The Fiat Panda is used as a showcase model within Fiat Auto for product life-cycle management, referred to by management as the “Panda Lesson”. Ever since its world preview at the Geneva 2003 Salon, where the versatile and spacious small car still wore the “Gingo” badge, public demand has been high. So much so that production at the Polish Tychy plant passed the manufacturing milestone of 500,000 earlier in October this year.

Although ordained primarily for the European markets, the Fiat Panda is also sold in various Asian markets including Malaysia, Taiwan and Japan, as well as exotic locations including Martinque. Its success in the A-segment category within Europe, and more notably within the Italian market, has been spearheaded by various awards including the prestigious “European Car of the year 2004” accolade. The Fiat Panda was the first A-segment car to win the award, and to date no competing A-segment car has taken the title.

Demand has spawned various new variations on the original Panda theme, including the 2004 4x4 which has exceptional off-road ability, partly due to its small size and light weight. The simple viscous coupling all-wheel-drive system makes the Panda 4x4 much more manoeuvrable and agile, and the perfect solution for the driver who drives in poor traction conditions, including ice and steep gradients. More recently, the stylish Fiat Panda Alessi was introduced at the Tokyo motorshow, available for sale in Europe from January 2006, characterised externally by its aesthetic and chromatic touches on the front grille, door panels and wheelarch trim, as well as new bumpers and wheel trim. 2006 will also see two other additions to the Fiat Panda family, including the Fiat Panda SUV, and a brand new environmentally friendly CNG Compressed Natural Gas engine option.

The Panda SUV will be showcased at the Bologna motorshow next month, and has already been captured on camera. Its rugged off-road look has evolved from the Fiat Simba concept car that was displayed at the 2002 Bologna Salon and Panda SUV concept car from Geneva 2003. The production car is no phoney deception, with the car being based on the highly capable Panda 4x4, a car which has even surprised Fiat engineers with its performance. Availability of the 1.3 litre Multijet Diesel engine on 4x4 model Fiat Panda’s may also be expanded throughout Europe and other markets, with many countries still offering only the petrol engines.
 

2007 will see a brand new Panda “Sports” version launched, although the exact specifications have not yet been revealed. It is rumoured, however, that a sports diesel engine will be available. Visually, the Sports version will be inspired by the Panda Abarth prototype, and will be feature a lightly modified front end with the grille positioned lower in the face to provide a more sporty stance. Dark gray wheel arch extensions, under bumper treatment, and sideskirts will also feature, whilst the utilitarian black protection strips will no longer appear on the bumpers and doors. The door handles and exterior mirrors will also be finished in body colour, while the new rear light modules from the Fiat Panda SUV will be presented, although these will be finished off in the body colour. A leaked image of the new modek also shows the car to have mildly lowered suspension, and brand-new 8-spoke alloy wheels.

A full facelift for the Panda will appear in 2008, followed by a extended batch of special series models. The life-cycle management of the Fiat Panda will continue until 2010, when a run of series will prepare the way for the replacement model – the Fiat Panda II.

In the meantime, development is also underway on the brand new Fiat 500, in cooperation with Ford, which will use the Fiat Panda as a basis. The Fiat Panda serves as an excellent starting point, with its foundation as a ‘robust’ project leading to it having remarkable torsional rigidity characteristics. The bodywork of the Panda has a torsional rigidity of 70,500 Nm/rad, which is amongst the best in the category. The joint Ford Ka / Fiat 500 project will also make use of Fiat engines, which offer top class fuel consumption and performance. The 1.2 litre petrol engine, for example, has been engineered for high torque at low rpm, and has gear ratios specifically calibrated for lower fuel consumption. It is an engine that simply ‘chugs’ on in any gear, with a combined cycle indicating a fuel consumption of only 5.6 litres per 100 kilometres, and has proved its strength in the 4x4 models.

by Paddy Granger