Fiat opens the brand’s 125th anniversary celebrations by unveiling the first images and features of the new Grande Panda. The model will be produced in Serbia on the Stellantis group’s Smart Car platform and its styling by the design team led by Francois Leboine is inspired by the first Fiat Panda designed by Giorgetto Giugiaro in 1980. The Grande Panda, the first model in the new family, will be followed by the launch of a new vehicle every year until 2027. The new model carries up to five people and has a volume that appears robust and structured, lending strength to its originality, while the dynamic and incisive design of the bodywork is generated by taut contour lines. The design of the Grande Panda was conceived to allow the brand to project itself into the future through an innovative and intelligent use of space, a cool personality and surprising elements. The exterior of the new Fiat Grande Panda features a special combination of structured lines and soft but firm surfaces, which emphasise the strong wheel arches.
The front look presents a compact volume with a distinctive new personality. Precise orthogonal lines enclose a progressive square mesh arrangement that creates a strong, accelerated graphic pattern, generating pixel-like punctuation extending from the centre of the glossy black upper grille to the headlights. The presence of a skid plate in the lower central part of the bumper emphasises a UV attitude, while the headlights, composed of opaline cubes, take their inspiration from the windows of the Lingotto factory facades. In addition to the original light signature, the daytime running lights (Daytime Running Lights) turn into indicators and illuminate some of the cubes that appear as horizontal pixels arranged in a chequered pattern.
From the side, the configuration of the Fiat Grande Panda is reminiscent of the robustness of the Panda of the 1980s, with an unmistakable allure thanks to the dynamic passenger compartment and glazing. The wedge-like attitude of the bodywork and cabin is accentuated by the roof rails that shift the viewpoint higher towards the rear. As a tribute to the classic Panda 4×4, the Fiat Grande Panda features 3D-printed bas-relief letters on the doors that reflect the surroundings and animate the lower part of the side. In addition, the sturdy ‘C’ pillar faithfully reproduces the unmistakable angle ratio to the vertical volume of the rear. A square black badge is linked to the glazing graphic, helping to generate a lenticular effect and at the same time evocative, transforming the four Fiat letters into four bars.
