2025 Suzuki Fronx SUV mild hybrid due mid-year to tackle ZS, Haval Jolion and Tiggo 4 Pro

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The 2025 Suzuki Fronx city SUV has been confirmed for an Australian launch in the middle of the year – and the budget-friendly MG ZS, GWM Haval Jolion and Chery Tiggo 4 Pro are likely in its sights.

It will represent a successor to the four-seat Suzuki Ignis city hatch, which launched in Australia in 2017 and has reached the end of the line due to its lack of autonomous emergency braking (AEB) technology which becomes mandatory in Australia from Saturday March 1, 2025.

The five-seat Suzuki Fronx was unveiled in India – where it will be built for Australia – in January 2023, with its Australian launch initially expected by the end of 2023, however it has faced a delay until mid-2025.

MORE: 2023 Suzuki Fronx – Baleno replacement coming to Australia

Suzuki Australia general manager of automotive Michael Pachota told Drive the Fronx is expected to arrive in June or July 2025.

Government approval documents confirm the Fronx will be exclusively offered with a 76kW/137Nm 1.5-litre naturally-aspirated four-cylinder petrol engine matched to a 12-volt mild-hybrid system with an integrated starter generator allowing the electric motor to start the engine and assist it during acceleration.

It has been approved for sale with 16-inch alloy wheels and a six-speed torque-converter automatic transmission as standard.

Pachota told Drive in June 2024 the Fronx would “sit in a similar space” to the soon-to-be-discontinued Ignis, which is currently available from $24,490 drive-away with an automatic transmission – matching the manual-transmission Swift mild-hybrid hatch as the equal-cheapest Suzuki vehicles in Australia.

A circa-$25,000 entry price would see the Fronx become one of Australia’s cheapest SUVs to face the GWM Haval Jolion (from $23,990 drive-away), Chery Tiggo 4 Pro (from $23,990 drive-away), and MG ZS (from $26,990 drive-away).

The MG ZS and GWM Haval Jolion are among the best-selling SUVs in Australia – however they are almost half-a-metre longer than the Fronx, with more interior space and available full-hybrid powertrains.

MORE: Suzuki hybrid onslaught planned for Australia with Vitara, S-Cross, Fronx SUVs

The Fronx will also be a rival for the Hyundai Venue (from $22,750 before on-road costs) and Kia Stonic (from $25,460 before on-road costs) light SUVs, which are closest in size to the four-metre Fronx.

Available equipment includes a 9-inch infotainment touchscreen, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, LED headlights and tail-lights, single-zone climate control, black and burgundy upholstery, a 360-degree camera, and a flip-up head-up display.

In Japan, the Fronx is fitted with Suzuki’s ‘dual-sensor’ AEB system with vehicle, pedestrian, cyclist, motorcyclist and intersection detection, along with lane-keep assist, blind-spot monitoring, adaptive cruise control, and six airbags.

MORE: Suzuki Fronx revealed – Baleno replacement coming to Australia

The Fronx is related to – and built alongside – the Baleno hatch, which is no longer sold in Australia as Suzuki did not invest in safety upgrades to meet stricter Australian Design Rule (ADR)side-impact regulations introduced in November 2021.

The Fronx meets all current ADRs for newly-introduced vehicles, including the AEB mandate to prevent a rear-end collision with another vehicle – called ADR 98/00 – which has impacted the Jimny three-door, Vitara, S-Cross, Swift Sport and Ignis.

It also meets the ADR 98/01 requirement for autonomous emergency braking detection for pedestrians, which has been mandated for newly-introduced vehicles since August 2024 before it applies to all new vehicles brought into the country from August 2026.

MORE: Suzuki Jimny three-door on hold in Australia amid new safety rules

Production of the Jimny three-door, Vitara and S-Cross has been paused for Australia ahead of the rule coming into force from Saturday March 1, 2025, while the Swift Sport and Ignis have reached the end of the line.

Mild-hybrid versions of the Vitara and S-Cross are due to launch between July and September 2025 with an updated AEB system to meet the new rules, while the Jimny three-door is expected to receive an update in the coming months.

The Swift hatch and Jimny XL five-door – the latter of which is built in India like the Fronx, not Japan – are unaffected by the rule change.

The post 2025 Suzuki Fronx SUV mild hybrid due mid-year to tackle ZS, Haval Jolion and Tiggo 4 Pro appeared first on Drive.