There was a time when certain car-makers stuck to making certain types of cars. Take Volkswagen; in the late 70’s they started what would become a monopoly on small family hatchbacks – enter the Golf. Volvo, of course, was more interested in their big estate cars, and of course the German giants that are Mercedes-Benz and BMW spent most of their time building saloons.
They were simpler times, and you knew where you stood. Choosing a car was easy. Then one day the Berlin Wall came down and capitalism was free to run amok, with all new markets popping up all over the place. Car manufacturers all over began to realise that they could make more money by diversifying their ranges, and before you knew it we had German saloon-builders making SUV’s and Hyundai making sports cars; the car-world went mad.
At the top end of the car market sits an exclusive club of prestigious brands, brands such as Ferrari, Lamborghini, Porsche, and Aston Martin. The cars made by this rabble are supposed to be different; sports-cars for the purists, for those who expect automotive decadence and for whom cost is of no greater concern than choosing the colour.
But times have changed; the Porsche Cayenne is a well-selling SUV that is now a common sight on the UAE roads, and the new Macan is a far cry from the low-slung 2-seater 911 that so symbolises the brand. They got the ball rolling and a few years ago Lamborghini announced an SUV concept – which certainly looked as mad as everything else they have ever made. Now though, it seems as if Aston Martin has jumped on the bandwagon too.
Earlier this month, the Financial Times reported that Aston Martin, which is now part-owned by Kuwait’s Investment Dar, is considering a collaborative effort with Mercedes-Benz with a view to producing its first SUV. When asked by Reuters about the potential project, an Aston Martin spokeswoman refuted the claim by saying “We do not currently have a plan to add an SUV to the model line-up.”
However, back in January, Daimler’s Chief Executive Dieter Zetsche told Reuters that Mercedes-Benz would be open to sharing its GL platform with Aston in the future. There is already a tie-in between the two car-makers for electronic components, so perhaps the idea is not that far-fetched.
That being said, however, a possible Aston Martin SUV does worry me. Let’s face it; the Mercedes GL is not the best SUV on the market. Its handling leaves much to be desired and the engine is weighed down by a vast bulk of body. We know Mercedes has the capability to build superbly-amazing cars, but they kind of dropped the ball with the GL, and I doubt very much that they would be happy if Aston Martin went about improving it.
But still, my main concern is that Aston Martin is one of the few makers left that focus specifically on making luxury sports cars, and their record of moving away from that specialty is far from awe inspiring. A few years ago they tried to diversify their range with the tiny, city-going Cygnet – which was just a re-badged Toyota I-Q – and it was a cataclysmic disaster. In the UK they sold just 150 units, and it was pulled after just a year in production.
The SUV market is fast-becoming the most competitive category in all of Car-dom, and if the famous British marque do indeed join the party then they are going to have to do something very, very special. Whether an Aston-Mercedes SUV ever comes to fruition remains to be seen, but just remember what owning an Aston is supposed to be all about; think DB9, think James Bond. Do you want anything else? No, I didn’t think so. Isn’t the car world crazy enough as it is?
Martin Fullard