While the roads in Ireland might be rough, the gravel tracks of Italy’s mountainous regions can be rougher still, a situation which gave birth to the Fiat Panda 4X4 in 1983.
The boxy square shape of the original 1980 hatchback became famous throughout the world and the model, in the original styling, continued in production in Italy up until 2003.
The current Panda was launched in 2014.
Austrian connection
Marrying a beefed up hatchback body to an Austrian Steyr-Puch lightweight four-wheel-drive (4WD) system, which included everything from the clutch through to the rear axle and brakes, produced a lightweight off-roader that was ahead of its time.
To mark the 40th anniversary of the Panda 4X4’s original launch, an Italian custom shop is to produce a limited number of replicas, although it is not clear just how many or at what price.
However, reports in the Italian press suggest that it will be powered by 1,242cc petrol engine borrowed from the Fiat Punto connected to a selectable 4WD system by a Newtron hybrid transmission, which boosts maximum power from 75hp to 90hp.
This is an improvement from the first Panda 4X4 which offered 43hp from its 900cc engine, although the car’s weight of just 800kg went someway to compensating for this shortfall in the bonnet department.
Panda 4X4 – fit for off road
The project is being undertaken by a motorcycles custom shop from Ferrara with the rather indelicate name of ‘Inglorious Basterds Cycle’ (IBC).
More used to producing exotic one-off custom bikes to customers’ requirements, the team running the firm claim to be both passionate about machinery, and ‘polyvalent’.
The styling which includes larger wheels and plastic body panels, is said to be inspired by not just the Panda 4X4, it also carries cues from the Fiat Campagnola, an off roader from the 1950s which, like the early Land Rovers, was based on the Willys jeep which it was set to replace in the Italian army.
Quite when we will see the finished product in the flesh is unclear, but for fans of classic cars it will a refreshing change from today’s endless variations on the theme of an egg.
