FIAT Panda K-Way - A Tribute To The Waterproof Jacket... | Geneva International Motor Show 2015

K-Way. In 1965, Leon Claude Duhamel invented the lightweight, nylon, pac-a-mac and thus the K-Way brand was born.

What has this got to do with a Fiat Panda? Well, absolutely nothing, which is why I’m a little confused as to why they have launched the FIAT Panda K-Way Special Edition. On show at the 2015 International Geneva Motor Show, the K-Way celebrates 50 years of the pac-a-mac in all the ways you would expect and some you really wouldn’t.

I was anticipating some K-Way badging (check), the orange wing mirrors (check) and a special blue hue (check). But FIAT have gone over and above the usual name and a sticker limited edition sales technique.

Firstly, the top of the dash is also a similar shade of blue to the exterior and, oh-my-word, just look at those seatbelts! Coloured in the same way as the famous zip on a K-Way jacket, they are orange and yellow, striped. Certainly, you will stand out from the crowd!

In the rear, though, is something quite weird. I can’t quite decide if it’s cool or not. Clearly for children, there is a K-Way bag zipped on to the rear of the front seats. The kids can fill it up with all sorts of journey essentials, and no doubt un-zip, re-zip and un-zip again ad infinitum for the whole trip. In fact, for reasons I’m not sure why, the whole rear of the seats can also be zipped off (presumably to wash mucky fingerprints off..?)

So, in summary then. It’s odd, a bit gaudy, unrelated to waterproof jackets and yet I applaud FIAT for going the extra mile. The thing is, I can’t help but think the time and money spent on this could have been put towards a spiritual successor to the 100hp? Now that would go well alongside the upcoming 124 Spider! Be sure to check out the quick video below too.

Why not read: An Old Name Returns & A Strange New One Emerges - Opel Karl/Vauxhall Viva - Geneva International Motor Show 2015