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Fiat's forthcoming Dacia Bigster rival could channel the spirit of the cult-classic Multipla MPV when it arrives in 2027.

The new SUV is one of two C-segment models that the Italian brand is set to launch in the next two years, alongside a rakish, raised hatchback. They were previewed by Panda-inspired SUV and Fastback concepts unveiled early last year.

Those models will be a maximum of 4.5 metres long and sit on the same cost-conscious Stellantis Smart Car platform as the smaller Grande Panda, enabling them to be offered with electric and hybrid powertrains.

While the new SUV will sit broadly as part of the Panda design family and distinct from the range inspired by the classic 500, Fiat bosses have hinted it won’t necessarily feature that name.

Asked about the risks of Fiat expanding beyond its core city car market into the C-segment, Fiat Europe boss Gaetano Thorel said: “It will be a challenge, because [it seems] we don’t have the same legacy with family movers as we do with [the] 500 and Panda, but in reality we have, because when you think about the Multipla, then Fiat has a story on that.

“But thanks to Stellantis, we have a possibility to offer our customers and dealers a full passengercar line-up from 2.5 metres to 4.4 metres. That is the Fiat territory.”

The Multipla arrived in 1998 as a 4m-long compact MPV with two rows of three seats and a host of space-saving features. The styling was divisive and the model was not a commercial success, but it won praise for its design, with Autocar’s 2000 road test calling it “the most innovative and exciting car in its class”.

The new model will have more of a traditional SUV appearance but could echo the Multipla in terms of maximising space in a small footprint. The Citroën C3 Aircross, which uses the same Smart Car platform as the Grande Panda, seats seven. 

The Fastback concept is likely to morph into a raised hatchback that will serve as a spiritual successor to the Fiat Tipo.

Fiat design chief François Leboine said future models would use design cues from the Grande Panda and elsewhere in its heritage line-up, but he insisted the brand wouldn’t fixate on retro designs.

“There is a retro flair on the products, but if you don’t know the past, the products still have to work,” he said. “We play with the codes of pop culture and car culture, but they have to work for a new generation.”

Ineos Automotive is in talks with Chery to build cars on a range-extender (REx) EV platform from the Chinese group’s iCaur off-road brand, Autocar has learned.

The tie-up would allow Ineos to move quickly to develop its postponed Fusilier REx off-roader and expand its line-up beyond the slow-selling Grenadier combustion-engined off-roader.

The launch of the Fusilier would give Ineos a crucial low-CO2 model that would allow it to comply with emissions regulations in both the UK and the European Union.

Currently, the company manages the regulations by selling some Grenadier models as commercial vehicles, thus ensuring it stays within the lighter-touch rules for low-volume manufacturers.

Ineos is expected to repurpose iCaur’s upcoming V27, an offroader that uses a 1.5-litre turbo engine as a generator when the charge from its battery – either 22kWh or 33kWh – is depleted. At 4.8m long and just under 2.0m tall, the V27 is larger than the Fusilier concept revealed last year but still smaller than the Grenadier.

The all-wheel-drive version packages an electric motor on each axle and produces up to 449bhp, iCaur has said.

Ineos declined to comment when approached by Autocar.

In May, iCaur CEO Su Jun released a picture of himself standing with a prototype of the V27, asking social media followers whether they agreed with comments that it was “the national version of the G-Class” or the “new-energy Land Cruiser”.

The iCaur brand is targeting sales in the UK and mainland Europe from early next year with a range of models starting with the V23 (pictured below), a small electric SUV. Subsequent models will include the V25 and a planned new ‘V21’ to rival the Jeep Avenger.

Chery CEO Yin Tongyue said in April last year that “two premium marques” in Europe wanted to use Chery platforms and the f rm was in talks with two others. One of those premium brands was Chery joint-venture partner JLR, which has since announced that it will revive the Freelander brand in China using Chery’s T1X platform, shared with Chery brands Omoda and Jaecoo. 

The other premium marque looks set to be Ineos. 

Renault Group CEO Luca de Meo also visited Chery’s hometown of Wuhu earlier this year and showed interest in the iCaur V23.

The iCar brand – which was forced to rename itself iCaur for exports to avoid a legal clash with Apple – has been a hit in China after the launch of the V23. The brand plans to repeat that success overseas and has set a goal of opening 2000 showrooms in 100 countries within three years.

Chery is very open to deals with European car makers. In Spain it has signed up with local brand EV Motors to sell its Tiggo range of SUVs under revived Spanish marque Ebro. Meanwhile, the same cars in Italy are badged under the local DR brand.

Both tie-ups involve an element of local assembly, with Ebro’s cars sent over as partially built kits and finished in Nissan’s former Barcelona plant.

Ineos could be expected to repurpose its former Smart car facility in Hambach, France, to build the Fusilier model from iCaur kits sent over from China. Extended-range EVs are included in the EU’s increased tariffs for China-built EVs, but assembling the cars in Europe could enable Ineos to circumvent them, provided that it can show it adds enough local value.