Fiat Panda review

Prices aren’t particularly competitive compared with those of the Panda’s most obvious rivals, but you’ll almost certainly be able to haggle a big chunk off.

Fuel economy and CO2 emissions also aren’t great by city car standards, especially on the four-wheel-drive versions, although low insurance groupings and respectable resale values mean the Panda should still be cheap to run.

The Panda achieved a good four-star rating in Euro NCAP crash tests but you have to pay extra for side airbags. You even need to pay to get rear head restraints on Pop-trimmed cars, but every version does at least come with stability control and tyre-pressure monitoring. Security experts Thatcham awarded the Panda just two out of five for its resistance to theft, and one out of five for its resistance to being broken into.

Unfortunately the Panda was rated below average for reliability in our latest customer satisfaction survey, too. Consequently those looking for a secure, reliable option should probably look elsewhere.