At the beginning of next month Fiat will introduce into the Italian showrooms the Panda Panda Cross, thus widening further its environmentally conscious credentials with the application of its efficient dual petrol/methane engine into a car dubbed as the "city SUV".

With a raised ride height that means it sits 36 mm higher than the normal 4x2 version of the Panda, the Panda Panda Cross is the first small SUV that can be seen nimbly darting around the big European cities to boast minimal environmental impact with contained fuel consumption and low emissions (they are below the 120 g/km of CO2 threshold which will allow the A-segment car to benefit from the maximum financial incentives available in Italy).

Moreover the arrival of the petrol/methane Cross version widens further the range of Panda Panda (up to now only available in the specifications of Dynamic and 4x4 Climbing) that means the little car is now a real point of reference for sustainable city mobility, a fact clearly demonstrated by the more than 85,000 units already sold.

The new "dual fuel" Panda Panda Cross retains all the key visual features of the Panda Cross with its  adventurous cross-country vehicle styling - chunky aluminium roof bars and frame, thick plastic door and wheel arch cover mouldings, powerful front foglights, spotlights embedded into the headlight bezels, 5-spoke alloy wheels and bigger and tougher bumpers at both the front and the rear complete with wrap-under aluminium protection plates - but now offering all the benefits that only a car running on methane can: virtually zero emissions and an impressive 23 percent reduction in CO2 when using petrol, making it a perfect form of transport for congested city centres where municipal restrictions on polluting vehicles are becoming more and more legislated against.

Fiat's Panda Panda range is also benefiting from a strong governmental focus in Italy on lowering emissions across the board which means the distribution network for methane, so long a hindrance to the development of this type of propulsion, is rapidly becoming more and more widely available: currently there are 600 methane supply points now open to road users across the country and with a forecast of approximately a 100 new distributors set to be added in the coming months.

Equipped with a 1.2-litre dual petrol/methane engine, the Panda Panda Cross version (fitted only with 4x2 traction) inherits all the innovative solutions of Panda Panda along with the "off road" visual features and capability derived from the 4x4 version. All wheel drive isn't available on the new model as the two separate methane tanks that have a total capacity of 72 litres (12 kg) are packaged under the floor where the rear differential and live axle of the 4x4 version would normally be located. The 72 litre methane tanks give the car a useful range of 270 km when using only this type of fuel. The petrol tank remains unchanged in size and positioning from the 4x4 model (30 litres) thus offering the Panda Panda Cross a maximum range of over 700 km when all its fuel tanks are at "full load". The arrival of the Panda Panda Cross will help to cement further Fiat's leadership in the area of reducing environmental impact: according to JATO Dynamics, it was the least polluting carmaker in Europe in 2008 with an average of 133.7 g/km CO2 per vehicle, which was the second consecutive year it has claimed this important honour (in 2007 its was top with 137.3 g/km CO2 per vehicle).

Five exterior body colours will be available on the Panda Panda Cross: Arancio (orange), Nero (black), Beige, Verde (Green) and Bianco Perla (pearl white) while inside there is the choice of three "bi-colore" fabric finishes: sabbia/nero, sabbia/verde and arancio/nero all provide this model with a clear distinction. All the Panda's usual active and passive safety features are included, such as ABS, EBD, MSR, two front airbags. Also optional on this model is the electrically-operated Dualdrive transmission. Other equipment features include climate control, SkyDome electric sunroof and the fog lamps.