Fiat Panda - Engines, performance and drive

​Around town, the Fiat Panda really shines thanks to its high driving position, excellent visibility and light controls. The soft suspension also means it soaks up bumps in the road.

The City button on the dash is also handy as it lightens up the steering – so much so that you can make adjustments with one finger – making squeezing in and out of tight gaps in town much easier. It feels rather remote, though, so it's best avoided in normal driving and saved for parking manoeuvres.

The Panda handles well on the open road, but sadly, the 69bhp engine struggles at high speeds. It’s a shame, because this lack of refinement means rivals like the Hyundai i10 and Kia Picanto have a distinct advantage on longer motorway journeys.

Engines

Quite a few engines have powered the little Panda throughout its lifetime, but today, the only powertrain available is a 1.0-litre petrol engine with mild-hybrid tech. This unit produces 69bhp and 90Nm of torque. As these figures suggest, the Panda is far from being a speed machine, but that’s not really what this car is about. The 0-62mph dash is dealt with in 13.9 seconds, and the top speed is 102mph.