MTI’s Drop Top Ten
With the summer set to be dry and warm according to our weather people (yeah right!) some of the insiders have come up with a theory this year. It won’t be re-inventing the wheel to predict that the drop top boom is set to continue growing and with convertible sales now accounting for nearly 8% of new and used car sales in the UK, it’s hardly surprising that any car maker wanting to keep up with the joneses has at least 1 in their stable. So today let’s look at a few (well 10 to be precise) of our favourites and why. We are looking at looks (of course) practicality, value for money, residual values, and most importantly whether you would still want to be in one past September – wind noise and wow factor!
 | Mazda MX5 - Perfect little 2 seater, ideal for the summer and those visits down the pub with your lover, very reliable, holds value superbly and always in fashion! |
 | Audi TT - Great looking car, futuristic lines, great road holding, the drop top that says you’ve arrived! |
 | BMW 3 Series - Always looked sexy, every shape seems to improve, makes you feel like Richard Gere in American gigolo, popular across all age and genders a proper convertible especially the auto versions. |
 | Saab 9-3 - Pleasing aesthetics, fantastic value 2nd hand, according to owners once driven always cherished, look lovely in loud colours |
 | VW Beetle - The original girls cab, which can be driven by boys without making them feel like a hairdresser, great residual values. |
 | Honda S2000 - Very, very quick, a gay iconic car if ever there was one, the colour combinations are always cool |
 | Mercedes SLK - The daddy of drop tops, class personified, look expensive because they are expensive, ooze quality and sex appeal, the ultimate driving experience. |
 | Jaguar XK - A car that can give you goose pimples when you sit in has to have something going for it, great looking car big cat, never looks dated even 10 yr old ones still fetch great money and have people queuing up to own. |
 | Mini - Came from nowhere, the success story of the millennium and a car that girls up and down the land dream about! |
 | Toyota MR2 - On the list because of what it once was, stylish and cool every college boy wanted one and the girls were guaranteed to be impressed! |
Special mention to the Morris Minor Convertible…
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I see no mention of the Citroen C3 Pluriel…not much of a top 10 then is it?
Thanks Tony.
Here is the verdict of WhatCar on the C3 Pluriel (sounds like it comes from a medical dictionary…”well I’m afraid Mr Citroen you’ve dislocated your pluriel”)
Buying & owning – A cheap convertible
Behind the wheel – Decent dash, but dodgy seats
Ride & handling – Not good on either count
Quality & reliability – Not exactly plush
Space & practicality – Not as practical as it should be
Refinement – Not awful, but not great, either
Hmmm…now if it had made it into the top ten then I think you may have a point…
Tony is surely being sarcastic??!!
The picture you have for the BMW is the 6 series – which is an icon of drop top motoring but over £20k. What about the Audi A4? It is as good as the BMW 3 series and less niche than the Saab.
Thanks John….oops about the BMW (changed it to a nice beige model!) and as for the A4, it was certainly considered but the TT won out and we didn’t want two Audi’s in the list. But for what it’s worth I prefer the A4 too.
And what of the various Peugeot 207cc or new 308cc? The best selling hard top cabriolets on the market?
simple they are french nuff said!!!