Panda Antarctica starts epic trip to Sochi Games

THE WINTER-THEMED limited-edition Fiat Panda 4x4 Antarctica has set out on an epic commute from Turin to its Winter Olympics home in Sochi, Russia.

The Panda Antarctica, in association with sponsors Nokia, Nitro Snowboards and Beats by Dr Dre, began its journey last week. It’s a marketing exercise aimed at young people, who might be into fashion or winter sports and who just might buy a Panda.

Members of Fiat’s Freestyle team will alternate places on the route, with multimedia journalist Gersin Livia along for the whole journey.

The team will visit 16 different European locations en route – including some apparently unexpected stops – to Sochi with the aim of capturing the most peculiar aspects of the local cultures.

A team of outstanding photographers and videographers will also immortalise the crew's tricks and manoeuvres in a few characteristic locations like Dracula's castle in Transylvania and the Potëmkin Stairs in the Ukraine, or at other spectacular geographical sites like Mont Blanc and Lake Geneva.

The Panda 4x4 is widely regarded as one of the best small off-roaders money can buy, often shaming much bigger and more expensive machinery in tests.

More than 500,000 four-wheel drive Pandas have been built since the original version was launched in 1984.

By Press Association reporter