Quick Takeaways
- Rear-seat safety performance and restraint system integrity emerged as the decisive weaknesses in the latest ANCAP assessment of the Suzuki Fronx.
- The one-star outcome has triggered regulator alerts in Australia and New Zealand, advising against rear-seat use until corrective action is taken.
On December 22, the Suzuki Fronx ANCAP safety rating drew serious concern after the made-in-India compact SUV received a one-star assessment following weak crash-test results and a critical rear seatbelt malfunction. The rating applies to all Fronx variants launched in New Zealand from June 2025 and Australia from August 2025 and will remain valid until December 2031 for models priced below AUD 35,000.
The decisive factor in the assessment was ANCAP’s full-width frontal crash test conducted at 50 km/h. During the impact, rear-seat passenger chest loads exceeded allowable injury limits, resulting in an immediate score cap at zero points for that test scenario. This outcome reflected structural and restraint system limitations rather than isolated test conditions.
Compounding the poor performance, ANCAP identified a serious hardware failure involving the rear passenger seatbelt retractor. The component released uncontrollably during the crash, leaving the dummy unrestrained and allowing it to strike the rear of the front seat. Such failures are rare and are considered among the most severe issues observed during safety evaluations. The incident has been formally reported to regulators in both Australia and New Zealand.
Child-occupant protection results further weakened the Suzuki Fronx ANCAP safety rating. In the same frontal test, both the 10-year-old and 6-year-old child dummies recorded zero points for critical body regions. High head acceleration levels and excessive neck tension exceeded injury thresholds, triggering score caps across multiple protection criteria.
ANCAP clarified that the one-star outcome reflects the Fronx’s overall crash structure and restraint system performance rather than the seatbelt failure alone. Notably, the seatbelt malfunction occurred during a test that had already scored zero due to excessive chest loads, reinforcing concerns about broader safety performance.
The decisive factor in the assessment was ANCAP’s full-width frontal crash test conducted at 50 km/h. During the impact, rear-seat passenger chest loads exceeded allowable injury limits, resulting in an immediate score cap at zero points for that test scenario. This outcome reflected structural and restraint system limitations rather than isolated test conditions.
Compounding the poor performance, ANCAP identified a serious hardware failure involving the rear passenger seatbelt retractor. The component released uncontrollably during the crash, leaving the dummy unrestrained and allowing it to strike the rear of the front seat. Such failures are rare and are considered among the most severe issues observed during safety evaluations. The incident has been formally reported to regulators in both Australia and New Zealand.
Child-occupant protection results further weakened the Suzuki Fronx ANCAP safety rating. In the same frontal test, both the 10-year-old and 6-year-old child dummies recorded zero points for critical body regions. High head acceleration levels and excessive neck tension exceeded injury thresholds, triggering score caps across multiple protection criteria.
ANCAP clarified that the one-star outcome reflects the Fronx’s overall crash structure and restraint system performance rather than the seatbelt failure alone. Notably, the seatbelt malfunction occurred during a test that had already scored zero due to excessive chest loads, reinforcing concerns about broader safety performance.
- In response to the findings, ANCAP and New Zealand’s transport authority have issued strong guidance advising adults and children to avoid using the rear seats of the Suzuki Fronx until the root cause of the seatbelt retractor failure is identified and corrective actions are completed on all affected vehicles.
Industry reports & Public disclosures | GAI Analysis
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