There’s a new animal prowling the streets, but it doesn’t have a menacing gait, long claws, fierce growl or those trademark black eyes.
It’s Fiat’s new Panda, a small 4×4 that won the 2004 European Car of the Year. It comes in two guises: the standard, entry-level Trekking and, for those who want a little more luxury, the Climbing.
The funky new models are powered by a 1,2-litre four-cylinder petrol engine delivering 44kW at 5 000rpm and 102Nm at just 2 500rpm. In normal driving conditions, power is fed to the front wheels via a five-speed manual gearbox, while a viscous coupling engages the rear wheels as soon as rough terrain is encountered.
The Trekking model has air conditioning, electric windows, headlight adjustment, a heated rear screen with its own windscreen wiper, intermittent wipers, eight-speaker stereo, key-operated central locking, and electric power steering with a height-adjustable column as standard equipment. A foldable rear seat, three cup holders, courtesy lights and a headlight-on warning are also standard.
The Climbing model adds a radio/CD front loader, a cigarette lighter, remote central locking, 50/50 split rear seats (with headrests) and audio controls on the steering wheel. Climbing models are immediately distinguishable from the Trekking thanks to colour-coded bumpers and door handles, roof rails and alloy wheels. The rear of the Climbing is decidedly prettier than its Trekking brother, owing to the rear bumper largely obscuring the rather large rear silencer. The Climbing also has a leather-covered gear lever.
Our trip out to the Gerotek testing ground showed us that the Panda, even with the small capacity engine, is more than capable of cruising at sensible speeds, although, with 44kW on tap, it hardly jumped for joy when approaching steepish hills and that’s understandable. It still maintained a good 90 to 100kph and the top speed is a claimed 145kph.
There is, however, a fair amount of road noise from the tyres, which obviously have to cope with both on- and off-road situations and Fiat may want to look at a little more sound deadening in its design stages.
Ground clearance on both models is claimed at 160mm, while the approach angle is 26° for the Trekking and 24° for the Climbing, and the departure angle is 42° for the Climbing and 44° for the Trekking.
The various tasks laid out for us by our hosts were handled with comparative ease, although the delays as the viscous coupling between front and rear takes a little getting used to. The centre console mounted gearshift proved easy to reach, and finding the right gear in a challenging situation is achieved without fuss.
There is a minimum of 200 litres of luggage room, but by folding the rear seats, this increases to a useful 855 litres (measured to the roof).
Safety levels are also high. ABS (anti-lock braking system) with EBD (electronic brake distribution) is standard across the range, as are driver and front passenger airbags. There is a high-level brake light, three-point seatbelts for all four passengers and side impact protection bars. The Climbing adds side airbags to the standard menu.
The Panda is unique in its class and niche, although it does come up against the Daihatsu Terios, which is priced at R149 995.
The Fiat Panda 4×4 comes with a three-year/100 000km dealer warranty and roadside assistance for 12 months. The Trekking costs R124 000 and the Climbing costs R139 000.