New Aston Martin DBX S outpunches Purosangue with 717bhp

Aston Martin has launched a faster and lighter flagship S variant of the DBX SUV, cranking the power to 717bhp to make it the most powerful non-electrified SUV on the market.

Although the British company has used the S badge for a range of high-performance specials, starting with the Vanquish S in 2004, this is the first time it has been applied to its best-selling SUV.

Aston Martin CEO Adrian Hallmark claimed the new model serves as “a powerful statement of intent”, signalling that lighter, more powerful variants will remain a key part of the firm’s future model plan.

The new DBX S will sit above the current 697bhp DBX 707 - since April last year, the only variant offered in the UK. It retains the same 4.0-litre twinturbocharged V8 but it has been reworked, with larger compressor wheel diameters taken from the Valhalla. Aston Martin has also tuned it to offer more “urgency” at the top end of the rev counter.

While that means the 0-62mph time remains at 3.3sec, Aston claims the 0-124mph acceleration time is cut by 0.3sec.

Meanwhile, a new exhaust system has been fitted to make the V8 louder, the steering ratio is 4% faster and the turning circle has been trimmed by nearly half a metre.

The DBX S’s 717bhp output makes it 2bhp more powerful than its Ferrari Purosangue rival – which draws power from a naturally aspirated 6.5-litre V12 – but still leaves it short of rivals that use electrified powertrains, such as the 729bhp Porsche Cayenne Turbo E-Hybrid and 789bhp Lamborghini Urus SE.

The DBX S retains the 707’s variable all-wheel drive system and nine-speed wet-clutch automatic gearbox, although Aston Martin says the change-up points for the gearbox have been reworked to account for the wider rev range, and the downshifts in Sport and Sport+ modes are more aggressive.