Would you rather buy a cheap Ferrari – or the perfect Fiat Panda 4x4?

Design master Giorgetto Giugiaro once called the Fiat Panda the greatest of his creations. Now you have the rare chance to own one of the best Offroad Pandas ever built. The only question is: are you quick enough?

Do you have a soft spot for edgy Italian designer cars from the 1980s? And do you have 65.000 US-Dollars on hand to go car shopping in the Classic Driver Market? Well, then you could either go for a well-used Ferrari 308 GT/4 Dino or Mondial – or buy what is arguably the world’s most pristine Fiat Panda 4x4. For sale with The Cultivated Collector in Connecticut, this final-year, first-series Fiat Panda 4x4 Verde Alpi was selected to receive a no-expense spared, rotisserie restoration overseen by our friends at Gulfblue Automobili. As envisioned by Matthew Ivanhoe of The Cultivated Collector, this remarkable restomod Fiat Panda 4x4 is not only as-new, but also a unique example of the vibrant and bold style of the 1980s, resplendent in its Verde Alpi exterior and Missoni interior.

Having celebrated the Fiat Panda’s versatility and iconic design when good examples were still available for a fistful of Swiss Franks, we often lay awake at night cursing ourselves for not buying all well-kept Pandas on the market a decade ago. But the ship has sailed, and organizing the first Classic Driver 4x4 Panda Meet in St Moritz has certainly not helped the cause of keeping the car a secret. Now the question we ask ourselves is: did we reach the summit of the panda hype, just like we expected for the Porsche 911 some years ago? Or will the appreciation for Giugiaro's iconic shoebox design only keep growing? If yes, the most expensive Fiat Panda 4x4 on the market could soon be a much better investment than any Ferrari. Think about it!