The top 10 most practical convertibles
Latest drop-tops more comfortable, safer than years past
 | |
 | Slide show |
 | New York cool See cool concepts and new production cars on display at this year’s New York auto show. more photos |
Even an auto-industry expert can end up regretting a car purchase — particularly if that car is a convertible.
“I owned a convertible in the 1980s, and that’s probably the reason I will never buy another one. It was pretty primitive by comparison to today’s models,” says Tom Libby, senior director of industry analysis for J.D. Power and Associates in Westlake Village, Calif.
Convertibles of that era were notorious for their shakes, rattles, creaks and leaks. But things have changed a lot in the last 25 years.
For starters, the latest convertibles are just plain built better than their predecessors.
“The quality of convertibles has improved significantly in recent years, especially in terms of fit and finish, reduced noise, vibration and harshness, and the design and engineering of the convertible top,” Libby says.
Improved folding tops, advanced safety technology and solid substructures make some new convertibles nearly as comfortable and practical as "regular" cars.
With that in mind, we’ve assembled a list of 10 models that present the fewest compromises to achieve top-down fun. We considered only models with useable rear seats and took into account interior space and layout, trunk size and how well the folding top works, among other factors. See the full list of most practical convertibles by clicking on the “slide show” link below.
The fabric tops on some new convertible models are so well insulated that they rival many solid-roof sedans and coupes in the way they keep out weather and noise.
Drive the Mercedes-Benz CLK-Class Cabriolet with its multi-layer fabric top up, and then take a spin in the CLK-Class Coupe. You’ll be hard pressed to tell a difference in road and wind noise. Even with the top down, the CLK-Class Cabriolet’s interior is immune to serious wind noise and buffeting while cruising at 80 miles per hour — as long as the side windows are up.
But an excellent power-folding top isn’t the only reason the Mercedes CLK-Class made our list of the most practical convertibles. A rear seat large enough to accommodate average-sized adults in relative comfort for short to moderate-length trips and a trunk that swallows an impressive amount of stuff help make it more practical than other Mercedes models, like the two-seat SL-Class and SLK-Class.
The Audi A4 Cabriolet and Saab 9-3 Cabriolet are direct competitors to the CLK-Class and also made our list, thanks to their similarly spacious interiors and well-crafted fabric roofs.
But as good as those cars’ tops are, they pale in comparison to that of the priciest model on our list, which is “practical” only for those wealthy enough not to flinch at its $407,000 base price: The Rolls-Royce Phantom Drophead Coupe boasts a fabric roof with five separate layers of insulation and a cashmere lining.
This showboat’s archrival, the $320,000 Bentley Azure, has a similarly impressive top and a rear seat that is slightly more spacious. But the Rolls ultimately edged out the Bentley on our list because of its unique side doors that are hinged at the rear — often called “suicide doors” by industry insiders and car buffs. These special doors make accessing the coddling rear seat easier than with conventional side doors.
While soft tops have steadily improved over the past couple of decades, the retractable hardtop burst on the scene in the late 1990s and revolutionized convertibles.
Mercedes-Benz was the first contemporary automaker to popularize a retractable metal roof with its 1997 SLK-Class and 2001 SL-Class roadsters (neither of which made our list because they only have two seats). But it was French automaker Peugeot that pioneered the hardtop convertible idea with its “Electronique Transformable” concept in 1936, and Ford followed with a mass-produced version, the Skyliner, made from 1957 through 1959.
Current folding hardtops are marvels of engineering: A series of complex pistons and hydraulics fold the rigid roof into sections that get sandwiched in layers and hidden in the trunk.
Hard tops are prized for the way they create what is essentially two cars in one: a sleek drop-top and a practical hard top coupe. Three models on our list have folding hard tops: the BMW 3 Series Convertible, Volkswagen Eos and Volvo C70.
Each vehicle uses a slightly different method of folding and stowing the top, but all have significantly less trunk space when the top is stowed. That and the considerable complexity and weight hard tops add over traditional fabric tops are their main disadvantages.
- Discuss Story On Newsvine
-
Rate Story:
View popularLowHigh - Instant Message
MORE FROM AUTOS |
 Autos Section Front |
| Add Autos headlines to your news reader: |