Best £20k electric car showdown: Renault 5 vs Fiat Grande Panda

That 1980 icon's looks were the result of an obsessively rational pursuit of low production costs, the car's simple panel pressings and flat glass helping to make it easier and cheaper to build than contemporary rivals. This new Panda was also conceived with a beady eye on the bottom line, but the cost savings have been achieved through the modern-day expedient of hardware sharing: it sits on Stellantis's Smart Car platform, which also underpins the new Citroën C3, Citroën C3 Aircross and Vauxhall Frontera.

While the 5 aims for a certain suave sophistication, the Panda is out-and-out fun in its approach. Everywhere you look there's a design flourish that captivates or an Easter egg ready to be found, from the large 'PANDA' script stamped into its flanks through to numerous appearances of Fiat's old diagonal four-bar logo and our entry-level Pop version's steel wheels.

Highlights include the holographic badges in the C-pillars, the pixelated LED headlamps and the 3D tail-lights that appear to be housed in a Perspex display case. Or how about the neat, retractable charging cable hidden in the front grille? Whichever way you look at it, the Panda effortlessly mixes the clever and the cool.

Fiat's designers have kept the creativity coming inside, where the Panda melds form and function to excellent effect. Jump behind the wheel and you're greeted by a neat digital instrument display and infotainment touchscreen that are framed within an evocation of the old Lingotto factory's rooftop test track. Finished in a translucent yellow plastic, it glows pleasingly when backlit by the sun. Embossed 'Panda' badges are everywhere, while the word 'ciao' is stamped on the inside of the tailgate.

It's colourful too, from the blue plastic trim for the dashboard and doors (made from recycled drinks containers) to the natty fabric covering the glovebox. Combined with the large windows, this creates a bright and cheery ambience.

What it can't match is the 5's premium feel and sense of solidity - although it feels robust enough. It's all so easy to use, too, with physical controls for frequently used functions and straightforward infotainment that syncs seamlessly with your phone.

Stick your head into the 5 and it all seems a little sombre at first, but even in entry-level Evolution guise its richer materials and a more expensive-looking digital display give it a classier atmosphere. This is a cooler and more cosseting environment - an upmarket counterpoint to the Panda's airy feel and funky charm. There are some nods to its ancestor (the stitched dashtop matching the ribbed moulding of the original), but the 5, slathered in soft-touch materials, feels a more grown-up proposition.

Whichever way you cut it, the Panda is the more practical machine. For starters, there's more space for those sitting in the back. The 5's more cramped rear compartment is compounded by smaller side windows and dark trim that combine to create a sense of claustrophobia. Fiat's designers have also put more thought into storage, dotting handy cubbies, trays and compartments around the Panda's cabin; Renault's lot force you to leave more of your stuff in trouser pockets.

The Panda's 361-litre load area sticks the boot into the 5 for carrying capacity, holding a handy 35-litre advantage. Both benefit from a 60/40-split folding rear bench but are also hobbled by high load lips. Yet in the final reckoning, the Panda is the more roomy and versatile option overall. This is a car that could just about pass muster as your only set of family wheels.

Settle yourself behind the wheel and prepare to go for a drive and the tables turn. You sit lower in the 5 and it's easier to find the perfect seating position; the Panda's driver is a little more perched, its smattering of rugged SUV exterior cues carrying over to a raised driving position. The 5 isn't without its flaws, though: if you manage to operate the column-mounted gear selector without setting the wipers flailing, then kudos to you.

The 5's more upmarket visual and tactile vibe translates to the initial driving experience. With its multi-link rear axle and greater use of sound- deadening, it has a greater sense of plushness from the get-go.

In truth, there's little in it for outright ride quality between the pair, each dealing with bigger long-wave undulations with a nicely damped waft yet exhibiting some brittleness over more challenging torn and twisted surfaces, of which there are many here in the Malvern Hills. Yet in the 5, nastier impacts are more muted, while it rounds the edges of the sharper impacts better than the Panda. The 5 is a more hushed cruiser overall, insulating its occupants more effectively from wind and road noise. But while the Panda is a more obtrusive companion, it's far from wearing and, range aside, neither car should dissuade you from embarking on long-haul excursions.

It's in more dynamic situations that the 5 gets to put some distance - literally - between itself and the Fiat. While its 118bhp motor is just 7bhp up on the Panda's, the fractionally lighter and much torquier 5 responds more crisply to its accelerator (the Panda is a little sluggish when first moving away), while ramping up through the driver modes to Sport results in ever-increasing urgency to the requests of your right foot. It's no surprise to find the 5's claimed 0-62mph time of 9.0sec is a couple of seconds faster than the Panda's, even if both have more than enough urge for everyday use.

The Panda's less racy remit is highlighted by its shortage of adjustable drive settings (there's just a Comfort button that adds a syrupy response to the accelerator) and lack of adjustment for the regenerative braking. On the plus side, the default set-up offers such a natural off-throttle retardation calibration that you rarely miss the 5's scope for manual fine-tuning.

The 5 also feels fleeter of foot through the corners, even if its light steering's sensitivity away from the straight-ahead means delicacy is needed for smooth progress (the brake pedal requires an equally soft touch). 

Of course, the upshot is that the 5 feels alive when pushing on, darting towards the apex with greater alacrity and proving keener to subtly tighten its line with a lift of the throttle. There's real warm-hatch energy to the French car and, in many respects, it's a more satisfying steer than its hotter sibling, the Alpine A290.

Yet the Panda isn't without driver appeal. Its steering is more naturally paced and has greater reassuring heft, while its wider tyres (205-section, compared with 195-section on the 5) means it actually clings on harder and corners with the same even-keeled poise. It's not quite as biddable or nimble but, like all the best small Italian and French machinery, it can cover ground deceptively quickly, resulting in surprising point-to-point pace.

Totting up the scores at the end of a hard day's evaluation it quickly becomes clear that this pair are pretty much tied on points. Yet despite being so closely matched, the 5 and Panda actually have quite different characters.

The 5 is a more engaging driver's car, faster and more agile, and for people like us that counts for rather a lot. Yet for all its style, verve and upmarket allure, it's a less versatile small car - one that, like the original BMW Mini of 2000, is an object of desire as much as one of utility. For many that will be just fine, but the Panda proves that it's possible to be both charming and useful.

No, it's not quite as clear-sighted in its logic as some of Fiat's greatest pint-sized hits, and some of the design flourishes are just a little try-hard, but the Panda is a car that makes you grin just by being in its presence, while its thoughtful packaging allows it to just about fulfil the role of a larger car, much like the Uno did in the 1980s and first-generation Punto did in the 1990s.

Ultimately, each of our contenders oozes the sort of star quality that makes them difficult to resist. Yet in the final reckoning, the Panda's panache, purposefulness and price give it the win by the width of a single strand of spaghetto. Forza, Fiat - bravissimo!

Plug and play

Both of these cars favour a relatively small battery (40kWh for the 5 and 44kWh for the Panda), which result in similar WLTP ranges (the Panda's 199 miles pipping the 5's by seven miles). On a relatively mild spring day, each car reckoned somewhere around 185 miles was possible on a nearly full charge. We also saw economy figures that hovered around the 4.0mpkWh mark when they were driven swiftly but sensibly (the 5 earns efficiency bonus points for its standard heat pump).