Suzuki Fronx will be “a huge seller” following September arrival

UPDATE, 25/06/2025: Suzuki Australia has locked in its overdue Fronx hybrid SUV for a September release, though we'll have to wait a while longer for the pricing and specification details.

The brand's local boss Michael Pachota said the model's introduction would be another stepping stone for Suzuki to solidify its presence in the Australian light SUV segment.

"Not only [are we] solidifying our presence in the light SUV segment, but this vehicle will also open the doors to younger buyers looking to upgrade from a smaller hatchback to an SUV," he said.

ORIGINAL, 04/07/2024: If you haven’t heard of the Suzuki Fronx, you soon will.

Already available in India and initially pencilled in for Australian release in late 2023, the all-new compact SUV has been delayed until late 2025 due to massive demand in its domestic market, where it racked up a record 100,000 sales in just 10 months.

The Indian-built light SUV is roughly the same size as the Mazda CX-3 but is expected to be more affordable while still offering similar equipment levels and a fuel-sipping mild-hybrid powertrain.

Local pricing for the Suzuki Fronx is still a long way from being set in stone given it remains up to 18 months away from local showrooms, but Suzuki Australia’s general manager for cars, Michael Pachota, reckons it will be a very popular product.

“Fronx will be a huge seller – I can see big volume there,” he said, predicting that competitive pricing and high equipment levels will generate broad-spectrum appeal for the Fronx in Australia’s new-car market.

As new vehicle prices continue to rise, Suzuki is attempting to buck the trend by continuing to offer sharply-priced small cars in Australia.

Pachota wouldn’t be drawn on whether the Fronx will be priced from around $20,000, but said: “I think it'll be priced right”.

The vehicle it will replace, the Ignis, is priced from $21,490 plus on-road costs and the only two remaining new models still priced from under $20,000 are the Kia Picanto micro hatch and superseded MG3 light hatch.

Suzuki recently surprised everyone with competitive pricing for its new mild-hybrid Swift light hatch, which is slides in at under $25,000 drive-away.

Given the Swift is made in Japan and the Fronx is built in India, which can build cars at lower prices due to reduced labour costs, it’s likely the Fronx will be cheaper than the Swift.

“If Swift pricing is any indication, imagine how sharply we can position Fronx?” stated the Suzuki executive.

The city-savvy Suzuki Fronx is roughly the same size as the Toyota Yaris Cross at 3995mm long and top-spec variants come with a reasonably solid equipment list in India, starting with a 7.0-inch central touch-screen with over-the-air (OTA) updates and wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.

A wireless phone charger, head-up display, cruise control, 360-degree surround-view parking camera system and 16-inch alloy wheels are also fitted to top-end Fronx grades.

The Fronx comes standard with six airbags, a reversing camera and parking sensors, but none of the vehicles sold in India are yet fitted with autonomous emergency braking (AEB), which will need to be added before it’s allowed to be sold in Australia.

The Fronx is available in India with two petrol engines – an entry-level 1.2-litre four-cylinder (66kW/113Nm) and a turbocharged 1.0-litre three-cylinder (74kW/148Nm).

Export versions of the Fronx sold in South Africa are fitted with a 77kW/138Nm 1.5-litre four-cylinder engine similar to the donk found in the Suzuki Jimny.

Pachota previously told carsales the Suzuki will offer hybrid powertrain options across all models in Australia (except Jimny) by the end of 2025, so the Fronx could come here with the same 1.2-litre mild-hybrid powertrain that propels the recently launched Swift.

When it arrives in Australia late next year, the Fronx will effectively replace the Suzuki Ignis – an aging compact SUV that Suzuki plans to retire by early 2026.

“I wouldn’t have three light SUV competitors,” said Pachota.

“Currently Jimmy is one of them in two variations and then Ignis is the other. And then all of a sudden we introduce Fronx – it’s just not going to make commercial sense to have three.”

Suzuki Australia is gearing up for a busy couple of years and while the Fronx is expected to be one of its top-sellers, facelifted and hybrid-enhanced versions of the larger Vitara and S-Cross small SUVs will arrive here in early 2025.

The Japanese small-car brand’s first-ever EV, the Suzuki eVX, is also expected to land Down Under by late 2025 or early 2026.

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