(Yicai Global) Nov. 15 -- Aston Martin Lagonda is introducing a new variant of its sports utility vehicle DBX series that will only be available in China and at a substantial discount from current models to allow the British luxury carmaker to gain a better foothold in the world’s largest auto market.

The DBX Straight-Six, which boasts a 3-liter engine and a 48V mild hybrid system, is on offer at a price of CNY1.9 million (USD297,000), with the first batch scheduled to be delivered in January, the automaker said at an event in Shanghai on Nov. 13.

The price is CNY400,000 (USD62,680) less than the 4-liter V8 model. A lower import tax bracket also contributed to these savings. A 3-liter engine is taxed at 25 percent instead of 40 percent for a 4-liter one.

Launching a model with smaller displacement and a hybrid system in the Chinese market is not only to meet energy saving and emission reduction targets in the country, but also to compete for more new customers, Peng Mingshan, president of Aston Martin in the Asia Pacific and China, told Yicai Global.

Chinese consumers are particularly fond of SUVs, and DBX sales accounted for two thirds of the Gaydon-based firm’s China shipments in the first nine months.

“In 2015, sales in China accounted for only 4.5 percent of Aston Martin’s global sales, but in the first half, this rose to 15 percent,” Peng said. “Despite the global chip shortage that is hampering car production, we will give priority to the supply of quotas to China,” he added.

Aston Martin, which has been in the red since 2018, aims to increase annual sales to 10,000 autos and revenue to GBP2 billion (USD2.7 billion) by 2025. The China market is critical to achieving these goals, Chief Executive Officer Tobias Moers said earlier.

In the third quarter, Aston Martin sold 1,349 vehicles, generating revenue of GBP237.6 million (USD318.9 million). But its quarterly loss expanded 21 percent from the same period last year to GBP97.9 million.

Editor: Kim Taylor