THE FRONX AWAKENS

Impressive first impressions of Suzuki's new subcompact

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HARD TO BELIEVE that it's been eight years since the last time Suzuki brought in a subcompact crossover to our shores.

That was in 2017 and that vehicle was the Vitara a model that sold very well for the Japanese small car specialist. And now it's been three years since Suzuki stopped bringing that model in a significant span of absence that Suzuki is now keen to correct.

That corrective measure is called the Fronx. I got to drive it 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 quite a number in its day. The 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 both sides 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 downward toward the rear, continuing with the sharply raked tailgate, leaving a very sporty side silhouette you can see in the Honda HR-V and Porsche Macan.