favourite half-wit comment “they’re too late to the SUV party”. As though future buyers of SUVs (you know people replace them regularly just like normal cars?) will somehow say “oh we can’t buy an Aston Martin SUV because Porsche started making them some years ago”.

Mouth-breathers

[Doofus]

RobDown said:

Typical PH thread full of miserable idiots who either:

1. Try to judge a car wearing heavy camo (like duhhhh)

2. Make crass comments about lack of demand from consumer feedback (as if you have access to that data)

3. Or my particular favourite half-wit comment “they’re too late to the SUV party”. As though future buyers of SUVs (you know people replace them regularly just like normal cars?) will somehow say “oh we can’t buy an Aston Martin SUV because Porsche started making them some years ago”.

Mouth-breathers

What colour's yours?