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Fiat Auto’s
widely-acclaimed Panda 'supermini', which went on sale
across the United Kingdom back in early 2004, has just won the
City Car category in Auto Express magazine’s
Annual New Car Honours awards for the second year in succession.
Panda - voted Car
of the Year 2004 by a wide ranging, 56-strong, international
jury of senior motoring journalists late in 2003 - has since
attracted a string of awards from the media, which has been
repeatedly impressed by its winning combination of build
quality, space, refinement, big car feel, comfort, driving
pleasure and value for money.
The ultimate
accolade from Britain’s biggest selling weekly car magazine,
Auto Express, came last year when it won the
magazine’s Car of the Year award, along with the
magazine’s Budget Car and City Car titles. It
is the latter accolade which the Panda has now secured for a
second successive year. Commenting on this latest award
Auto Express says: "Fiat’s Panda exudes a solidity that
other city cars can’t match."
FIAT PANDA
SPORTING POISED FOR UK DEBUT
Meanwhile, Fiat
Auto UK preparing for the showroom debut of the new Panda
Sporting Special Edition, a car which has been firmly targeted at younger buyers,
and which was exclusively revealed by Italiaspeed in June. Priced at just
£8,995 on the road, the Panda Sporting Special Edition
offers a very high specification throughout, coupled with a
fresh sporty trim and aggressive appearance.
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Fiat Auto UK are
set to reveal the new Panda Sporting Special Edition, a car
which is firmly targeted at the younger buyers |
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Fiat Auto’s
widely-acclaimed Panda supermini model, has just won the City
Car category in Auto Express magazine’s Annual
New Car Honours for the second year in succession |
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A new deep front spoiler fitted with round foglights as standard, chunky full length side-skirts, and
larger 6-spoke alloy wheels fitted with low-profile tyres,
are changes which all combine to give the new Panda a highly 'sporty' appearance for the
first time, something that has been very much lacking from
the range ever since the factory put the official Abarth
version's development programme onto hold late in the day.
A colour-coded,
sporty-looking interior will complement the new exterior
revisions, giving the 2004 'European Car of the Year' award
winning Panda a fashionable and dynamic look, which should
make it firmly appeal to the younger market. Since its
launch almost two years ago the new Panda has spawned
several 'niche' versions, including a genuine off-road
capable 4x4, while in September an SUV will be added to the
range. As Fiat ontinue build on the tradition of the
original Panda, a true 1980s icon, this new 'sporty' version
is sure to be a welcome addition. The new car's standard equipment will
include a CD player, while under the bonnet goes Fiat's
highly compact,
next-generation, 'common rail' technology, 1.3-litre 16v Multijet unit, which pumps out its usual
dose of 70bhp in this
application.
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