Folding Hardtop Convertible - Not RWD Circa £5k

[KTMsm]

My wife wants a 4 seat convertible sub £5k and whilst my first choice would be a 3 Series or CLK as it's for year round use I'd rather it wasn't RWD

Is there a decent FWD or 4WD alternative - she won't want a 307 or similar the only other one I can think of is the Eos but IIRC they weren't much good either

[trevalvole]

There was also the Focus CC and the Vauxhall Astra Twintop. With all these folding hardtops, I think you'd need to look into what issues there may be with their respective roofs.

[Jazoli]

308CC's are good cars, we've had a couple and they have been great, well built, reliable 2.0hdi motor, well specced and they look great (from certain angles)

Eos' are very leaky, Focus's have a very fat arse and feel very old, there's not a lot of choice if you want a fwd folding hardtop.

[MrGTI6]

As someone else has already mentioned, avoid the Eos! Very leaky and almost always damp/mouldy inside.

How about a second-gen C70? I prefer the original shape, but the second-gen has a metal folding roof. It's also FWD and can be had with five-cylinder petrol/diesel engines.

Failing that, something French is probably the best bet.

[charltjr]

I’d say that a RWD car with a set of all weather tyres like CrossClimates should cope with any road conditions short of very heavy snow with no problems at all.

[Bonefish Blues]

Volvo C70 fits the bill

[InitialDave]

Buy a BMW E93 and put Crossclimates on it.

Ditch the "no RWD" clause, it's silly.

Winter? If my septuagenarian mother can drive RWD year-round in Yorkshire, having done so for decades at this point, your wife can too.

[KTMsm]

I didn't know there was a second gen C70 - that's perfect - thanks

I prefer RWD and going sideways is what makes them fun but my wife wants to get down country lanes in the icey mornings with minimal risk and FWD is simply better at that

[SFTWend]

KTMsm said:

I didn't know there was a second gen C70 - that's perfect - thanks

I prefer RWD and going sideways is what makes them fun but my wife wants to get down country lanes in the icey mornings with minimal risk and FWD is simply better at that

Another vote for the C70 second generation. We had an old T5 for a while with 140k miles, that has the five cylinder engine, and it was lovely and comfortable. Auto best avoided, which is much higher tax and 'box will break if it hasn't had oil changes.

[Bonefish Blues]

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202401255...

About the best on AT at the moment. Tax just below 400, and has Dynaudio sound, which is outstanding. Fuel consumption is pretty horrible in mixed motoring, but the na 2.4 is little better and lacks the full-fat T5 character. Diesels are the wrong choice in these imho, the amount of noise transmitted to the cabin is shocking. Re the gearbox, a long test drive to get it fully hot will tell you if it is ok. Legislate for an ATF change if there isn't evidence of it being done (3-400 quids for a complete change)

[ZX10R NIN]

As above the gen2 C70 probably the only option.

Or what about an awd convertible?

S4:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202310233...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202307270...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202401025...

A4

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202310092...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202309141...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202402026...

[ZX10R NIN]

Forgot to say getting the roof treated once or twice a year will see the roof last for years with no issue.

[jonwm]

Got my wife an E93 last year, 330d M sport and has been fine even with the big wheels on it, roof is leak free and i have had it serviced (the roof) once and will get done again in April I think. Appreciate is RWD but its a lovely car to drive, i used it for work last week and did a 200 mile round trip in it with it returning 48mpg.

[georgeyboy12345]

Renault had a really nice limited edition Megane CC called the Floride - all of them were a cream colour with cream coloured wheels and a red and white leather interior and pretty well specced. I think they were powered by the 1.4 TCe. They are fairly rare though. In lieu of a Floride, here's a pretty nice 1.4 TCe
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202311284...


The other option, as mentioned, is the Volvo C70. Though I'd go for the manual 2.4 rather than the T5 if she's only had her licence for a year/wants to keep insurance costs down
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202401225...

Edited by georgeyboy12345 on Sunday 4th February 18:00

[Bonefish Blues]

ZX10R NIN said:

Forgot to say getting the roof treated once or twice a year will see the roof last for years with no issue.

Same for the C70 albeit the operation is to lube the roof and window seals.

[MrBrightSi]

I've got a 2013 SLK55 and with good tyres and normal weather it takes a lot to make it unsteady and before anything gets scary the traction control tames everything even in the pouring rain or greasy grit/salted roads.

Discounting an RWD folding hardtop is going to remove a few options namely Mercs and BMW's. Modern cars with good tyres with RWD are just as non-descript as FWD cars.

[biggbn]

georgeyboy12345 said:

Renault had a really nice limited edition Megane CC called the Floride - all of them were a cream colour with cream coloured wheels and a red and white leather interior and pretty well specced. I think they were powered by the 1.4 TCe. They are fairly rare though. In lieu of a Floride, here's a pretty nice 1.4 TCe
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202311284...


The other option, as mentioned, is the Volvo C70. Though I'd go for the manual 2.4 rather than the T5 if she's only had her licence for a year/wants to keep insurance costs down
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202401225...

Edited by georgeyboy12345 on Sunday 4th February 18:00

I drove a lovely low mileage c70 with the big five pot diesel and auto box, a combination that suited the car very well. Don't rule these out.

[Bonefish Blues]

The issue for me was the nvh level in the cabin IMO George. I subsequently found out (and may have incompletely remembered, so bear with) that there's less subframe/engine insulation for the D5 in this application, so it sounds and feels noisiest in here when compared to other D5 models.

[BenB91]

An A4 Quattro?

I'd stick to RWD personally and get winter tyres if it's an issue for you.

[biggbn]

Bonefish Blues said:

The issue for me was the nvh level in the cabin IMO George. I subsequently found out (and may have incompletely remembered, so bear with) that there's less subframe/engine insulation for the D5 in this application, so it sounds and feels noisiest in here when compared to other D5 models.

Intersting. I never noticed this but only drove the car for a day, roof down. It really impressed me to be honest although I adore the older models C70, properly stunning cars to my eyes if vastly dynamically inferior...but, it kinda doesn't matter!!