| Starting from the innovative Panda project, it is worthwhile to look into the research results which lead Aldo Mantovani and the Italdesign Engineering Division to think up and patent the 4x4 version of the Panda.
Given the ample engine space and ground set-up of the Panda, the designers and the planners saw the possibility of producing 4x4 model and a multiuse “Strip” model (an off-road, free-time, beach and picnic vehicle) for the market segment aimed at young people.
The 4x4 project started up without a specific request coming from FIAT.
Italdesign actually produced three functioning prototypes and tested them on mixed terrain.
The research was so successful that FIAT decided to develop the 4x4 program that was industrialized in cooperation with the Austrian company Styer-Puch; the first models were manufactured in 1983.
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