Just before its official launch last week, Suzuki Philippines invited us to get behind the wheel of their all-new Fronx for a long drive. We were invited to take it on a quick drive out of town, with a little fuel economy challenge to see how economical their latest mild hybrid offering would be through some rush hour traffic, the expressway and winding country roads.

The Suzuki Fronx is a sub-compact crossover SUV, which actually looks more like a coupe. It boasts of a double fender design” where the top part of it is comprised of the DRLs grille, and hood, while the lower part follows the lines of the head light cluster, creating a wide muscular stance. In the top-of-the-line model, the roof is painted in black, highlighting its coupe-like form. A shark’s fin antenna, a rear-hatch spoiler, and 16-inch alloy wheels only add to its sporty appeal.

The Fronx comfortably seats five adults. Its interior is upholstered in a combination of black and burgundy, with a mix of synthetic leather and a cloth like material. It was refreshing to get behind a speedometer, tachometer, temperature and fuels gauges which were all analog. You still get a colored 4.2-inch Multi-Function Information Display (MFID) set between the tach and speedo.

The top of the line SGX was also equipped with a large heads up display which had driver selectable view modes which includes a basic mode for that shows speed and rpms, speed and external temperature, speed and current fuel consumption and speed and battery state of charge and whether battery is charging or assisting the engine.

The infotainment system is a large nine-inch touchscreen, which shows vehicle status, supports Bluetooth music and telephony, and wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. This also serves as a sizeable screen for the 360-degree camera. Around back Suzuki gives you 304 liters luggage space and 605 liters with the second row seats folded forward.

Powering the Fronx is a K15C Dual-jet DOHC 16-valve, 1.5-liter Dual VVT gasoline engine which puts out 100-Hp at 6,000 rpm with 135-Nm of torque at 4,400 rpm, assisted by a 12V mild hybrid system. This is mated to a six-speed automatic transmission, which drives the front wheels.

Our start point for the drive and the fuel eco run, was Suzuki Auto Kalookan, and we made our way to NLEX with full tanks of gas. Our first stop was to get our snacks at Lakeshore and proceed to our lunch venue at Mesa Feliz which was in Bataan, via SCTEX and exiting at Dinalupihan. My car mate and I both decided to drive as we normally would on a road trip so we could get an accurate reading as to the real-world fuel efficiency of the Suzuki Fronx’s hybrid system. No hypermiling, air conditioning was set on a comfortable temperature, and we drove with flow of traffic.

We then proceeded to the Pawikan Conservation Center at a beach in Morong, where our friends from Suzuki Philippines would hold a CSR activity.

We were pleasantly surprised to learn that they sponsored, on behalf of, and in the names of the publications present, a clutch of sea turtle eggs, each.

These are expected to hatch in October, and would be released into the sea. This is a rare sight, and we’ll probably be there for that. Our hosts also donated a three-door Suzuki Jimny to the Pawikan Conservation Center.

After all that, we proceeded to where we would spend the night, at the Las Casas de Acuzar, also in Bataan. At the end of a fun day on the road, we finally learned our fuel consumption figures for the 161-kilometer drive (from the dealership to the gas station). The most economical car scored 22.89-kilometers per liter, and our score was 21.16-kilometers per liter which was pretty close, and not too far off AAP’s 27.98-kilometers per liter official fuel consumption. Considering we didn't try to be economical, I feel my result was still pretty good.

The all-new Suzuki Fronx performed pretty well, it was fun to drive. It has spacious interior, has all the amenities you need on the road and looks quite good too. its mild hybrid powertrain was both economical and didn’t lack power on the open road. It handled the twisties in Bataan quite well with minimal body roll and good steering feel. I especially liked that the Fronx has a proper handbrake, and the fact they still included a hard tonneau cover.

It looks like Suzuki Philippines might have a strong contender for the subcompact crossover SUV segment. Prices start at ₱1,059,000 for the GL AT up to ₱1,299,000 for the SGX AT Hybrid. The all-new Fronx is now available at all authorized Suzuki showrooms.