PANDA ANNIVERSARY

This year, Fiat celebrates 40 years of a utilitarian Italian icon

The Fiat Panda was first revealed in 1980, when the best-selling single in the UK was Don’t Stand So Close To Me by The Police, the world was gripped by the Rubik’s Cube and everyone found out who really shot JR. The Fiat was penned by Giorgetto Giugiaro of ItalDesign, and sat on a brand new front-wheel drive platform with styling cues of robustness and utilitarianism.

Inside saw a simplistic dashboard and seats resembling hammocks attached to metal frames, bringing the exterior feelings of robustness inside, whilst its ethos was to be easy to maintain and inexpensive to own and run. The name Panda was a late decision and was in honour of Empanda, the Roman goddess and patroness of travellers. At launch the Panda range consisted of a single 4- cylinder, 903cc, 45hp engine, with a four-speed manual gearbox in one standard trim level. When it went on sale in the UK the following year, it was priced at £2860.

Increased trim levels went on sale in the years that followed the Panda’s launch, including the Panda 4x4 with more rugged styling and a four-wheel-drive system developed by Steyr-Puch in Austria. 1986 saw a facelift to the Panda, which received cosmetic and engineering updates. Styling revisions included smoothed- out bodywork, wraparound bumpers and single-piece door glass without quarter lights. Inside, the dashboard succumbed to a major redesign and the 1000 and 4x4 trims received significantly improved seats. Two new and improved engines were also introduced, named Fully Integrated

Robotised Engine (FIRE) with options of either a 4-speed or 5-speed manual gearbox. Increasing comfort, all versions except the 4x4 had revised rear ‘omegashaped’ suspension to improve ride quality.

Throughout its 14 years on sale in the UK, the Panda produced some iconic limited and special edition versions, including the Panda Habitat – a partnership with the home furnishings brand, Panda 4x4 Sisley – a partnership with Benetton’s outdoor clothing brand, plus the Panda Dance – red, white or black paint with stripes and Dance logos which became part of the regular Panda line-up. The most well-known, however, arrived in April 1990 – the Panda Italia 90 special edition. Based on the Panda 750 L, it celebrated Italy’s hosting of the 1990 FIFA World Cup with special features including all-white paintwork, body- coloured grille and bumpers, wheel trims designed to look like footballs and blue seat upholstery in a nod to the home team’s kit.

In June 1995, 14 years after it first launched in this country, the Panda was cut from the Fiat model range with 161,501 units sold. It continued to be sold in other countries until 2003 when its replacement arrived, the Panda II. The third generation of Panda went on sale in February 2012, and it is still going strong today. The newest entrant to the Panda line-up is the Panda Hybrid, launched in early 2020.