If it's a fun second car, then yes, go for petrol but for a lot of people they don't have the option and may need decent economy

If it's not just a weekend fun car then people go for diesel.

 

The mother in law commutes 100 miles a day so a diesel was a must really. She also wanted a convertible so bought a Golf 1.6 Bluemotion convertible.

 

It's not just about thrashing the engine and racing around. Most of the time the engine is barely being worked and is drowned out by any wind or stereo noise.

 

Yes if you happen to have a convertible with a nice sounding engine then get it thrashed and enjoy the sound!

 

That's why we're looking at an E250 CDI rather than a petrol.

 

Running costs are much lower than the petrol versions which is a must as we would only have the one car and can't afford to run a thirsty petrol.

 

Phil

try siting in traffic in mid day sun with the roof down, not fun.

 

Cabriolets are amazing late evening on a hot day or even a winters day

A Felicia actually

 

when i visited Prague 5 yrs ago I had a very nice sightseeing trip in a Felicia open top just like this, except it was blue!

Theres a wreck of one at D.M Keith Leeds if anyone wants a project!

I had a Mk3.5 Golf Cabrio before the Octavia.  I was far more likely to have the roof down in Winter, Spring or Autumn.  Summer is just asking for melanoma & sunstroke.

 

If I was just doing errands around the suburbs the roof was usually left up as there are too many tea-leafs & people want to throw their McDonalds wrappers in your car.

Hi Brad, I still have a mk3 Golf Cabrio, the Mk3.5 had bits of the Mk4 on it I believe?

I actually asked someone this question today, as it puzzles me a lot too - and there are a LOT of convertibles round here, and roofs never seem to be down, even on slightly cooler sunnier days than today. I get the fact you might not want to be baked in 30degC sun.....

 

Was outside our office and I was crossing the road as it was parking. The woman happened to be a 206CC driver. She said the roof was broken!

 

Last time she tried it, it had got stuck half-way through the opening process! Then she called the AA out who manually returned it to closed and it's not been touched since!

Probably because they've got the air con on

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never understood the convertible with the roof up thing myself either.  I've had my MX5 for 17 years now and it's generally always been roof down if it's not raining - when it was my daily driver I'd occasionally leave it up on the short commute into work if it looked like rain.  Now I generally leave the roof down 24/7 and just bung it in the garage like that at night and, because I have a covered parking space at work it gets left like that at work too.

 

As for leaving the roof up in high temps I don't get that either - and it's been used for trips to Le Mans, central-France and Spain as well.  You get used to it (and learn to have a hat in the door pocket).

 

As for vandalism - the only experience I've had in 17 years was when the roof was left up and someone (probably kids) tried to screwdriver the lock, failed and then bent my aerial.  There was no real damage from the former and the latter straightened without too much of a problem.  I'll probably jinx it now but I've never had anything nicked and it's never been used as a dustbin (although some kids did once try and chuck a raw egg in as I drove past...).

 

Tax? - yeah pricey and if I was looking at cost per mile it'd have gone years ago but that's not the point - it's a fun car and a cracking drive.

 

Oh - and I may be 47 but I'm not yet balding and don't look like a giant turd thank you!

Nice.

& a lucky escape, it is those kids throwing hard boiled eggs that are a real danger.

If it's not just a weekend fun car then people go for diesel.

 

The mother in law commutes 100 miles a day so a diesel was a must really. She also wanted a convertible so bought a Golf 1.6 Bluemotion convertible.

 

It's not just about thrashing the engine and racing around. Most of the time the engine is barely being worked and is drowned out by any wind or stereo noise.

 

Yes if you happen to have a convertible with a nice sounding engine then get it thrashed and enjoy the sound!

 

That's why we're looking at an E250 CDI rather than a petrol.

 

Running costs are much lower than the petrol versions which is a must as we would only have the one car and can't afford to run a thirsty petrol.

 

Phil

 

120 mile round trip for work every day in a petrol convertible, roof down the whole way back again today several trips into the 6-9000rpm rev range

Nice.

& a lucky escape, it is those kids throwing hard boiled eggs that are a real danger.

 

he he - yeah - I hope I never find out what one of those on my forehead feels like at a combined speed of about 50mph or more!

 

Been done by a seagull a couple of times but at least that was soft and didn't have a shell (one time I was on the way to work and needed to go home for a shower after a direct hit!)

Sun screen and a hat

Come and experience the joys of a Sydney summer - sunscreen & hat don't cut the mustard when it comes to melanoma.

 

I understand there's been a heatwave in the UK the last few days?  That's just normal summer here.

Hi Brad, I still have a mk3 Golf Cabrio, the Mk3.5 had bits of the Mk4 on it I believe?

Yep.  It had updated MK4 style exterior & interior but mechanically it was mostly MK3.  

 

It was a 2.0L 5 speed and went reasonably well.  

 

I didn't know anything about VWs and (in retrospect) didn't buy well.  I spent a lot of time (and a bit of money) making repairs and then the hydraulics in the roof failed, 2 engine mounts failed & a couple of other things (all in the same month).  I didn't know (at the time) where to get parts from at a fair price and wandered into a Skoda dealer that had recently opened near work.  We got talking & they offered me an amazing PX deal on a 1.8tsi Elegance hatch.  So I walked away from the Cabrio.  

 

I'd have another.

We (gf) have a TT Roadster. She has the roof down whenever she can and so do I whenever I borrow it It was down today and in colder weather with heated seats and heating up it's great fun too.

 

When we bought it I thought it might be a waste of time as it wouldn't get the roof down that often but it gets used a surprising amount.

Come and experience the joys of a Sydney summer - sunscreen & hat don't cut the mustard when it comes to melanoma.

I understand there's been a heatwave in the UK the last few days? That's just normal summer here.

I dare say that if I lived in Australia, the game would be different

Yes apparently there has been a heatwave, but here near Dubai. Where I am at the moment, there are no convertables

120 mile round trip for work every day in a petrol convertible, roof down the whole way back again today several trips into the 6-9000rpm rev range

 

Well... yes... I'm sure it was fun but how much fuel did you get through!?

 

Phil

Think I jinxed it...   had to put the roof up on the way home today as it started tanking it down with rain...   

Come and experience the joys of a Sydney summer - sunscreen & hat don't cut the mustard when it comes to melanoma.

 

I understand there's been a heatwave in the UK the last few days?  That's just normal summer here.

 

yeah we peaked at 23 degrees yetserday (no sun just hot cloud) and today at 20 or so this time with rain :-)

Well... yes... I'm sure it was fun but how much fuel did you get through!?

 

Phil

 

more than when I do the same trip in my (diesel  ) Ibiza