Suzuki Fronx—All set to eclipse the Vitara?

The Jimny may be Suzuki's iconic off-roader, but it was the four generations of the Vitara over the last 27 years that parked thousands of small Suzuki crossovers inside people's garages.

- Words and photos by Manny N. de los Reyes

Which makes it a bit hard to believe that it's been three years that Suzuki hasn't had a subcompact crossover since the company discontinued the Vitara in 2022—a significant span of time that brand is now keen to make up for.

And they plan to make up for it in a big way. Enter the all-new and first-ever Suzuki Fronx. I got to drive the Fronx over a couple of days from Suzuki Caloocan all the way to Las Casas Filipinas de Acuzar in Bataan (and back) and I can say that the Fronx is well poised to take over where the Vitara left off.

First of all, it's got the looks. The Vitara wasn't exactly a head-turner, yet it sold very well in its day. The new Fronx, on the other hand, has much more eye-catching styling.

The highly sculpted front end has the now-de rigueur big black grille bracketed on either side by slim DRLs. The triple-lens headlights are mounted low on the bumper in their own distinctive pentagonal-shaped housing.

The side view is equally dynamic, with taut lines and large fender openings that are flattened at the top. The roofline tapers downwards towards the rear, continuing with the sharply raked tailgate, leaving a very sporty side silhouette you'd see in the Honda HR-V and Porsche Macan.