I quite fancy some open top motoring....

DKLS

Whatever you choose I would suggest getting one with with heated seats, I always thought I would be driving a rag top in the sun, but they are great fun driving at night or in the middle of winter.

Tinks74

Another vote for the Focus convertible.

I had looked at the SAAB before I got mine, what swung it for me was the hard top of the Focus.

I'm now on my second due to being the first being rear ended on the motorway (just as a side note I now know that new replacement boot lid is £1200 and boot/roof hinges are £1500 each, that plus the cost of the bumper and two wings is what did for mine so I wouldn't entertain one that had any kind of boot damage)

My partner has a 5 door Focus of the same age and once you are sat in the drivers seat there is very little difference, you may consider that to be a good or a bad thing I don't know.

It functions just as well roof up as roof down, I have the 2l Diesel and it is enough to put a smile on your face but it isn't what you a sporty car more of a steady cruiser.

The boot space roof up is enormous, we refer to it as a three body boot, 534 litres, which at the time of manufacture it was the largest in its class, roof down it is 248 litres which to be honest is still pretty big and a lot bigger than most convertibles.

It has four seats but as with most convertibles you probably wouldn't want to sit there for any length of time.

If you do consider one a few things to consider:
- The 2 litre diesel is the recommended engine for performance
- Some of the early ones (2006-8) had roof seal problems but Ford appears to have fixed that, touchwood mine have not had any leaking issues at least and I periodically daub them with a rubber treatment to try to maintain them.
- They stopped making them in 2010 I think, my first one was registered Oct 2011 on a 61 plate but I know its manufacture date was March 2010 so it had been hanging around a bit before it was registered.
- Wind - Not that the buffeting is bad in the front seats but if anyone has long hair they would benefit from getting a wind break, the buffeting in the back however is a little more pronounced.

Overall I find it is a very practical car with an element of fun.

Regarding the convertible naysayers - you'll probably end up driving top down more than people think, it can be quite nice top down on a sunny winters day wrapped up with the heating on.

Whatever you decide upon enjoy!

Hoof_Hearted

Well, I hate to disappoint you chaps, but it is not my postcode. I wouldn't be looking at a £2,500 car if I lived in Gerrard's Cross.

Fantastic advice. Thank you all. I have had an MX-5 and loved it, so it's a possibility but not so easy to get in and out of. Certainly look at the Focus, too. Probably will have a look at the Saab -- it's not big money for the car.

suki1964

As the only family car the focus was a dream As Tinks has said, great drive with or without lid and the boot space was ginormous. You do need a wind shield, esp if you are driving at speed with anyone in the back seat

We also had two. I put the first one through a hedge. It was 3 months old . When they scanned it, there was no problem with the roof alignment at all, the crumple zone done it's job. Fella who bought it spent 3k getting it back on the road using ford parts - insurance was being quoted 8k:eek:

marlot

dcouponzzzz wrote: »

If you think about it, you'll save a lot of money by renting a soft top car for the sunny days you fancy having the wind blow through your hair. for the other 320+ days of the year any other is more practical, and you'd spend less.

I use my MX-5 mk3 as my main car, and the roof is typically down as long as it's above 6C outside.

With the windows up, and heated seats its perfectly cozy.

Gloomendoom

I used one for about a month in Australia. It was a nice car to drive.

I can't comment on the cost of ownership as it was borrowed. Nothing went wrong with it while I had it.

burlington6

Focus convertible was always a bit of a dog in the looks department

iolanthe07

marlot wrote: »

I use my MX-5 mk3 as my main car, and the roof is typically down as long as it's above 6C outside.

With the windows up, and heated seats its perfectly cozy.

Another vote for the MX5. I use mine as a second car, but with the removable fibreglass top it is fine in the winter. Mine even has air conditioning, which seems strange for a convertible! I'm 70 and I can climb in and out OK.

Nobbie1967

iolanthe07 wrote: »

Another vote for the MX5. I use mine as a second car, but with the removable fibreglass top it is fine in the winter. Mine even has air conditioning, which seems strange for a convertible! I'm 70 and I can climb in and out OK.

AC is really useful in a convertible as it can get really hot sat in the baking sun surrounded by a black interior if you get stuck in traffic.

tommyjj

Several friends & family members have had Saab 93s of that age, and they've all developed serious problems. However, in all cases the mileages were in excess of 100,000 by the time problems arose.

Watch out for issues with the dual-mass flywheel (which you should be able to hear) and steering rack problems.

For that price, and with that mileage, I'd say go for it.