Supermini-sized ‘utility’ EV offers retro cheeriness at a very low price
Given the Fiat Panda was taken off sale in the UK last year, you would be forgiven for thinking the Fiat Grande Panda Electric is its replacement.But no, it’s an all-new model, filling the space in the Fiat range for a 4m-long (so supermini-sized) car that has existed since the Fiat Punto’s departure in 2018. The car known just as Fiat Panda lives on elsewhere, just not in the UK.As the Punto disappeared without anyone really noticing, the fact that no replacement was forthcoming slipped under the radar, too. The Grande Panda is packed full of clever touches and original thinking that suggests Fiat has used the time wisely to create something far more interesting than a standard replacement might have been.Fiat has chosen to launch a ’utility vehicle’ (think slightly raised hatchback; a Dacia Sandero Stepway to a standard Dacia Sandero) rather than a supermini in the space vacated by the Punto because it offers more global appeal.Perhaps surprisingly, Fiat is Stellantis’s biggest brand globally, and the Grande Panda will appeal to and can be built in the markets in which it has a large presence (Brazil, Turkey and Algeria, for example) and with different powertrains.But the Grande Panda isn’t one of those ‘global cars’ that’s built to appeal to everyone but ends up appearing to nobody, with all the joy sucked out of it. Instead, it has a habit of making you smile outside and in.
Source: Autocar
