Absolute Units: 2023 Aston Martin DBX707 vs. Porsche Cayenne Turbo GT!

For about two years, we could easily say the Lamborghini Urus was the best-driving super-SUV in the world. There really wasn't any competition. With around 100 more horsepower than the Porsche Cayenne Turbo, plus shockingly great on- and off-road performance, the Urus was the king of high-performance SUVs.

Then three things happened.

First, Porsche launched the Cayenne Turbo GT. It's not a real "GT division" car because it wasn't fully developed by Porsche's crack Weissach-based motorsports team. But it does have an ever-so-slightly different version of the Urus' twin-turbo 4.0-liter V-8, which was in fact developed by the Weissach folks. Confusing, we know. And this Cayenne can boogie, so much so that it still holds the Nürburgring SUV lap record of 7 minutes, 38.9 seconds.

Next came the also unbelievably great-to-drive Aston Martin DBX707, a hopped-up high-po version of the pretty good DBX. What a fantastic three-way comparison this would have been. However, the third thing that transpired is that this past November, Lamborghini shuttered regular Urus production to ready its factory for both the new Urus S and the Urus Performante, but neither launched in time for our showdown. As such, this test is a regular old two-way affair. Well, "regular" is a silly word when talking about beasts such as these, with a combined 1,328 horsepower. Let's forget for just a moment the obvious question—who on earth needs these things?—and instead find out which of these SUVs is superest.

On paper, these two seem mostly even. Not identical, but for every spec or stat that sees the Porsche nose ahead, the Aston has one that reels it back in. For example, the DBX707 makes 697 hp from its AMG-sourced, Aston-tuned 4.0-liter twin-turbo V-8 ("707" refers to metric ponies). Compare that to "just" 631 from the Cayenne GT's 4.0-liter twin-turbo V-8. The Germanic Brit also wins the torque battle, with 663 lb-ft versus 626 lb-ft from the voll Deutsch SUV. However, the Porsche has a sportier steering ratio, at 12.2:1 against 14.4:1, and even more preposterous front brake rotors that measure 17.3 inches in diameter as opposed to 16.5. And on it goes: The Porsche is 143 pounds lighter but only seats four, whereas the Aston Martin has a noticeably larger rear seat in terms of head- and legroom, and can accommodate five people.

What about performance? Almost a dead heat, until it isn't. The Cayenne Turbo GT is just a tick quicker than the DBX707: The Porsche hits 60 mph in 3.0 seconds; the Aston does so in 3.1. The Porsche runs the quarter mile in 11.3 seconds at 121.0 mph where the Aston needs 11.4, but the latter is traveling a slightly faster 121.6 mph. Everything else being equal, more horsepower equals a higher trap speed. However, the Aston—despite its extra weight and smaller brakes—anchors itself from 60 mph to a dead stop in just 102 feet. The Porsche needs 105. Both those distances are remarkable for such heavy vehicles. For context, an Acura NSX Type S requires 103 feet to halt from 60.

The Porsche is in another class dynamically, however. It pulls 1.07 g on our skidpad, which should be its own news item. The Aston manages 0.98 g, which is still great for an SUV, just not as newsworthy. Not to pick on the poor Acura NSX any more (1.03 g, if you're interested), but just for the record, the Lamborghini Urus pulls 1.01 g. 

Even more impressive is the Porsche's figure-eight performance, where it laid down a 23.2-second lap (tying the Acura and beating the BMW M5 CS!), compared to 24.1 for the Aston Martin. To contextualize that a bit, we've long maintained that any figure-eight time in the 22-second range is a bonafide supercar. Meaning that this here Cayenne is dang close.

To further contextualize the figure-eight performance, the Urus put up a 23.5-second time, the Cadillac CT5-V Blackwing 23.4 seconds. The Porsche is an animal. 

So that's it, right? The Cayenne Turbo GT dusts not only the Aston Martin but every other SUV ever made, end of story? Unlike these two monster SUVs, not so fast. First, we need to talk about money. Replicating this Porsche will cost you $197,010. That's a pile of cash, until you realize the Aston Martin's as-tested price is $290,086, or $93,076 more. With all this in mind, on a pleasant September morning, yours truly and associate editor Duncan Brady headed off into the canyons above Los Angeles to figure out which of these two would take the crown.

The first thing we did when we met up on the mountain was park and just look at our duo. An easy, overwhelming win for Aston Martin. I'm getting sick of writing it, and he's probably both annoyed and secretly thrilled I keep saying it, but Aston VP of design Marek Reichman is the best designer in the business. Say whatever else you want to about Astons, they're beautiful. Most SUVs? Bad looking. The DBX, especially in 707 trim? We dig it. You can get overly granular and say something like, "I don't like the ducktail." I promise you, five seconds comparing the DBX707's rear to virtually every other SUV, and it's a breath of fresh air.

The only weak spot we detect on the Aston is the relative size of the brakes to the wheels. "I wish the rotors filled out the wheels better. As it sits, the 23-inch rear wheels and comparatively small 15.4-inch rear discs give off that F-150 on 24s look," Brady observes. Both cars arrived wearing white paint, but the DBX707 looks spectacular even in Star Wars stormtrooper spec, especially next to the Porsche, which looks like a white potato. 

While we're aware of and embracing our electric future, a great gas-burning engine is great. "God, this engine is a beast. It's raw and manic and unhinged, both in its sound and power delivery," says Brady of the Aston's eight-cylinder. I concur. There's a surge and a ferocity and a growl that conspire to put a big, dumb smile on your face. And unlike the Porsche, you can feel the Aston's engine getting stronger as speed builds. It's a bit strange that, with the exception of the flat-plane-crank version of AMG's V-8 in the Mercedes GT Black Series, this is the most powerful iteration.

It's worth pointing out the DBX707 was developed while former AMG boss Tobias Moers was CEO of the company, and now he's not. Should we be worried about future Aston engines? Naw, as not only will the marque go mostly EV by 2025, we've already been assured the flat-plane-crank AMG V-8 in the Valhalla hybrid supercar will make more than 800 hp.

As smitten as we were with the Aston's engine, the ZF eight-speed transmission in the Porsche beats the Mercedes-sourced nine-speed unit in the Aston Martin. Says Brady of the Aston, "This transmission's shift logic is not as sophisticated as the Porsche's when driving quickly; it was downshifting unnecessarily and upshifting too early." Of course, that's when left in full auto. Start shifting yourself, and the two gearboxes feel roughly like equals, but the Aston's large, carbon-fiber paddles are a world better. Brady again: "This is what I imagine a race car's shifters feel like to use." You'll notice both super-SUVs use a conventional automatic transmission as opposed to a dual-clutch unit. This is fine, as neither truck needs to go quicker, and when you're not attacking a back road, both SUVs are comfortable cruisers. No herky-jerky starts here.

Since you're not doing standing-start launches on a canyon drive, we both thought the DBX707 was the quicker machine. This could be simply because it's louder and sounds better. When it came to tackling corners, however, the Porsche had the advantage, though perhaps not as large as the test numbers might suggest. Brady agreed, saying of the 707, "The steering is just as direct and accurate as the Turbo GT's but feels like it has a layer of insulation the Cayenne doesn't. "

The Aston gets bunched up in tighter corners, where it works itself through well enough; it's just not clever about it. On long sweepers, the DBX707 comes alive. There's suddenly an elegance to its movements, a reason for its admittedly preposterous existence. Dare we call it regal? It's also around the bigger corners where the powertrain's massive brawn shows itself. Again, 697 hp is a great amount of shove, and the engine displays no signs of strain well into triple-digit velocities. The brakes are very effective, though the feel is not as confidence-inspiring as the Cayenne GT's. But that's an industry-wide problem Porsche is almost single-handedly solving.

The Porsche manages to drive smaller. Perhaps that sounds preposterous when we're talking about a 5,000-pound SUV, but the Porsche feels like the nimbler vehicle. Perhaps it's the quicker steering rack? It feels like less work to get the Cayenne Turbo GT around the same corners. Conversely, that makes the Porsche more boring, less exciting to drive than the 707. Granted, you don't work too hard in the DBX, either, but at least there's some physicality to it, some type of theater. The Porsche is more buttoned down, more unflappable. The Porsche also has a tire advantage over the Aston Martin—Pirelli P Zero Corsas to plain old P Zeros—and the British SUV suffers a bit more understeer as a result. Driving them both on the same rubber would be interesting.

Brady and I stand around trying to solve the riddle of which is the better SUV for much longer than is typical in these types of tests. We see it two ways. The first is, the Aston doesn't substantively justify its $93K premium, especially considering its infotainment system is old Mercedes stuff. The Porsche is also slightly better to drive. But as we continued deliberating, our opinion started forming around the idea that the Aston Martin looks and feels the way an extreme, insanely expensive SUV that costs well into six figures should, whereas the Cayenne Turbo GT looks a bit gawky and nearly identical to the $80,000 regular model it's based on. That makes it stealthy, sure. But also not particularly special in terms of its emotional presence. Moreover, we both liked how nice the Aston's interior is. On the other hand, the Porsche is the clear choice for anyone who values driving performance above all else, who doesn't care as much about curb appeal, and who wants fastest-lap bragging rights whether they ever actually put the Turbo GT on a racetrack or not. 

Personally? Ultimately I said, "Let's say you owned both of these, and you had to go somewhere, anywhere, doesn't matter where. Both sets of keys are hanging on pegs. Which one do you take?" Without hesitation Brady said, "Oh, I'd take the Aston Martin. It's just more special." Although it's admittedly difficult to squeak around the "value" equation (even in the Porsche's case, it can be difficult to describe something that costs nearly $190K as a value), we just know if we were personally able to swing the purchase, we'd roll in an Aston Martin DBX707. At least until the Urus Performante shows up. And at that point, hey, why not both? Or, even better, all three.

Verdict: The pure driver's choice, but it lacks the Aston Martin's somewhat exotic presence.

Verdict: There's an ineffable quality to the DBX707, and we freaking really want one.