2012 Fiat Panda

The latest version of Fiat Panda, the small Italian city car famous for great practicality, will be unveiled at the 2011 Frankfurt Motor Show. The new model features a substantial facelift, with new headlights, new bumpers, taillights, and small details here and there. The car offers greater quality and practicality than ever, while retaining its compact size and overall flexibility. It is easier to move, park, have the right amount of space and modulate it to your liking, feel at ease and relate with others. Important solutions that are expressed in a philosophy of life. This car too will be offered with Fiat’s two-cylinder 0.9 liter engine., as with the rest Fiat and Alfa Romeo range. Specs and pricing are yet to be revealed. More details in the press release below: Fiat presents the new Panda at the Frankfurt International Motor Show. It is a consistent evolution of a successful city car that in its 31-year history has always been a synonym of functional design, manoeuvrability, space, reliability and comfort. The Panda is all this and something more: a brand rich in strong rational and emotional value, which has won over more than 6.5 million drivers by supplying simple but smart solutions for the real necessities of everyday mobility. Everything is a whole lot easier on board the Panda. What’s more, before being a car the Panda is an idea that has generated another way of experiencing a car in total freedom. That’s because today as always, whoever chooses a Panda is free from the conventional mould, fashions and classifications. In a sense, you could say that it is an unconventional car, which from its very first generation was able to astonish with simple yet not obvious solutions. Indeed, it is precisely its vocation of structural and constructive simplicity that now allows it to further evolve without ever losing its true nature of revolutionary car. Suffice it to say that it was the first car of its segment to bear the prestigious title of “Car of the Year 2004?. It was the first compact (less than 4 metres in length) to feature a diesel engine (1986) and it was the first to offer both four-wheel drive (1983) and a range of eco-friendly engines designed to limit fuel consumption (the Panda Elettra was introduced in 1990, one of the first electric cars). It was the first 4×4 city car to reach Everest’s high-tech base camp at an altitude of 5,200 metres (2004). With the third generation, the Panda has reached full maturity, making a further qualitative leap in terms of comfort, technology and safety equipment, and making its appearance with a new, modern and harmonious look. But without giving up that “roguish” and ready-for-anything soul that has always distinguished it. Starting from the concept that every one of us has different requirements, the new Panda makes maximum use of the interior space, minimising the obstructions. Although continuing to be a very compact car, the Panda has grown just a few centimetres to ensure the attainment of the highest standards of safety and improve the generous level of passenger room and capacity of the boot still further. With a length of 365 centimetres, a width of 164 and a height of 155, the new Panda can comfortably accommodate up to five people and is equipped with one of the roomiest luggage compartments in its segment. In addition, modularity is enhanced thanks to the numerous storage compartments and the different front and rear seat configurations. Besides, every one of us has our own lifestyle, a personal relationship with our own objects, our own way of distributing them in space. And of finding them. So in this sense the new model is a place to fill in an entirely personal way, but at the same time it is a place that you are glad to share with others. Once again, Fiat is raising the bar to prove that it is leading the evolution of the super-compact segment, where a large part of history carries its name: from the first 600 to the 500, from the 126 to the first Panda, from the Cinquecento to the Seicento, from the second generation Panda (2003) to the new 500 launched in 2007. There has always been a Fiat city car near the people, and now it is the Panda’s turn once again. Its production will begin in the last quarter of 2011. Renewed style in the spirit of functionality The new Panda has been created drawing inspiration from the most up-to-date trends. It proposes an elegant restyling of the exteriors with smooth and rounded lines on a volume of regular form and of great spatial efficiency. Its front has a strong personality, where the slightly convex bonnet joins with the elegant horizontal grille and the new front headlamps with a rounded shape, underlined by a separate supplementary element with Daytime Running Lights function. The side view has also been updated, where several distinctive features of the second-generation Fiat Panda have been reinterpreted starting with the third window, now with softened angles in harmony with the softer shape of the exteriors, which creates the effect of an uninterrupted glazed surface up to the vertical rear light clusters. Smooth and rounded shapes also distinguish the bumper strips on the bumpers and side panels that not only pay tribute to the first generation Fiat Panda, but also accentuate the “all-terrain” look of the model also accompanied by the marked wheel arches. Finally, as on the current model, the lower section of the tailgate protrudes with respect to the rear window. Combined with the side line, this gives a distinct impression of a roof panel resting on the bodywork. Roominess and comfort at the top of the segment Offered with five doors only and with roominess worthy of a higher segment, the new Panda proves that it is a real super-compact. Its smaller exterior dimensions in relation to its interior volume are an invaluable feature for a car principally intended to be used in urban areas. But the new Panda is able to do more. In fact it has all the properties of dynamism and comfort that allow it to easily tackle longer and tougher extra urban routes: driving ease, functional and ergonomic layout of controls and furnishings, a large number of storage compartments, and use of seats with “thin” backrests that improve accessibility and comfort for the rear passengers. Finally, the position of the gear lever in the centre of the dashboard, the raised seat base and the large windows guarantee driver and passengers excellent visibility and mastery of the road. The diving dynamics are supported by a tried and tested suspension configuration: MacPherson independent wheel up front and interconnected wheels (semi-independent) with a torsion beam in the rear. Cutting-edge engines and eco-friendly systems Functional and reliable, the Fiat Panda is a car rich in substance that boasts cutting-edge engines in terms of both performance and fuel consumption and emissions. Standing out in the range are the brand new two-cylinder engines: the 85 HP 0.9 TwinAir Turbo, named “International Engine of the Year 2011?, and the 65 HP 0.9 Aspirated TwinAir, both equipped with the Start&Stop system as standard, which temporarily cuts out the engine and restarts it in order to reduce fuel consumption and CO2 emissions. The renewed 69 HP 1.2 Fire completes the range of petrol engines available at the launch. The engineering excellence of the new Panda continues with the 75 HP 1.3 Multijet II with Start&Stop supplied as standard. Belonging to the second generation of the MultiJet family, the engine is equipped with faster injectors capable of multiple injections in rapid sequence. Specifically, the system can now perform a main modulated injection of fuel in several distinct phases and anticipate the ones that follow. The servo valve with balanced plunger of the MultiJet II system enables it to manage up to 8 injections per cycle, offering greater speed, flexibility and precision in the various phases of operation. Then the bifuel 80 HP 0.9 TwinAir Turbo Natural Power (petrol/methane) and 69 HP 1.2 EasyPower (petrol/LPG) will follow. They are proof of the constant attention Fiat Automobiles focuses on environmental issues through research and development of easily accessible solutions. In perfect harmony with the “eco-friendly” spirit, the new Panda also offers the Gear Shift Indicator (GSI), a genuine “co-pilot” that discreetly prompts drivers to change gear, leading to more efficient use of the engine and to reduce fuel consumption. A Panda for everybody At its launch, the new model will be available with front-wheel drive – and later the Panda 4×4 will make its debut – and will offer a range made up of: 4 engines, 3 trim levels, 10 body colours, 4 interiors, 2 hub caps and 2 14? and 15? alloy wheels for a total of over 600 combinations. To ensure the safety of the driver and passengers, the new model has 4 airbags (front and window), ABS complete with BAS (Brake Assist System), front seat belts with pretensioners and load limiter, Isofix attachments for child seats, anti-whiplash front headrests, rear headrests and headlamps with Daytime Running Lights, all supplied as standard. In addition, the new model offers devices which are exclusive in its category: from the brand new “Blue&Me-TomTom LIVE” and the large transparent electric “Skydome” sun roof to the Hi-Fi system with CD/MP3 player and Dualdrive electric power steering with “City” function as standard. In particular, to drive in city traffic with total peace of mind the new Panda offers the “Blue&Me TomTom LIVE” device that combines the advantages of an infotainment system which is integrated and connected with those of a portable navigator, opening the doors to connectivity. “Blue&Me TomTom LIVE” will allow Panda customers to use mobile phones and media players in total safety without ever removing their hands from the steering wheel, and provides an absolutely unique and distinctive navigation experience, built into the dashboard and offering the most accurate traffic information updated in real time. The automatic Dualogic robotised transmission, in combination with the TwinAir engine, will become available after the launch. In addition, during the first year of sales, an innovative braking system will also become available which, at speeds below 30km/h, is able to detect obstacles at close range and stop automatically. Lots of versions rich in content will then make it possible for every customer to choose their own made-to-measure Panda, and to then add an additional distinctive and personal touch by choosing packs and Lineaccessori articles from a long list of optional extras. These features make the new Panda a “big” car that, moreover, has a very high product value thanks to the combination of high contents and reduced running costs. Related posts: