The Fiat Grande Panda Electric’s low price and clean design won me over | Stuff

Introduction

I love a small electric car and, currently, there are some really good ones to choose from. The Fiat Grande Panda is another cracker, sitting on the same platform as Stellantis group rivals the Citroen e-C3 and Vauxhall Frontera. It also goes up against the Hyundai Inster, super-cheap Dacia Spring, and the awesome new Renault 5.

Like the Renault, this reborn Panda takes its inspiration from the original 1980s box on wheels, then adds in a lot more style and sophistication. I’ve just driven the La Prima model, which comes with everything you need for £23,975. Anyone wanting to keep costs down can head for the Fiat Grande Panda Red edition, which starts at just £20,975 and dispenses with some of the more premium-feel goodies. There’s a petrol hybrid version if you’re not ready to go for an EV, too.

Either way, this is also a roomy five-door car with a practical boot. The near 200-mile electric range is perfectly serviceable too, but it’s that price that makes the Fiat Grande Panda Electric most appealing.

The styling

While the original Panda was a very utilitarian looking creation, the Fiat Grande Panda is dramatic to look at and great seen from every angle. Taken on face value it looks really good, but start picking your way around it and the clever design touches really start to come out. Fiat’s designers have worked the logo into all sorts of places, like on the rear door pillars, over the arches and even at the back next to the number plate recess. Neat LED headlights and boxy taillights complete the design thrills to great effect.

There’s no doubt the Fiat Grande Panda works to best effect in the bolder colours, where the attention to detail shines through even more brightly. Pick a darker shade and some of the quirks of the body panels lose their impact slightly, including the clever use of embossed pressed steel in the lower door panels to remind people that you’re driving a Panda.

The La Prima edition adds in alloys, roof rails and privacy glass that make it seem more of a premium purchase than that low price suggests. Inside is a real treat too, with design lines inspired by Fiat’s iconic Lingotto building in its home of Turin. There are cool instrument graphics and a curved dashboard panel that emulates the Fiat test track, with even a little car sitting in the corner of the moulding to the right-hand side of the layout.

Seat coverings and trim are similarly funky, while La Prima buyers get treated to a dashboard and glove compartment assembly finished in a covering derived from bamboo. Add it all together and the Fiat Grande Panda is a wonderful exercise in smart design thinking.

The drive

At a smidgen under four metres long, this is a car that works extremely well in and around towns and cities, which is probably where it’ll spend most of its time. The Fiat Grande Panda is very agile, with easy to manage steering and a great turning circle. Drivetrain switchgear is the default bundle found in most other Stellantis group products currently and works in a simple but effective fashion. I found the setup perfect for wending my way through packed city streets with impatient fellow motorists to deal with.

The Fiat Grande Panda was also a revelation out on the motorway. It’s very quiet thanks to a set of wheels and tyres that offer virtually no audible backdrop and only a touch of wind noise coming from outside via the door mirrors. There’s enough get up and go to pull out of slip roads without fuss and, once I was up to cruising speed, it felt very stable in a straight line.

Make any sudden manoeuvres, mind, and it can feel a little twitchy on tight bends and tricky roundabouts. But other than that, the Fiat Grande Panda is a real success from behind the wheel. Fiat reckons this car can manage up to 199 miles, and though real-world use will be less, that’s still fine for the Panda’s intended purpose as a city runabout.

A neat curly charging cable is permanently attached to the car for added 7kW convenience; it hides behind a port on the grille for quick and easy attachment when you get home. For faster charging, a standard CCS port is located on side of the car towards the back. This can handle charging up to 100kW, so expect around 10 to 80 per cent to arrive in under 30 minutes.

The technology

The compromises on interior comforts and tech treats make it obvious Fiat’s bean counters were keeping a close eye on the budget, but it doesn’t feel at all sparse. The dashboard layout looks great and works well though, with a 10in instrument cluster and a further 10.25in touchscreen infotainment system sitting in the middle of the dash. Both deliver the goods in a basic but functional way, plus the easy to manage climate control buttons make on-the-move temperature adjustments a cinch.

On the infotainment front, it seems likely most folks will plug in their phones in this car anyway, so Apple Car Play and Android Auto are present, with power for your phone coming via a wireless charging pad or USB-C port down below the dashboard area. Statutory driving aids are hiding in the software too, so there’ the usual smattering of beeps and bongs prior to being silenced via the workmanlike on-screen menus.

Fiat Grande Panda Electric verdict

This isn’t a big car, but the Fiat Grande Panda Electric is wonderfully practical. Adults can fit comfortably enough in the back, though it’s definitely more family focused. Adding to that appeal is the price point, which remains firmly affordable even if the more elegant La Prima edition is selected. Granted, the range might put some off, with anything over 200 miles tended to be the point when I stop fretting about charging on longer runs.

However, the Fiat Grande Panda Electric is tailor-made for town and city use. It’s perfect for scooting to the shops or taking kids to school and, with that fabulous design, the journey will turn a few heads too. Even when I did use it on the motorway, the Fiat Grande Panda Electric proved more than acceptable, which for me makes it one of the best small EVs money can buy – for now at least.

Fiat Grande Panda Electric technical specifications