Convertible drivers - why keep the roof up?
Discussion
BigLion said:
His analogy doesn't work anyhow....
A Range Rover could be a status symbol or a desire to own a big safe car for some - there is hence a benefit from ownership. However what benefit does a soft top give the car should you not choose to use it at all?
Compromised handling? Reduced security? Extra noise? Less safe? Smaller market to sell back to?
Certainly for a soft top, the last 3 maybe. Electric hard tops maybe not so much.A Range Rover could be a status symbol or a desire to own a big safe car for some - there is hence a benefit from ownership. However what benefit does a soft top give the car should you not choose to use it at all?
Compromised handling? Reduced security? Extra noise? Less safe? Smaller market to sell back to?
Iva Barchetta said:
It was a bit grey on my commute home.
Just over 50% of convertibles were roof up.
Mine wasn't.
I've just had to do a shopping trip with my wife to Tesco. It was very grey. Roof still off though - my window down, her's up. Just over 50% of convertibles were roof up.
Mine wasn't.
Edited by Flip Martian on Thursday 18th August 19:38
WJNB said:
EVERY sports car I have ever owned from classics to modern has had an owners club website or letters section in a newsletter that has members endlessly judging others on this very same subject.
SO sad to see the subject aired here as well.
Just be glad you haven't got Morgan owners contributing, they're the most predictable & tedious of the lot on the subject.
I started the thread and I wasn't judging anybody. Unlike all the people criticising this thread...SO sad to see the subject aired here as well.
Just be glad you haven't got Morgan owners contributing, they're the most predictable & tedious of the lot on the subject.
Iva Barchetta said:
I was the only car top down on my commute home tonight.
It was raining.
I didn't care about getting damp whilst sitting at traffic lights....
See, that's the ONE time where I think people really ARE thinking "look at that tIt was raining.
I didn't care about getting damp whilst sitting at traffic lights....
t in his car getting wet". 
But hey, so what.I think what this thread has shown is that there are convertible drivers (like me) who drive top down because they own a convertible and that's what they bought it for; convertible drivers with some valid reasons for keeping the top up some of the time and who have taken this thread in good humour, as it was intended, and some who get really defensive for owning a convertible and not having the top off.
MX5s can be had with hard tops by the way - either fixed or retractable. Surely retractables are coupes with the option of being an open top? I wasn't really counting retractables as convertibles in my opening post(although of course, they are). I really was referring only to the soft top convertibles - which were traditionally designed for the joys of open top motoring, with a plastic roof for when it rained (or was too sunny and you were avoiding sunburn, I suppose).
MX5s can be had with hard tops by the way - either fixed or retractable. Surely retractables are coupes with the option of being an open top? I wasn't really counting retractables as convertibles in my opening post(although of course, they are). I really was referring only to the soft top convertibles - which were traditionally designed for the joys of open top motoring, with a plastic roof for when it rained (or was too sunny and you were avoiding sunburn, I suppose).
heebeegeetee said:
Strange thread though - the clue is in the name, surely? Convertible. It converts. If I wanted to keep a roof over my head I'd buy a fixed top, if wanted no roof I'd buy something else. But I bought a convertible, that converts from closed car to open when I want.
Whats hard to understand? You'd think car enthusiasts would be in the know.
If you read my post just a few up from yours, you'd not find it so hard to understand why I asked the question. It was aimed at soft tops. Whats hard to understand? You'd think car enthusiasts would be in the know.
RobM77 said:
That one succinct post was all this thread needed. RobM77 said:
I guess it touches a nerve for many of us. I used to get teased every single day at one job I had by the security guards, who used to take the piss out of me for putting the top up on my Elise when I arrived at work in the morning. They were insistent that I should leave the top down all day. Not only that, but I've had several comments, not in jest, about driving it with the top up on a sunny day. I got fed up with it.
I'm afraid I don't understand your point about hard tops vs soft tops - they're both just variations of the same thing aren't they? Hard tops are more expensive, heavier and take up more space when folded, with the benefits of better NVH and security; soft tops vice versa. They both do the same thing, it's just a pro/con decision, usually based on the design intentions of the car (e.g. is it a cruiser or a sports car).
Actually when I started this thread I didn't honestly realise some really did get grief for having their tops up! I was actually genuinely interested as to why they would have their soft tops really - soft tops are traditionally noisy, draughty, less secure, and a PITA to put up or put down (not the case with my MX5 but on some cars it certainly is); only really there almost as an after thought to provide "some kind of cover" when needed. I don't really see retractable hard tops as convertibles - but of course they are. Just not what I was referring to. Retractables give the best of both worlds - a true "convertible" designed to be driven with the roof up as well as down. Soft tops are designed primarily to be driven roof down, that's the difference (as I see it, anyway). I'm afraid I don't understand your point about hard tops vs soft tops - they're both just variations of the same thing aren't they? Hard tops are more expensive, heavier and take up more space when folded, with the benefits of better NVH and security; soft tops vice versa. They both do the same thing, it's just a pro/con decision, usually based on the design intentions of the car (e.g. is it a cruiser or a sports car).
RobM77 said:
It's the same with many things really. If you buy a device that does two jobs, it normally does each job not quite as well as something intended solely for the task; but you get the choice, which is nice, particularly if you don't have the money or the space for both.My DVD player also plays CDs, but perhaps not as well as a dedicated CD player. Almost all home DVD players play CDs though, so I didn't really have a choice for my budget and I have that functionality whether I want it or not. That's your early Boxster/Z4 analogy. As for cars like a soft top 3 series, that's like the laptop my friend at work's just bought where the screen detaches to use as a tablet. The screen is miles heavier than an iPad and not as good, and the laptop itself weighs more than you'd expect too, but the reason he likes it is because he doesn't move around much with his laptop and doesn't use a tablet enough to justify buying a separate one, so his new multi-function laptop suits him well. He's also got both with him all the time and the combined weight and price is less than buying separate devices.
How's that?
Soft top car - any t
t with a knife can rip open your car and steal from within but if I park anywhere, I always put the top up as it might deter someone just leaning in to see what they can nick or damage. Driving with the soft top up is a compromise in terms of noise, comfort, space, compared to a hard top designed for the purpose - which usually has better head room and noise insulation. I once drove around Windermere in slashing day long rain and yes, I had the roof up for that (I'm allergic to drowning) and it was ok - but I wouldn't choose to drive that way normally in the MX5 as it was a compromise and not what it was PRIMARILY designed for (not shouting, just emphasising. I would have preferred (on that day) to have driven my Focus.Again, only my opinion and other POVs are valid (although comments about white and blue shirts or pens and pencils have no relation to this at all I don't think).
k-ink said:
SWoll said:
If you are going to compromise everyday functionality then why not use it at every opportunity to make that compromise worthwhile? If laziness, poor performance, bad planning or discomfort are the reasons not to use it then why bother in the first place?
That is how I view it as well. With the roof up my car is cramped and noisy. With the top down I have an incredible connection to the scenery with fresh air and amazing views all around. It is the difference between travelling a to b and making some great memories to savour. To miss out on one of the those experiences would be such a shame. Live life to the full as you never know when it will be game over InductionRoar said:
SWoll said:
Nope, worst analogy yet.
For me it's like a bloke having a penis extension and then declaring himself celibate. Why go through all of that pain and expense only to keep it in your pants other then when you need to piss?
Nope, that will be yours. For me it's like a bloke having a penis extension and then declaring himself celibate. Why go through all of that pain and expense only to keep it in your pants other then when you need to piss?
Naughty naughty...monamimate said:
Says the chap who started the argument...
!?
See, that's just it - I never started an argument. People have just chosen to flounce and huff in response to a perfectly ordinary question. The one saving grace is that MOST on this thread have taken it in the spirit it was intended.!?
FIREBIRDC9 said:
For me it would be laziness
The Roof in an MR2 SW20 isn't an electric one button job :P
It involves removing both panels and stowing them behind the seats.
If i had a snazzy electric roof , then i probably would drive top down most of the time
I was the same with my Camaro - glass panels had to be unlocked and stowed in the boot. I wouldn't usually bother for shorter journeys. Which is why when it had to go, I opted for the MX5 - push a button to unlock, flip it back, done.The Roof in an MR2 SW20 isn't an electric one button job :P
It involves removing both panels and stowing them behind the seats.
If i had a snazzy electric roof , then i probably would drive top down most of the time
SWoll said:
Flip Martian said:
There's a lot of grown ups on here who like arguing over nothing. Eesh...
Are you new to PH? You can't offer an alternate view without an argument ensuing, fortunately that's where all the fun is to be had. Arguing about what though? Pardon me for asking a straight forward question. If many in here said these things to people's faces....ah but of course that's not what they do. Easier to do behind a keyboard.
Or if they did, they'd just get a reputation as a grumpy pillock with no sense of humour.
SWoll said:
Indeed. A colleague has a 435i convertible and pretty much refuses to drive it with the roof up. Fair play to him for his commitment but I do sometimes have to question if it's a bit much, especially when temperatures are in single digits...
Its not - as others have said, there is something about driving in the open air in any weather. Coat, gloves, hat - sorted. Granted not everyone's cup of tea but there's nothing wrong with anyone who likes doing that either.
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