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Aston Martin wants to be the Hermes of the car world

Aston Martin doesn't want its wealthy potential customers to perceive the brand as just another sports car maker. The company wants to transform those perceptions so that buyers see its products as luxury goods on par with high-end accessories. If this change can successfully bring in more cash, the business could consider an initial public offering in the coming years. "We seek to position ourselves as the automotive equivalent of Hermes, not as the counterpart of Ferrari." CEO Andy Palmer explained the change to Bloomberg, referencing the boutique French brand. The desire to change buyer impressions comes as Aston Martin pivots away from a focus predominantly on sports cars and more towards high-performance luxury vehicles. For example, the company already has sedans in the lineup like the Rapide and Lagonda Taraf. The future range will also reportedly include an electric Rapide and another Lagonda. The production version of the DBX crossover (concept above) will add one more segment around 2019. However, Aston Martin won't completely abandon coupes because the DB11 will arrive in 2016, and a new Vanquish and Vantage will eventually follow. For Aston Martin to have a future, Palmer believes the company needs to look in new directions, especially with models like the DBX. According to Bloomberg, execs there hope that appealing to more customers could help the business see a net profit in the next three years, which hasn't happened since 2010. To save even more money going forward, the business recently cut 15 percent of its workforce mostly from white collar employees. Featured Gallery Aston Martin DBX: Monterey 2015 View 16 Photos News Source: BloombergImage Credit: Copyright 2015 Drew Phillips / AOL Aston Martin Crossover Luxury Performance Sedan aston martin rapide aston martin lagonda aston martin dbx

Xcar weighs in on the five best-sounding modern cars

Getting behind the wheel of a well-balanced vehicle can be a wonderfully visceral experience, thanks to the combined feeling of things like the weight of the steering, the bite of the brakes, and, of course, the roar of the engine. Unfortunately, many of the sensations of driving require actually being in the driver's seat to understand them, but thankfully the intoxicating noise of a beautifully tuned internal combustion engine can be shared with everyone. In a new video, Xcar shares their opinion on the five best-sounding modern performance cars. The list is a symphony of horsepower. As opposed to keeping all of the vehicles brand new, Xcar actually picks a few that are recently off the market. They're all definitely champs, though. While the list itself is well stocked, you might be able to argue with the specific order, and it would be nice to hear a few participants from outside of Europe for a collection like this one, too. No matter. Every listener is sure to find something they like in the bunch, though. Turn up the volume and enjoy.

Aston wants to build DBX on its new platform, not Mercedes'

Aston Martin is proceeding with plans to launch the DBX as its first production crossover. It just can't say at this point what it will be based on. Speaking with Automotive News Europe, Aston's new CEO Andy Palmer indicated that basing the DBX on a Mercedes SUV platform would not be its first choice because they "clearly sit in a very different space to the one we want to go" with the DBX. Instead, the company's first choice would be to build the crossover atop the new platform it's developing for its sports cars. "It just depends how high off the ground it could go," said Palmer. "I don't exclude the possibility of using some [Mercedes] parts, but I would say very much the primary route is our platform." The prospect of building an Aston SUV on Mercedes architecture – namely that of the GL-Class – has been on the table for some time now. The Lagonda SUV concept it showcased at the Geneva show in 2009 was based on the GL, and the two automakers have been forging a tightening alliance in the years since. The British automaker's next-generation engine is to be built by Mercedes-AMG, and it is expected to source other components from the German automaker as well. For its part, Mercedes has been taking a sportier approach with its latest crossovers, as demonstrated by the GLE Coupe that debuted before the more conventional version and the Concept GLC Coupe that previewed the GLK's replacement in Shanghai last month. Aston Martin, on the other hand, is building a new sports car platform that will underpin its next generation of luxury GTs, replacing the long-serving VH architecture that has served for decades as the basis for its entire model line. Perhaps the most surprising of ANE's report, though, is that Aston seems to be proceeding with plans to build the DBX apparently without even knowing what platform it will use.