Maruti Suzuki Fronx : During the afternoon traffic on Western Express Highway, Mumbai conveys its own trends on one of the most popular modes of transportation in morning evening jam — car commuting.
Less imposing as the stocky Celestial Blue Maruti Suzuki Fronx glides effortlessly through a threadbare gap in traffic, an assertion of elegance over shapeliness.
The driver: A recently minted young professional who had once aligned itself with the hatchback brand, flashes a smile that suggests — “Not Maruti sort of car you were expecting, is it?”?
This sentiment is the essence of what has happened with Fronx in India as a result of its first launch in early 2023 automotive industry.
It hit a market where convention said coupe-inspired design is to be emulated by premium European marques, crossovers needed to sound off road for sale and Maruti Suzuki would surely muddle through with the hand-me-down styling just another bland offering.
Haven’t you seen this movie already?
Maruti Suzuki Fronx Genesis of category disruptor
The genesis of Fronx is not a clean sheet design, as it was independent however took the rethink that Maruti Suzuki underwent on its market positioning. Even though the company had as much as nearly around 45% of passenger car market, Maruti was finding it difficult in premium compact segment where rivals were able to woo younger buyers through establishing themselves as style driven premium offering.
“I think we were missing a piece of our bag in terms of product,” says Rajesh Uppal, a top Maruti Suzuki executive (on background due to competitive reasons for product strategy).
“Baleno was to reach the premium hatch customer while Brezza catered to the sub compact SUV, we had nothing for buyers looking for something a little more performance oriented – something with crossover practicality but a more dynamic, city-focused coloration.”
Which later evolved into an interesting concept of approach for development. Instead of giving a new platform from scratch (long process and extremely pricey), Maruti engineers started to look at the architecture they had available.
The right platform underpinning the Baleno came with simple and usable dimensions from HEARTECT, it allowed very good design differentiation.
“Nope it was not technical, but conceptual,” says Vikram Mehta, an automotive design consultant who has designed for many Indian brands.
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Forming a new vehicle from an existing platform is genius in discipline, it means you know exactly what to carry for cost and what you need to alter to make it different. An attempt at a Fronx in the Indian market has succeeded fairly well; one of the more successful ones.
Baleno Compete improved on the basics incrementally, that is it kept what made the wheelbase and track dimensions and finer tweeks in bodyshell ( height was raised overall, increased ground clearance to 190mm and reinvented greenhouse with rear too) The result was that silhouette which was slightly too much of neither a hatch, an SUV, something in its own right.
Design Language :Shattering the Maruti Design Stereotype
What I found most phenomenal of the Fronx is how revolutionary it deviates from Maruti suzuki established design norms, which has not really changed much if at all over the years. Coming off the fact that the brand had been slowly move to more radical design, Fronx is more akin perhaps a quantum mechanical leap—an entity that needs to be noticed and not blend into the very nature of automotive.
This intent is clearly stated by the front fascia itself. Long and skinny, the eye-catching NEXWave grille runs almost the width of the car before easing into smooth integration with its slim three-element LED headlamps.
Contrary to the normal compact dimensions of a vehicle, this horizontal theme makes it look wide and gives the appearance to not so much be a car. The clamshell bonnet just right with a barely subtle power dome provides a premium factor that is difficult to find in segments below this.
In profile, the coupé mode of the Fronx becomes its most telling. The roofline gently lowers into a very steep C pillar, offering a premium stance usually only seen on vehicles that cost far more.
high levels of specs
The chrome bumpers and squared wheel arches with 16″ precision-cut alloy wheels, although mild, further reinforce this form as unique due to the roof vs body color (high levels of specs available);
“A superb form in automotive design,” is the way independent design critic Anjali Sharma sums up the side profile. “It inflicts visual movement upon the vehicle even when it is still.
These character lines do not just fall in line with the established, but they flow from front to rear adding tension and release to the Fronx, an equiptment you would not find on most large and far more pricey cars.
The split LED tail lamps on the rear are interlinked with a light bar – a subtle yet extremely nice design trait that sets apart the Megane RS20T from rivals as promises.
A slightly lifted front bumper with discreet silver skid plate style intake references the crossover-geniosity in pretty manor, no very daddy off-road-esque like some other competitors.
And inside, the Fronx once again pushes the boundaries with a cabin that elegantly combines modern design with intuitive ergonometrics. The layered dashboard is eye appealing and not hangry gimmicks unlike many other cars out there, plus the mounted 9 inch infotainment screen (finally ergonomically front and center) acts as tech hub.
The instrument cluster joins traditional dials with a 4.2inch info display, and informs the driver without overwhelming them.
The cabin material choices were all about Marutis growing confidence in the upper premium segment. Frequent touch points are softer with soft-touch materials, adding piano black accent in the visual further sophistication and contrast stitching on leatherette seats in higher variants gives an aura of quality that mostly found in costly vehicles.
Powertrain Strategy: Back to Normal with the Boosterjet
Underneath the powerful bonnet of the front end is probably the best way to tell Maruti Suzuki how far they intend Fronx from going. The well-harmed naturally aspirated 1200cc K-series motor (90 bhp and 113Nm) is the economy orientated volume seller; but it’s all about an adiabatic return of the 1.0-ltr Boosterjet turbocharged direct-injection petrol engine that defines it as a model.
