Used convertibles: a seasonal buy, a lasting pleasure
Fabric hood or folding hard top
A fabric hood is lighter, takes up less room folded and preserves more boot space. It insulates less well and needs care: appropriate cleaning, proofing products, and attention to the rear window when it is soft plastic.
A folding hard top brings the insulation and security of a coupé once closed, and lasts better. In exchange it is heavy, consumes much of the boot when open, and relies on a complex mechanism.
Either way, the roof is the most expensive component to repair on a convertible. Operating it fully, opening and closing, is the first thing to test.
What to check on the roof
Cycle the roof several times, stationary and on level ground. The sequence should be smooth, without hesitation or metallic noise, ending in a firm lock.
Look for signs of water ingress: damp carpets, a musty smell, a stained boot mat, corrosion on exposed screws in the wheel arches. An old leak leaves marks even once the cause is fixed.
On a fabric hood, examine the seams, the creases at the hinge points and the state of the rear window. On a hard top, check panel alignment when closed and the absence of play.
Living with a convertible
Rear space is almost always token, including on four-seaters. The boot is small, and smaller still with the roof down: that is the figure to look at in the specification, not the maximum.
Rearward visibility with the roof up is often limited, which makes parking sensors more useful here than elsewhere.
On the other hand, the structure reinforced to compensate for the missing roof makes these cars heavy, and their behaviour more settled than you might expect.
Engines and transmission
The extra weight from body reinforcement penalises entry-level engines. One that is adequate in the equivalent saloon can feel marginal here.
Diesel exists on the segment but is less sought after: engine noise, muted with the roof up, becomes much more present once it is down.
An automatic suits the typical use of these cars – leisure rather than commuting – and is easier to sell on.
Mileage, servicing and standing time
Convertibles often show low mileage because they are a second car. That is mechanically good, but long periods standing have their own effects: a tired battery, flat-spotted tyres, aged fluids, pitted brakes.
A service book respected despite low mileage, with oil changes done to the calendar rather than the odometer, is a better indicator here than the mileage itself.
What it is for
A convertible works as a pleasure car or a household's second vehicle. As an only car it forces real compromises on luggage and rear seats.
The links below let you narrow by engine, gearbox or budget.
