Fiat Panda
There’s an argument to be made that Panda is just as important to Fiat’s timeline as the revered 500. It’s been a gold-sealed sales success in the showrooms for nearly 40 years; over 7.5 million Pandas have been delivered globally, putting it ahead of even the much loved Cinquecento. When it’s original designer, Giorgetto Giugiaro, described Fiat’s then new car-for-the-people as “like a pair of jeans” in terms of its simple functionality and sturdy practicality, few could have believed the boxy little Panda’s shelf-life could match that of the ubiquitous Levi 501s. But, here we are, approaching it’s 40th birthday and three generations in and they’re still as popular as ever.
Fiat Panda (141)
What’s the ideal classic car? One that instantly revives nostalgia of childhood trips, is still practicably usable on today’s road and one that isn’t too precious to actually enjoy? Sounds to us like you’re describing the first generation Panda. When people ask what classic car to start out on, and one they can easily maintain in their own garage, we always send them in the direction of an early decent Panda.
And which one in particular? It does seem like practically every Panda sold between 1980 and 1995 in the UK was some kind of limited or special edition, but we do distinctly remember a Panda Tacchini and a showroom-condition, low mileage Panda Fizz as being particularly lovely.
The Tacchini was a collaboration with sportswear designer Sergio Tacchini and, originally, included a luggage set matching the car’s pinstriped livery in the boot. As kids, we still remember that every trip and holiday we ever took included packing everything into one of these holdalls (and picnics were always transported in a Summer Breeze shopper - can anyone else recall the Breeze edition Unos and Panda Bellas from this promotion?).
Fiat Panda (169)
It’s not very often that the second iteration of a car can be considered an improvement upon the first, but maybe the Panda could. Its predecessor’s back-to-basics, no-frills ethos might not be so obvious from the outside, but the 169-era Panda can still offer a solution to almost any motoring problem. Of course, there’s plenty of frugality available from almost all engines but there’s also the rugged 4x4 and, new to the Panda family, a genuine hot hatch in the 100HP. We know people with some very impressive car collections (we’re talking the types of models with rampant horses or raging bulls on the bonnet) who choose a 100HP as their daily driver. Yep, they’re that good.
Fiat Panda (319)
Although the 100HP might have been left off the range for the latest version of the Panda (why?! why, Fiat?!), there’s still plenty about the refresh to keep us interested. The interiors feel a lot more premium and there are no shortage of creature comforts this time around. The 4x4 is still just as good as it ever was but…we just can’t help but feel a trick was missed by not slipping that lovely 1.4-turbo engine under that bonnet and sticking some serious sting in the Panda’s tail.
