GENEVA MOTOR SHOW: Fiat City Car and Pick-Up concepts unveiled

Fiat has pulled the drapes off five radical concepts that preview a new range of low-cost EVs, including a city car that gives us our closest look yet at the incoming 2024 Fiat Panda EV due mid-year.

The remaining members of the range will be launched over the next four years.

Instead of sharing the Fiat 500e’s bespoke architecture, all five concepts are underpinned by the Stellantis group’s ‘Smart Car’ platform that is derived from the PSA Group’s old CMA platform.

Already used under the Citroen e-C3, the platform has been re-engineered to cut costs while being highly versatile, meaning all five models could be offered with combustion and hybrid powertrains as well as battery-electric propulsion.

Out of the five, the City Car concept is set to be most influential.

Drawing plenty of cues from the original Panda 4x4 (1983-1992), the show car’s boxy styling pays homage to the original that was penned by legendary Italian stylist Giorgetto Giugiaro.

Other less obvious influences in the car dubbed the Mega Panda include an oval-shaped roof inspired by Fiat’s Lingotto roof-top test track, with the oval shape repeated on the dash, displays and head restraints.

The City Car is expected to have a bigger footprint than the series-production Panda that will be revealed in July, and could even go on to inspire a Panda-based SUV.

Inside, Fiat says it has selected recycled materials for the plastics and used sustainable bamboo throughout to lower its environmental impact.

The Fiat Pick-Up concept, meanwhile, is the best indication yet on how the brand plans to replace its Strada ute, which remains the best-selling car in Brazil.

Like the future Panda, designers have applied blocky retro styling to the small lifestyle-oriented dual-cab.

What could be relevant for our market is Fiat’s declaration that it wants to replicate the success of the Strada in Latin America globally, including Europe – a less-than-subtle hint the next-gen ute will be rolled out to new markets that could potentially include Australia, but only if a suitable business case is found.

As well as its cubist looks, the ute has an interesting low waistline, full-width panoramic roof and thin rails used for the sports bar that frame a short bed.

Said to blend the comfort of an SUV with the functionality of a light commercial vehicle, Fiat said the Pick-Up would put the “fun into functionality”.

The remaining concepts include the Fiat Fastback, which looks closely related to the Pick-Up and has been designed to replace the Fiat Fastback and Tipo sold in Latin America.

Next up is the SUV concept that’s touted as the ‘giga-Panda’, taking aim at low-cost European compact SUVs like the Dacia Duster.

Finally, the Camper blends an SUV, people-mover and a van into one adventure-loving concept.

Commenting on the five new concepts, Fiat chief executive Olivier Francois said: “Fiat is a global brand with 1.3 million cars sold last year and solid leadership in many parts of the world.

“We are in a global game and our next step will be to transition from local products to a global offer that can benefit all of our customers everywhere in the world.

“We are excited to share this glimpse into our future – a very near future actually, since the first car will be presented in four months during the brand’s 125th anniversary celebration.

“That car will then be followed by one new model every year.”

When the Panda arrives in Europe in July, the entry-level petrol version is expected to be priced at around €17,500 ($A29,000) while the EV should start from less than €20,000 ($A33,100) and offer a range of between 200-320km.

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