Best Sub-4 Metre SUVs With a CNG Option in India (2026)

Four sub-4-metre SUVs in India offer factory-fitted CNG: the Maruti Fronx, the Maruti Brezza, the Tata Punch and the Tata Nexon. The Fronx leads the segment on efficiency at 28.51 km/kg and starts at ₹7.94 lakh. A fifth, the Renault Kiger, offers CNG only as a dealer-fitted retrofit with no published mileage or CNG-mode output.

Sub-4-metre SUVs have long been sold on style and city-friendly size, with CNG rarely part of the pitch. That has changed. Several manufacturers now offer a genuine factory option in this segment, and the differences between them in mileage, tank design and trim availability are wide enough to matter for anyone cross-shopping on running cost.

What counts as a sub-4-metre SUV

Sub-4-metre SUVs are built to stay under 4 metres in overall length, a threshold tied directly to India's excise structure, which taxes shorter cars at a lower rate. The category is defined by a few things:

• A compact footprint that keeps the car easy to park in dense traffic despite the tall body. The Fronx and Brezza both measure 3,995 mm.
• A raised ride height and SUV styling, separating them from hatchbacks of similar length.
• A tax-driven design constraint, since staying under 4 metres qualifies the car for a lower excise slab and keeps prices below a true mid-size SUV.
• A wide spread of engines, from small naturally aspirated petrols to turbos, and increasingly factory CNG.

Key takeaways

• The Maruti Fronx leads the segment on mileage at 28.51 km/kg and offers the cheapest way in at ₹7.94 lakh.
• The Tata Punch is the only sub-4-metre SUV in India offering CNG with an automatic gearbox, on its higher AMT trims.
• The Tata Nexon is the only turbocharged CNG SUV sold here, at 100 PS, and the only one below 26 km/kg.
• The Maruti Brezza offers CNG across three trims rather than one, and is the only car here with a six-speed gearbox on gas and a sunroof on the CNG trim.
• The Renault Kiger is retrofit only, with no certified mileage or CNG-mode output, which makes it a different kind of purchase from everything else here.

How these were shortlisted

A model made this list only if it met all of the following: a body length under 4 metres confirmed against the manufacturer's own dimensions; a genuine CNG option, factory-fitted wherever one exists and clearly tagged where it is a retrofit; published mileage and output figures, since retrofit systems usually do not carry certified numbers; and current availability, excluding discontinued models and withdrawn CNG variants.

Sub-4-metre SUVs with CNG

Model	Fitting	Mileage on CNG	Price (CNG trims)
Maruti Fronx	Factory	28.51 km/kg	₹7.94 lakh to ₹8.74 lakh
Tata Punch	Factory, twin-cylinder	26.99 km/kg	about ₹7.09 lakh to ₹9.68 lakh
Maruti Brezza	Factory	26.90 km/kg	about ₹9.40 lakh to ₹11.55 lakh
Tata Nexon	Factory, twin-cylinder	24 km/kg	about ₹8.99 lakh to ₹14.59 lakh
Renault Kiger	Retrofit, dealer-fitted	Not published	Petrol price plus retrofit fee
Where these numbers come from. The Fronx and Brezza output and mileage figures are read off Maruti's own current brochures and the Fronx prices off the NEXA price page. Tata and Renault do not publish comparable brochure specification tables, so the Punch, Nexon and Kiger figures are the best available published numbers. Maruti publishes no boot volume for a CNG variant of either car, so the boot figures noted below are reported ones.

1. Maruti Fronx

Price: ₹7,93,900 for the Sigma CNG and ₹8,73,900 for the Delta CNG, both ex-showroom. The two trims return the same mileage.

Fitting: factory-fitted S-CNG.

The Fronx leads the entire segment on certified mileage, and it does so with a smaller 1.2-litre engine tuned for efficiency rather than a larger unit trading power for running cost.

Features: SmartPlay touchscreen with wireless Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, halogen projector headlamps, 6 airbags standard, ESP with hill-hold assist, rear parking sensors, 60:40 split-folding rear seat.

Engine on CNG: 1,197 cc K-Series, 77.5 PS at 6,000 rpm and 98.5 Nm at 4,300 rpm.

Mileage: 28.51 km/kg.

Boot space: Maruti's Fronx brochure prints 308 litres against both petrol engines and leaves the CNG column blank, so there is no official figure for how much the tank costs.

Gearbox: 5-speed manual on CNG.

Worth knowing: the Fronx's 360 View Camera and Head-Up Display sit on the Alpha trim only, so neither is available on either CNG variant.

2. Tata Punch

Price: about ₹7.09 lakh to ₹9.68 lakh ex-showroom across the CNG range.

Fitting: factory-fitted twin-cylinder iCNG, a split tank designed to preserve more usable boot than a single large cylinder.

The Punch beats the Brezza on raw mileage and is the only sub-4-metre SUV here offering CNG with an automatic. For buyers in city traffic, that last point is a bigger practical difference than a few tenths of a km/kg.

Features: voice-assisted electric sunroof on higher trims, touchscreen infotainment, digital instrument cluster, automatic climate control, 6 airbags standard.

Engine on CNG: 1.2-litre three-cylinder, 72 PS and 103 Nm.

Mileage: 26.99 km/kg.

Boot space: reported at 210 litres on the CNG variant against 366 litres on the petrol car.

Gearbox: 5-speed manual, with AMT offered higher in the CNG range.

3. Maruti Brezza

Price: about ₹9.40 lakh for the LXi CNG to about ₹11.55 lakh for the ZXi CNG, ex-showroom. Maruti offers CNG on LXi, VXi and ZXi, and not on the range-topping ZXi+.

Fitting: factory-fitted S-CNG.

The Brezza trails the Fronx on mileage because of its larger 1.5-litre engine, but it spreads CNG across three trims rather than confining it to one or two, and it is the only car in this segment with a six-speed gearbox on gas.

Features: single-pane electric sunroof on the ZXi CNG, 17.78 cm SmartPlay touchscreen with wireless Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, automatic climate control with rear AC vents, wireless charging, steering-mounted controls, 6 airbags standard with stability control.

Engine on CNG: 1,462 cc K15C, 87.8 PS at 5,500 rpm and 121.5 Nm at 4,200 rpm.

Mileage: 26.90 km/kg.

Boot space: reported at 328 litres for the CNG variant. Maruti's brochure prints no boot figure.

Gearbox: 6-speed manual on CNG. The 1.0-litre turbo and the automatic are not offered with CNG.

Worth knowing: two features often attributed to the Brezza CNG are not available on it. The 360 View Camera and the 25.65 cm touchscreen both sit on the ZXi+ trim, and CNG is not offered on ZXi+. The largest screen on any Brezza CNG is 17.78 cm.

4. Tata Nexon

Price: about ₹8.99 lakh to ₹14.59 lakh ex-showroom across the CNG range.

Fitting: factory-fitted twin-cylinder iCNG, 60 litres combined and rated at 9 kg.

The Nexon trails the rest of this list on mileage but is the only turbocharged CNG SUV in India, a genuine first that gives it more power on gas than anything else in the segment.

Features: panoramic sunroof on higher trims, 10.25-inch touchscreen and digital instrument cluster, wireless charging, 360-degree camera on the top trim, 6 airbags standard.

Engine on CNG: 1.2-litre three-cylinder turbo-petrol, 100 PS and 170 Nm.

Mileage: 24 km/kg.

Boot space: reported at 321 litres on the CNG variant against 382 litres on the petrol car.

Gearbox: 6-speed manual on CNG.

5. Renault Kiger

Price: the petrol variant's price plus a retrofit fee, since CNG is not factory-fitted on this car.

Fitting: retrofit, dealer-installed and government-approved, currently offered in a limited number of states rather than nationwide.

The Kiger's CNG option works differently from every other entry here. It is added after the car leaves the factory rather than engineered into it, and its mileage and CNG-mode output are not published the way a factory system's are.

Features: identical to the petrol variant, since the kit adds no cabin equipment.

Engine: 1.0-litre petrol converted to run on CNG. Renault publishes no CNG-mode power or torque.

Mileage: not published. Retrofit conversions typically do not match factory-fitted figures, and no aftermarket or dealer conversion carries an ARAI certification.

Boot space: reduced from the petrol figure by the cylinder, by an amount that varies with the kit.

Gearbox: manual only.

Warranty: governed by the installer's terms for the kit itself rather than Renault's vehicle warranty.

Conclusion

For the most efficient sub-4-metre SUV on gas, the Fronx is the clear pick. It leads the segment on mileage while sitting near the bottom of the price range. Buyers who want an automatic have exactly one option, the Punch. Buyers who want power have exactly one, the Nexon, each at a measurable cost in the other direction.

The Brezza is the interesting middle case. It spreads CNG across three trims and is the only car here offering a sunroof on the gas variant, but it is also the clearest example of why trim-level detail matters. Read at model level, the Brezza appears to offer a 360-degree camera and a 10-inch screen with CNG. Read at trim level, it offers neither, because both live on a trim Maruti does not sell with a tank.

The Kiger is worth knowing about only as a retrofit, and anyone considering it should go in aware that its mileage and long-term reliability are not backed by the certification everything else here carries.

FAQs

Which sub-4-metre SUV has the best CNG mileage?

The Maruti Fronx at 28.51 km/kg, ahead of the Tata Punch at 26.99 km/kg and the Maruti Brezza at 26.90 km/kg.

Can I get a sub-4-metre CNG SUV with an automatic?

Only the Tata Punch, on its higher AMT trims. The Fronx, Brezza and Nexon are manual-only on CNG.

Is the Renault Kiger's CNG the same as a factory system?

No. It is a government-approved retrofit fitted by the dealer after the car is built, not a system engineered into the car, and it carries no certified mileage figure.

Which sub-4-metre SUV offers the most power on CNG?

The Tata Nexon, at 100 PS from a 1.2-litre turbo-petrol, the only turbocharged CNG SUV sold in India.

Does the Maruti Brezza CNG get a 360-degree camera?

No. The Brezza's 360 View Camera is a ZXi+ feature, and Maruti does not offer CNG on the ZXi+ trim. CNG runs on LXi, VXi and ZXi only.