Fiat Panda 100HP (06-10) - Review

The Panda is a roomy little car, especially in terms of head room and will seat four adults. The tall and boxy profile means rear headroom is excellent - even for six footers, although there's no escaping the fact that the little Fiat is quite narrow. There are some minor tweaks over the standard Panda - the driver's seat is height adjustable and is more supportive. However, the pedals are very close together and the light weight body plus firmer suspension make for a bouncy ride on poor roads. There's also a fair bit of wind noise at motorway speeds on account of the tall shape.

With such a small body it's 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. The boot area can be expanded by dropping the rear seats, boosting space to 861 litres. In the city, the Panda 100HP is a trusty companion and perfectly suited to scurrying through the rat race, but the 10 metre turning circle is not as tight as other Pandas which can turn within nine metres

It’s easy to get comfortable and find a good driving position in the Panda, even though the cabin has a utilitarian feel to it. The interior doesn't look particularly sophisticated but it's well laid out and easy to use while the hard-wearing plastics should stand the test of time. Despite the small wing mirrors, driver visibility is generally good overall, though the large rear pillars can be obstructive when parking.