Aston Martin DBX707 super-SUV named as official 2023 F1 medical car
Will hopefully leave patients stirred but not shaken
Aston Martin has announced that the DBX707, the most powerful version of its DBX SUV, has been named as the official FIA medical car for the 2023 Formula One season.
The news comes ahead of this year’s opening race in Bahrain on Sunday (March 5) and follows on from the 2021 and 2022 seasons in which the DBX also served as the official medical car. The role was previously filled by a Mercedes estate.
The move means that Aston Martin vehicles now serve as both the official F1 medical car and one of the official safety cars, with the firm’s Vantage sharing the latter position with a Mercedes-AMG GT.
As before, the DBX707 is driven by long-time F1 medical car driver, the South African Alan van der Merwe, and is fitted with a raft of essential equipment such as fire extinguishers, medical bags and a defibrillator.
As well as medical equipment, the DBX’s interior is fitted with a set of FIA-approved racing seats, each with a six-point racing harness, allowing it to be safely driven at considerable pace on the track.
Passengers will have radio access to communications from race control and be able to access live television images, the FIA marshalling system and biometric data from F1 drivers in order to assess the condition of a potential patient prior to arriving at a crash scene.
The DBX707 sees the standard 4-litre Mercedes-AMG V8 engine found in the model amped up with new turbochargers and engine calibration to develop 697bhp (or 707 metric horsepower, hence its name) and 664lb ft of torque.
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A new nine-speed wet-clutch automatic transmission is capable of handling much greater torque loadings than before and means that the 707 can sprint to 62mph in 3.3 seconds — faster than a Lamborghini Urus.
The DBX’s brakes have been thoroughly beefed up, too, with 420mm carbon ceramic discs at the front (390mm at the rear), six-pot callipers, better cooling and recalibrated hydraulics, while the suspension has also undergone some minor changes in order to make the driving experience sharper and to reduce body roll.
Following a disastrous stock market floatation in 2018, Aston was bought by a consortium led by the Canadian fashion billionaire Lawrence Stroll who has sought to solidify the company’s core financials as well as spearheading its high-profile return to F1.
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The return of the DBX as F1’s medical car will be an especially welcome piece of publicity for the firm given that the SUV is its biggest-selling model worldwide, accounting for more than half of global sales.
Despite Aston Martin’s financial difficulties and internal turmoil in recent years, its presence in F1 as both a team and supplier of safety and medical cars has given it a huge degree of extra brand exposure.
After the retirement of four-times F1 world champion Sebastian Vettel at the end of the 2022 season, in 2023 Aston will be hoping to improve on its seventh-place position in last year’s manufacturer rankings with its cars this year raced by veteran Spaniard Fernando Alonso and Lawrence Stroll’s son, Lance.
“We are delighted to continue our partnership with Formula One and the FIA this season, with the pinnacle of motor sport a perfect environment for Aston Martin to showcase the capabilities of our ultra-luxury high-performance cars,” said Aston’s chief technology officer, Roberto Fedeli.
“With the eyes of the world on our products, there is pressure to perform, but that intensity pushes us to constantly improve.”
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