The Fronx, the youngest member of Maruti Suzuki India’s premium Nexa models, turns a year old today. Unveiled globally at the Auto Expo 2023 and launched on April 24, 2023, the Fronx has achieved total wholesales of 134,735 units in the domestic market till end-March 2024. This makes for strong average monthly sales of 11,227 units.
The Fronx holds the record of being the fastest Indian passenger vehicle to surpass 100,000 sales in the domestic market, achieving the milestone in end-January 2024 and barely 10 months after launch.
What is creditable is that not only is the Fronx the best-selling Nexa SUV model in FY2024 but its performance should be viewed in the contest of the highly competitive compact SUV market it is part of. This segment includes popular models like the Tata Nexon, Tata Punch, Maruti Brezza, Hyundai Venue, Mahindra XUV300 and the Kia Sonet.
In terms of quarter-wise sales in FY2024, the Fronx opened its account in Q1 FY2024 (April-June 2023) with 26,638 units, clocked 36,839 units in Q2 FY2024, 30,916 units in Q3 FY2024, and went on to achieve its best three-month sales in the January-March 2024 period: 40,342 units (see data table below).
For the past year or so, utility vehicles – SUVs and MPVs – have transformed into the firm growth driver for Maruti Suzuki. The company’s total UV sales of 642,296 units in FY2024 are a handsome 75% increase – an additional 276,167 units YoY – over its FY2023 UV sales of 366,129 units. The Fronx with 134,735 units has contributed to 21% of Maruti Suzuki’s UV sales in its first year of sales. That’s not all – in the eight-model Nexa portfolio comprising the Baleno, Grand Vitara, Fronx, XL6, Jimny, Invicto, Ciaz and Ignis, the Fronx is the second highest-selling model after the snazzy Baleno (195,607 units). And in Maruti Suzuki’s UV stable, it is the No. 2 selling model after the popular Ertiga (149,757 units), India’s best-selling MPV last fiscal
Stylish and practical coupé-crossover with petrol and CNG power
The good-looking coupe-crossover has a strong road presence, what with it being based on the snazzy Baleno hatchback and sporting frontal design elements like the upright nose and split headlamp that look similar to the Grand Vitara midsize SUV.
While the 17-inch multi-spoke alloys are unique to Fronx, Baleno-like features include the rising waistline with a prominent hunch over the rear wheels, and the sloping roofline. Dimension-wise too, the Fronx is Baleno-like: length at 3995mm, height at 1550mm and width at 1765mm.
The Maruti Fronx is powered by an efficient 1.2 petrol which produces 90hp and 113 Nm torque, and a 1.0 turbo-petrol. The Boosterjet turbo-petrol engine, which develops 100hp and 147Nm, is paired to either a five-speed manual or a six-speed torque converter automatic.
Three months after the launch of the petrol-engined Fronx, Maruti Suzuki launched the CNG avatar of the Fronx, which has given a boost to sales. The Fronx CNG, with 77.5hp and 98.5 Nm, is claimed to deliver fuel efficiency of 28.51 km/kg.
The Fronx is sold in five trims – Sigma, Delta, Delta+, Zeta and Alpha – and 11 variants with eight manual and two auto transmission options. Pricing starts at Rs 894,000 (on-road Delhi) for the base Sigma variant and goes upwards to the top-end Alpha Turbo AT variant, which costs Rs 15.67 lakh (on-road Delhi).
The Fronx has also contributed to Maruti Suzuki’s best-ever exports of 280,712 units in FY2024, which saw it retain the title of India’s top passenger vehicle exporter for the third straight fiscal. On July 6, 2023, Maruti Suzuki kicked off exports of the Fronx with a first batch of 556 units to Latin America, the Middle East, and South-East Asian markets. While specific export numbers for the Fronx are not available, it is estimated that Maruti Suzuki shipped over 11,000 units of the Fronx in FY2024.
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