Commentary: What Propels You?

Remember where you were when someone mentioned that there was a vehicle with over 700 horsepower available to the masses?

The company now called Stellantis knows all about high horsepower. Although, they did achieve it by attaching a supercharger to a HEMI V8 and letting it rip. 

A few other manufacturers have joined the 700-horsepower club. It seems so absurd that you can do that to any motor vehicle – trucks and SUVs included. 

However, the SUV segment saw one 700-plus horsepower model dropped last year – the Jeep Grand Cherokee Trackhawk. Now, it gets replaced by another one. 

There is a catch. It is not from Stellantis. 

Over a year ago, Aston Martin introduced their first SUV – the DBX. The standard model already pushed over 500 horsepower. Now, they introduced a variant that yields 707 horsepower. It is called the DBX707. 

How did Aston Martin achieve 707 horsepower in their luxurious DBX? Mercedes-AMG already supplies engines to Aston Martin for their entire lineup. The basis of the monster power comes from a twin-turbocharged 4.0-liter V8 engine. Aston Martin claims that their DBX707 would go from 0-62 MPH in just 3.3 seconds with a top speed of 193 MPH. 

By the way, the 707-horsepower rating is a different performance measurement. That figure will actually be 697 horsepower. Still, it’s at the 700-horsepower threshold. 

According to the Top Gear website, this engine earns its horsepower by a few tricks. The turbochargers have ball bearings as part of it boost operation. Engine mapping was enhanced. A new wet-clutch nine-speed automatic is mated to the uprated engine to match the higher torque coming out of it. A new e-differential was engineered to send up to 100 percent of that torque  to the rear wheels, if need be. 

Before I dive into the deep end of this high-performance Aston Martin SUV, think about the details that were divulged here. We’re not talking about an electric vehicle. Or, even a hybrid. This is a robust, enhanced, and astounding internal combustion engine. A piece of mechanical wonderment that the world wants to send to the scrap heap. 

The internal combustion engine has been with us since the 1860s. It has been re-engineered many times over. From valve systems to the use of rotors and different ways to induce performance with and without reducing displacement, the ICE has been the backbone of the motor vehicle industry for well over a century. It has helped win wars and save lives – among the many feats the ICE has achieved during this time.

And, yet, we want to get rid of them. The electric vehicle is on the rise. Enough so that governments have set a goal to eliminate the sale of ICE-powered vehicles within the 2030s within their jurisdictions. 

For historical context, electric vehicular propulsion was set aside at the onset of World War I. Consider that by 1900, about 28 percent of all new motor vehicles registered in the USA were battery fueled. They now account for 8.6 percent of global vehicle sales, based on vehicle sales in 2021. 

Yet, we get excited over electric cars that are either fast or cool. The Kia EV6 looks cool. So do the Fisker Ocean, Hyundai IONIQ5, and Lucid Air, to name a few. As soon as someone like Koenigsegg introduces a 335-horsepower, 443 pound-feet of torque electric motor that weighs just about 66 pounds, the chorus of enthusiasts and EV fan boys all hit their high notes all at once. 

Let me say this for the record that I am not anti-EV. I work with them. Having such a stance would be contradictory to my industry and my readership.

To me, it was the ICE that brought me to this point in my life. Whether it was a pure gasoline fueled V8, a diesel, a rotary engine…the ICE has always been a part of my automotive lexicon. It is what keeps me interested in this business. 

For every 66-pound Koenigsegg electric motor, there is a 697-horsdepower twin turbocharged Mercedes-AMG V8 that still engages and excites me to retain my interest in the automobile. 

In some places, the term “long live the internal combustion engine” might not fly. In other places, maybe it should. Whether that is a physical location or your heart, it is what propels you that will be important now and in the future. 

Cover photo courtesy of Aston Martin. Engine photo by Randy Stern.