Two Fiat EVs arriving this year

Panda will be renewed at last, becoming an SUV, while supermini revival is expected

Panda’s been almost unchanged since 2011

Fiat will launch two new electric cars this year – and one of them is expected to be a small SUV badged as the Panda. The pair will be part of a major electrification push by Fiat parent company Stellantis. The group plans to expand its European EV portfolio from 22 models currently to 30 this year and 42 by the end of 2024, spread across 11 brands.

Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares announced the two new Fiats in an earnings call that detailed the company’s bumper 2022 profits. Tavares didn’t reveal the identity of either Fiat. However, one is slated to be built alongside Jeep’s new Avenger small SUV at Stellantis’s factory in Tychy, Poland, and sit on the same eCMP platform.

The Avenger will also be sold with combustion engines in select markets in southern Europe, meaning the new Panda could also be sold with a petrol option. The second new Fiat could be a replacement for the long-dead Punto supermini. The existence of a successor model was revealed by Fiat boss Olivier François in an interview with Autocar last year when he outlined the brand’s revival.

“There will be a big return in the B-segment and crossovers,” said François. “We’re going back to the most relevant segments. We only have the 500X now. My objective is to have three.” In the UK, Fiat is almost completely reliant on the ageing 500 city car and new electric 500 after winding down sales of the 500X small SUV, as well as the Panda city car and the Tipo family car. Two new EVs would revitalise the brand across Europe after years of neglect by former owner Fiat Chrysler Automobiles. Two more crossovers are also planned, confirmed François last year, with their designs to be heavily influenced by the 2019 Centoventi concept.