Fiat Grande Panda review

For the electric version, performance is what you'd expect: smooth, quiet and with a prompt response to the accelerator pedal. Although the response itself is pretty languid. Again, not unexpected.

Throwing shade on the Panda 100HP of blessed memory, the Grande Panda electric has 111bhp to dispense through its front wheels. It weighs around 1,500kg, which is light for an EV but not for a supermini. Net result is an 11-second 0-62mph time. Top speed is 82mph. We did hit that dizzy rate of knots on an Italian Autostrada, after a bit of a run-up.

The car sits pretty happily at 70-80mph. It feels like a limited top speed, imposed by Fiat to stop you draining the battery in a matter of minutes.

Any modes to play with?

Nope. If you want to be economical, keep the heater off and treat the pedals like glass. Power and steering weight and the rest are resolutely non-configurable. And a sport mode would be idiotic in an economy car. The Grande Panda keeps it simple.

By the same token there's no enhanced regeneration or one-pedal mode. Indeed the Grande Panda has a C position next to PNRD, and that's ‘coast’, encouraging you to anticipate well and lift off early, the key to eco-driving.

The steering is too light and too lazy for our taste, and it's a bit too keen to roll as well. It's more composed than a Citroen e-C3, but the Citroen uses that to its advantage. This doesn't. At least it's not knocked off course by bumps.

Is it comfy?

On our UK test we found the ride a touch firm – nowhere near as absorbent as the e-C3, which really goes all out for comfort. You'd think that would make the Grande Panda the more engaging car in bends, but it screams reluctance when you pick up the pace. You can almost hear it cry 'Please can we go home now?'

On motorways it's pretty stable, and wind noise isn't much of a bother. The tyres and suspension are generally quiet too, so it feels solidly built and refined for a car this small.

Given the low price you're not showered with advanced driver assist tech. Speed limit alert and lane departure assistance are present, as the law demands. And as the law demands they're activated every time you start the car. But they each have their own actual deactivation switch. Excellent. Because, as with any car, they sometimes get it wrong.

For the human at the wheel, night driving is eased by the standard LED headlights.