This Panda’s easy to bear

Right back from its birth in the Eighties, its goal was to provide good, honest, cheap motoring. And this still rings true with the latest model.

It’s quite a step forward over the previous Panda with its funky chunky looks. Fiat have clearly given a digital gesture to the city car design book and gone to town with its styling. “‘Soft cube” (or squircle) shapes are everywhere, both on the outside and in – there’s Italian quirkiness all over the car.

Featuring Fiat’s new two-cylinder TwinAir engine – as previously seen in the Alfa Romeo Mito – the new Panda brings something a bit different to the city car market.

The tax-exempt 875cc turbo engine initially takes some getting used to. It sounds like a  go-kart upon start-up, idling and pulling away. The revs are a bit higher than expected and you do have to work it quite hard to get the most from it. But it is nowhere near as sluggish as you’d imagine for such a small power plant and does a pretty decent job keeping up with traffic, while the turbo works really well to keep you moving at a respectable pace. Think of it as a 1.4-litre engine but served in a designer portion. However, it is a tad on the noisy side, generating a pretty throaty (but at the same time rather pleasing) thrum note from moderately low revs, while sending a fair amount of vibration through the cabin. The official MPG figure is 67.3 but expect it to be in the low 50s on mixed roads.

Thanks to sharing many components with its Fiat 500 sibling, the Panda is quite chuckable through the corners, making it good fun to drive, while the ride is firm but not uncomfortable. Although the cabin is quite hushed, there is a fair bit of tyre roar and the wing mirrors generate some wind whistle on the motorway.

Inside, the new Panda features a much better interior than the previous model, with a funky new dash design solidly built from decent materials. In terms of space, most people will be fine, but if you have a clown-like 6ft 3” figure like me, then you’ll find the driving seat a bit nippit. My legs kept rubbing against the centre console and door plastics while the foot rest is next to useless in an awkward place. The rear will seat two comfortably, three at a pinch. The boot is a practical size and can be extended to fit all the detritus of the weekend with a drop of the rear seats, although split-folding rear seats is a rather bizarre extra.

The Pandas (bar one exception) come standard with Stop/Start and a shift indicator which encourages you to change up a gear at the most efficient time, as well as “Eco” mode which, when connected, dulls the throttle response to save more precious urban jungle juice.

Also, the City steering system takes all the effort out of the steering (you can turn the wheel using little more than a red-faced birthday-candle-extinguishing puff) and makes parking a cinch.

Our test car in top “Lounge” trim is well kitted out with alloys, air-con, four airbags, anti-whiplash head restraints and carries a premium of £2,350 over the base model and is only £1,000 less than the most expensive Panda, the 1.3 MultiJet 75hp Lounge.

Is it worth it? Well, this will ultimately come down to the budget and preferences of individual buyers – many of whom might not look past a Ford Fiesta, Kia Picanto or a Volkswagen Up in this class. But if you’re one of many people who just want a no-nonsense, small, safe, economical, city car that’s good fun to drive (and like a bit of quirkiness too), then the Panda might be all the car you need and offers an interesting alternative to mainstream rivals, even though it looks like a teddy bear with windscreen wipers.

VITAL STATS

CAR Fiat Panda 0.9 Lounge TwinAir 85hp

PRICE £11,250

PERFORMANCE Max speed 110mph;  0-60mph 11.2s

MPG 67.3 combined

EMISSIONS 99g/km