Aston Martin DBX enters production

Production of the Aston Martin DBX has commenced at the British car-maker's new St Athan plant in Wales, UK.

Aston Martin's first SUV is set to become the most important model the famous luxury brand has ever produced. Once deliveries begin in Europe later this month, and in Australia later this year, Aston Martin estimates the DBX will count for half of its total sales.

The new DBX factory has taken four years to construct and opened last December. Once up to speed, the St Athan plant will manufacture 4000 cars annually.

Aston Martin says it has already taken 2000 orders for the SUV. The first example to roll off the production line was a car finished in Stirling Green – the official colour of Aston Martin's race team.

Confirmation that first DBX deliveries will begin next month will be music to the ears of both shareholders and Aston Martin's new management. Both are hoping the DBX will turn around the beleaguered car-maker's fortunes, after it posted a series of heavy losses that drove its share price down heavily.

Plucked from near bankruptcy by billionaire Lawrence Stroll's investment group, Aston Martin has now attracted significant investment and some new faces in the boardroom, with the Canadian installing himself as the new chairman and recruiting Mercedes-AMG's Tobias Moers as the new CEO. Moers will start work on August 1.

Commenting on the start of production, interim chief operation officer Keith Stanton paid tribute to the "resilience and fortitude of everyone at Aston Martin”, while design boss Marek Reichman called the DBX "a critically important landmark" and "the culmination of five years of hard work by everyone at Aston Martin”.