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Paul Gover24 Jun 2019
NEWS

SUV boom is thanks to women, says Aston

Aston Martin says it’s women who crave the companionship of an SUV

Women are the driving force behind the worldwide boom in SUV sales, according to Aston Martin.

As the British sports car maker prepares to launch its first luxury SUV, the all-new Aston Martin DBX, it is relying on comprehensive research that shows that women are the ones who most want to park an SUV in their garage.

Even though men might be drawn to an off-road toughie like a Jeep or LandCruiser, Aston’s global marketing boss Simon Sproule says there are plenty of reasons why women prefer an SUV.

“They want to feel safe, they want to be protected, they want to be able to see ahead. The SUV class of cars have attributes that correlate more strongly with what women want,” Sproule told carsales.com.au.

“SUVs are attractive to both sexes but there is a closer correlation between what women look for in a car and an SUV or crossover type of vehicle.

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“I think what changed the SUV market and gave it much broader global appeal was the creation of the so-called crossover, which softened the extremes of truck-based SUVs and transitioned to unibody platforms which rode and handled more like a conventional car.”

Aston also confirms that women have even more power in new-car showrooms than just the shift to SUVs.

“Eighty percent of car sales in the world are decided by women. It logically follows that their vehicle preferences will have a substantial impact on the market,” said Sproule.

“The industry knows it and they just have to get over it.”

Aston Martin is taking the DBX program so seriously it even created a female avatar, codenamed ‘Charlotte’, as a reference for decisions on the car. Sproule said that included everything from the body design to the interior fit-out and a softer type of drive.

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“We used Charlotte as a proxy for this segment but it did not lead us to create a car for women but rather a car that would fulfil the needs of customers like Charlotte,” he said.

“Our primary objective was to create another beautiful looking Aston Martin that had the attributes needed to be successful in the luxury market, regardless of gender.

“We did not set out to create a ‘car for women’ but instead created a new Aston Martin with the characteristics of an SUV. Like all Aston Martins, they have appeal to both sexes driven by design, performance, heritage and rarity.”

Sproule worked at Nissan and Infiniti before joining Aston Martin and has been tracking the boom in SUVs from their early days.

“Many manufacturers will claim to have invented the SUV -- Ford Bronco, Range Rover, Ford Explorer, Nissan Patrol, Mercedes-Benz G-Wagon and, of course, the whole Jeep brand. SUVs and crossovers have been changing the mass and premium market for many years.

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“The luxury market is the last to feel the effects on this trend, as evidenced by the launch of three models in the last three years -- Bentley Bentayga, Lamborghini Urus and Rolls-Royce Cullinan -- and of course the DBX to follow and, according to industry reports, something ‘SUV-like’ from Ferrari.

“The increase in the number of coupe-styled SUVs and crossovers is a natural response to consumer interest in vehicles with higher performance and a more sporty design language.

“As SUVs are also being purchased by customers where practicality is not the prime purchasing factor, creating specific models that trade practicality for style was always going to be a logical evolution of the SUV.

“Driven by more and more flexible and cost-effective vehicle architectures the auto industry is able to target niche segments and still make a decent return.”

Sproule says the SUV movement will not any time soon, with the inevitable move to battery-powered vehicles opening a new range of opportunities.

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“I am sure the industry will continue to innovate in this segment. I expect the next SUV breakthrough will be driven by electrification and how that enables new ways to style and package.

“It will amplify and change the form and function. No question this will be the next force for change in the SUV market, be that mass, premium or luxury.”

In the case of Aston, Sproule reinforces the commitment to DBX but reiterates the plan for a further SUV expansion via its Lagonda sister brand, which recently revealed its All-Terrain Concept (pictured).

“Nothing beyond the DBX is in the current plan for the Aston Martin brand. However, when we reintroduce the Lagonda brand as the world’s first and only pure luxury EV car company, the first product that we will launch will be an SUV.

“It shows the pace and scale of change in our industry that the launch product for the rebirth of a 120-year-old luxury brand is an electric SUV. Note that Rolls Royce is 115 years old and Bentley 100 years old, so Lagonda pre-dates both yet will be the most modern of the three when we launch our range.”

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Written byPaul Gover
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