In the city, the Panda is a trusty companion and perfectly suited to scurrying through the rat race. The boot area can be expanded by dropping the rear seats, boosting space to 861 litres, but most models only come with a folding rear seat - theres no 50:50 split unless you go for the Eleganza trim. With such a small body its little surprise that luggage space is tight - the Panda has a boot capacity of slightly more than 200 litres, which although small is still more than a MINI. Nonetheless, all models have twin airbags and ABS, plus more expensive versions get side airbags and stability control too.

This really is Fiat doing what it does best.The Panda only scored three-stars in Euro NCAP crash tests, which is disappointing for a modern car. But what really makes the Panda appealing is its value for money and low running costs. The interior is fairly basic but well laid out and the seats are comfortable too. Its also good fun to drive, with light but precise steering making it great in town while it is equally capable on motorways where it can happily cruise along with minimal fuss.

Thanks to the upright body its also surprisingly spacious inside and you can easily carry two adults, a couple of kids and luggage (if you pack carefully). The new Panda stays true to that ethos but unlike the earlier version, is well built, comfortable and durable. The original Fiat Panda was a low cost, compact, cheap to run, lightweight car.

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