First Aston Martin SUV to enter production in 2019

The British media reports that Aston Martin’s debut SUV, based on the DBX concept, presented in 2015 at Pebble Beach, California, could be called the Varekai.

The gasoline version is expected to get the firm’s V12 engine, but Aston Martin may be aiming to cook up the world’s most powerful SUV, outstripping the 484 kW Lamborghini Urus, thanks to a hybrid powertrain.

For that, the manufacturer will apparently be using a Mercedes-AMG four-liter V8 twin-turbo engine matched with an electric motor of around 149 kW, which together come close to 521 kW.

Competition is increasingly fierce in the high-end of the SUV market, with Aston Martin going up against the Bentley Bentayga, the Lamborghini Urus and the Rolls-Royce Cullinan. Ferrari also has its first SUV in the works.

Note that Aston Martin has another SUV in the pipeline, this time for its premium Lagonda brand, due 2021 at the earliest.

It is based on the Lagonda Vision Concept, a semi-autonomous vehicle presented at the Geneva Motor Show in March 2018.