FIRST DRIVE: FIAT PANDA:THE ROLLER coaster financial fortunes of Fiat seems to never end, but hard work is starting to bear fruit, with the product hiatus coming to an end and several new models due to roll out in the coming two years.
Meanwhile its high-risk takeover of the crippled Chrysler brand is being hailed by the US media as a Lazarus-like resurrection, with Fiat Group's boss Sergio Marchionne lauded in last week's edition of Timemagazine as the man who saved the US auto industry.
While the Lancia and Chrysler brands have been the focus of new model development in the last year, finally it’s time for the mother brand to get the spotlight.
The new Panda is all about emotion and love, according to Francois Olivier, head of the Fiat brand. Over 16 million motorists have owned a new or used Panda since the first of this supermini range hit the road back in 1980.
With that heritage in mind, the latest iteration plays upon a good deal of retro feeling. The firm’s chief designer, Roberto Giolito, has coined a new word for its look: “squarcle”.
“It’s a square with soft curved sides that’s repeated in features throughout the car, from the centre of the wheels, to the shape of the wheel arches and throughout the dashboard,” he says. Similar to the outer lines of an iPhone app tile, it’s ubiquitous in the car’s design. The boxy dials hark back to the 1980s and can be difficult to read, but otherwise this is a well-honed homage to 30 years of Panda.
The big news from Panda is it’s bigger. In every dimension this car has been increased, making it far more comfortable for occupants.
The engine range includes the firm’s well-regarded two-cylinder TwinAir engine. The 900cc petrol unit comes with output of 65bhp and 85bhp, both with emissions of just 99g/km. A 69bhp 1.2-litre is also offered, with emissions of 120g/km, as is a 75bhp 1.3-litre Multijet diesel with emissions of 107g/km.
The Twinairs will not arrive until nearer the summer, but having tested the diesel and with experience of the 1.2-litre petrol, I’m not sure they’re worth waiting for. While they’re frugal, engine noise remains an issue, despite the work done to quieten the whine. Most annoying of all is the transmission ratios. This is after all a city car, which means most of the time will be spent in first and second gear.
However, when first runs out of puff, second is not yet getting into its stride, so to keep things moving forward, you need to blip the throttle when changing up. There’s too big a gap in power between first and second and that’s a fundamental flaw in a city car. But the diesel is far more competent while the 1.2-litre has never suffered such a trait. These would be the engines of choice.
On Naples’ potholed and seemingly lawless roads, the new Panda behaved quite well, though the ride is firm. There’s a degree of wallow in corners but it can kick along at motorway speeds and we were surprised to see the speed we were doing, which wasn’t apparent from the calm and steady feel of the car.
Expect the new Panda range to start at about €11,750 when it arrives in February. That’s up on the outgoing model and pushes it closer to the more stylish and iconic Fiat 500, along with closing the gap to the ageing Punto, which is due a facelift next year. Worth noting is the fact that ESP stability control is initially an option but will be standard after September next year, though it’s likely to push the prices of all versions of the car up by €300 or €400.
One of the most admirable new toys on a car in this class is a “Low Speed Collision mitigation” braking system that will be offered later in 2012. It uses a windscreen-mounted laser to scan the road ahead and is capable of recognising obstacles in front of the car and of braking automatically when the driver fails to avoid the collision at speeds up to 30km/h.
The new Panda launches not only the start of a new product assault by the brand, but also another attempt to push Fiat back into profit in Europe. Analysts estimate its European losses at €800 million a year. The current economic crisis doesn’t help a brand that specialises in small cars, with relatively small profit margins. That’s why it remains a strange decision to move Panda production from the productive Polish plant, from where the current model originates, to a revamped factory in Naples. Earlier this month Fiat presented some stark figures in negotiations with Italian unions: some 22,000 Fiat factory workers in Italy assembled 650,000 cars in 2009, while the 6,100 employees at its Polish plant built 600,000 vehicles.
The new union deal is likely to see its Italian workers garner an average 10 per cent pay rise in return for shorter coffee breaks and greater flexibility in production line organisation. Even with that, there was a small protest at the plant last week during the Panda launch.
The southern Italian plant has been revamped at a cost of €900 million and when fully operational its 5,000 workers will turn out 300,000 Pandas. That’s a vast improvement on the previous rate, but still behind the Poles. In addition to lower productivity, Fiat’s Italian workers earn €27.69 an hour, over three times the €7.52 in Poland, according to data from German auto industry group VDA.
Fiat may be on the way to revitalising its brand, but it still has some way to go to return to profit, which seems even more difficult considering its commitment to increase production in Italy. But as one senior spokesman told us: “At the end of the day, we have an obligation to Italy.” It’s an obligation that’s difficult to square in these economic times, perhaps the financial equivalent of the “squarcle”.
FACTFILE
EnginesThe 900cc Twinair petrol unit comes with output of 65bhp and 85bhp, both with emissions of just 99g/km. A 69bhp 1.2-litre is also offered, with emissions of 120g/km, as is a 75bhp 1.3-litre Multijet diesel with emissions of 107g/km.
FeaturesThree trim levels will be available – Pop, Easy and Lounge – and all models will have four airbags, ABS with Brake-Assist, ISOFIX, anti-whiplash headrests and daytime running lights as standard. Options include ESP stability control, climate control, parking sensors, an electric Skydome sunroof and a Dualogic automated manual transmission, while a "Low Speed Collision Mitigation" braking system will be offered later in 2012.
ArrivingFebruary/March.
PricesEstimated to start at €11,750.