New 2013 Fiat Panda 4x4 Soft Crossover Revealed in Patent Drawings

That Fiat was planning to expand the range of its latest Panda city car with an all-wheel drive, crossover version is something we not only knew from the moment the Italian automaker presented the regular model at last year's Frankfurt Motor Show, but had also spied this past winter.

And while the scoop photos of the camouflaged prototype gave us a rough look at the next Panda 4x4, we now got our hands on some revealing patent drawings that provide a meticulous view of the styling changes.

The images show that the Panda 4x4 will stand taller than the regular model thanks to an increased suspension travel.

There are also plastic mouldings running around the wheel arches and the lower parts of the body, plus newly designed front and rear bumpers that house silver-colored skid plates, and new front fog lamp housings.

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Fiat to Halt Production in Two More Plants Due to Hauler's Strike, Says it's Reaching a Breaking Point

Adding to the Fiat Group's long list of troubles in Europe is the prolonged vehicle transporter strike in Italy. The company issued a statement today saying that it will temporarily suspend production at two plants in the country.

These include the Cassino plant (from March 27 to 29) and the Giambattista Vico plant in Pomigliano d'Arco (from March 26 to 27), where the all-important new Panda (currently being launched across Europe) is produced.

"The vehicle transporter strike involving only a minority of drivers' associations, which has now been in effect for more than a month, is causing major disruption for the automotive sector in Italy," Fiat said in a statement.

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Chevy Volt and Opel Ampera win 2012 European Car of the Year Award

The Chevrolet Volt and its sister model, the Ampera, which is sold as under both the Opel and Vauxhall nameplates, have won the 2012 European Car of the Year (COTY) Award with 330 points.

Coming into second place was the Volkswagen Up! city car with 281 points while the new generation of the Ford Focus finished third with 256 points.

The other cars that made it to the final round of the competition were the Range Rover Evoque (186 points), Fiat Panda (156 points), Citroen DS5 (144 points) and the Toyota Yaris (122 points).

The competition brought together votes from 59 automotive journalists in 23 European countries.

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Fiat Panda Arrives in the UK with a Starting Price of £8,900

One of the Fiat Group's most important new cars of 2012 has arrived in the UK. The first deliveries of the third generation Fiat Panda will begin at the end of this month with on-the-road prices starting from £8,900 for the base petrol model rising to £12,250 for the top-of-the-range diesel variant.

The new Panda is available at launch with a choice of three Euro 5-specification engines including a 69bhp 1.2-litre petrol, an 85bhp 0.9-litre TwinAir turbocharged two-cylinder petrol, and a 75bhp 1.3-litre MultiJet 2 turbodiesel.

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Scoop: Fiat Prepares 4x4 Edition of its New Panda City Car

Since the first generation of the Panda, Fiat has always offered four-wheel drive versions of its popular city car and this is not going to change with the newest iteration of the model that was unveiled at last year's Frankfurt Motor Show.

Spied here during cold weather testing in Europe, is a prototype of the third generation Panda 4x4, which is expected to join the range towards the end of the year or in early 2013.

The new Panda 4x4 will use a similar all-wheel drive setup with its predecessor featuring a hydraulic clutch in front of the rear differential. Engine choices are believed to include both diesel and petrol units.

Aside from the all-wheel drive system, Fiat's engineers will make changes to the suspension that will be strengthened and raised appropriately, as well as to the steering system.

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New Fiat Panda Ad Lifts a Page from Chrysler's "Imported from Detroit" Campaign Book

Fiat has aired a new commercial for its third generation Panda city car in its home market titled "This is the Italy we like", which uses a similar (but not identical) theme to the super successful and ongoing "Imported in Detroit" campaign from its Chrysler partner.

Only this time, the promo film focuses on the Italian origins of the Panda, the latest version of which is produced at the Fiat Group's renewed Pomigliano d'Arco Plant, near Naples, and also calls upon Italians to change the views imposed by others and show the world who they are and what they are capable of creating.

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2012 Fiat Panda: New Mega Gallery with 171 Photos

We have already seen the 2012 Fiat Panda at its world premiere at the Frankfurt Motor Show this past September, but the Italian brand has just dropped a massive gallery comprising of more than 170 high-resolution photos, some of which are quite picturesque.

To refresh your memory, this is just the third iteration of the Panda in the model's 31-year history. It's predecessor were extremely successful and popular throughout Europe having sold some 6.5 million units over the past three decades.

Fiat hopes to build on the success of the Panda's predecessors with the new model, which is available exclusively with five doors and comes with a slightly larger body that measures 3,650 mm long, 1,640 mm wide and 1,550 mm tall for improved passenger space.

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Euro NCAP: Two Chinese Models get 4 Stars for Safety, Malibu and Beetle Awarded with 5 Stars

The results are in for Euro NCAP’s fifth and last launch of 2011. A total of 14 cars were tested including two Chinese newcomers, the MG6 and the Geely Emgrand EC7, both of which achieved a four star rating, proving that at least some Chinese brands are starting to take safety seriously.

Michiel van Ratingen, Euro NCAP Secretary General commented: "These results mark a milestone for the Chinese automotive industry. It is a clear sign that Chinese car makers are building on recent experiences and rapidly investing in better vehicle safety. Even with the upcoming increased demands, five stars are expected to be within reach soon."

Four more vehicles that are new were given a four-star rating, including the Fiat Panda, Jeep Grand Cherokee, Jaguar XF and the EV Renault Fluence ZE.

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IAA 2011: Fiat Ready to Conquer the City Car Segment with All-New Panda

The most important debut from a sales point of view for the Fiat Group at the Frankfurt Motor Show is the brand-new, third generation Fiat Panda city car. With more than 6.5 million sales spread over two generations and 31 years, the Panda is one of Fiat's most successful models.

The 2012 Panda has been completely renewed and comes with a larger body, fresh looks, improved versatility and a new range of engines.

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Fiat’s 2012 Nuova Panda to Fight for City-Car Supremacy

Replacing a car with a 31-year long history is never an easy task. Especially if it has become one of Fiat's most successful city cars offering ample interior space and practicality for its size.

The first generation of the model introduced in 1980, was the first city car to offer a diesel engine (1986), four-wheel drive (1983) and one of the first electric variants (the Elettra in 1990), while the second generation Panda that was launched in 2003, managed to keep Fiat afloat and formed the base for the successful 500.

Now it's time for Fiat to lift the wraps on the third iteration of the Panda that will make its world premiere in Frankfurt. The “Nuova” (that’s Italian for new) Panda has grown in dimensions compared to its predecessor measuring 3,650 mm long (vs 3,538), 1,640 mm wide (vs 1,578) and 1,550 mm tall (vs 1,450).

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New 2012 Fiat Panda Prototypes Filmed in Italy Ahead of Frankfurt Debut

Fiat's engineers are putting the final touches on the third generation of the Italian firm's best-seller in the mini segment, the Panda, which will make its world premiere at the Frankfurt Motor Show this September before going on sale in select European markets by the end of the year, with the rest to follow in early 2012.

If you're weren’t content with our recent spy photographs of the prototype 2012 Panda, you might want to take a look at this video that was said to have been filmed in Napoli, Italy.

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Fiat Panda Gets Euro 5 Engines in the UK

Last February Fiat recorded Europe’s lowest average CO2 emissions for the fourth year in a row. And now it reinforces its eco-friendly character by introducing an all-Euro 5 engine line-up across the Panda range in Britain. Read more »

SPIED: All-New 2012 Fiat Panda Caught Stretching out in the Sun

The car that helped Fiat get back on its feet at the turn of the century, the nuova Panda, will soon give its place to an all-new model that was snagged by Carscoop’s photographers during hot weather testing in Europe.

It's hard to picture the styling details with the heavy cladding and camouflage on the prototype, but it’s evident that new model will retain the shape of the tall-bodied, second generation Panda.

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Report: Fiat to Begin Assembly of New 2012 Panda Mini in November

The first examples of the successor to Fiat’s current generation Panda city car will roll off the production line in Italy this November, according to a top Fiat executive. The third generation of the Panda is scheduled to make its world premiere at the Frankfurt Motor Show in mid-September.

"We are on track in refurbishing Pomigliano, which will become a truly state-of-the-art plant when it begins production in November," Fiat Group chief manufacturing officer Stefan Ketter told Autonews Europe.

Last year, Fiat Group CEO Sergio Marchionne announced that the updated Pomigliano d'Arco plant in central Italy would manufacturer the new Panda as part of the firm’s “Fabbrica Italia” (Italian factory) plan to increase vehicle productivity in Italy from around 650,000 units in 2010 to approximately 1.4 million cars in 2014.

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Fiat Panda and Lancia Ypsilon Replacements Pushed Back for 2012

Following CEO Sergio Marchionne's comments at the 2010 Paris Motor Show (see here), Autonews Europe has uncovered new information regarding the Fiat Group's future product launches.

One of Fiat's most important models in Europe, the third generation Panda, was originally due in summer 2010 but its launch had already been pushed back to September 2011. Now, sources inside the company told the news site that the introduction of the small five-door hatchback will be further delayed until January 2012.

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Fiat Celebrates Panda's 30th Anniversary with Special Edition Model

The Fiat Panda turns 30 this year and in celebration of the event, the Italian automaker has presented a [supposedly] special edition version with exclusive content. The commemorative model starts out as the Active 1.1, but gains the same black-jean interior trim as the Panda 4x4 Glam as well as a special finish on the B- and C-columns. And well, that's about it.

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