Johannesburg – Suzuki’s Fronx crossover has surged ahead of its Toyota sibling in South African sales, marking a rare shift in buyer preference in a market usually dominated by Toyota.
The Fronx, built by Maruti Suzuki in India through a joint venture with Toyota, has only been on South African roads for two years. Despite sharing the same production line, the Fronx has outperformed the Toyota Starlet Cross in recent sales reports.
Toyota has traditionally led in key model comparisons, including the Vitz versus Celerio, Starlet versus Baleno, and Urban Cruiser versus Grand Vitara. The only exception had been in the seven-seater category, where Suzuki’s Ertiga and Toyota’s Rumion are often used more for rentals and commercial purposes rather than family use. 
The Fronx has now shifted the balance in the compact crossover market. It was featured on The Citizen Motoring’s Pitstop podcast, following a six-month review of the Suzuki Fronx GLX manual model. The vehicle runs on a 1.5-litre naturally aspirated petrol engine pushing out 77kW and 132Nm of torque through a five-speed manual gearbox.
South African drivers have gravitated towards the Fronx for its design elements such as pronounced wheel arches, silver door sills, and mock satin silver skid plates on the bumpers. It also comes with 16-inch alloy wheels, a nine-inch infotainment screen with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, multi-function steering, push-start button, head-up display and a 360-degree camera system.
