With the ideal car to get through the winter, you may not immediately think of a convertible. Nevertheless, it can be beneficial to purchase a homeless car right now. Because demand is lower at this time of the year, prices are generally lower and your bargaining position is better. To provide some protection against winter conditions, we have listed five convertibles with a steel folding roof.
1. Mercedes-Benz SLK – € 8,800
Currently, most manufacturers seem to be returning to the fabric hood, including Mercedes-Benz for the new generation of the SL. Das Haus however, came early in 1996 with the introduction of the steel folding roof on the SLK R170. The above example is from 2002 and therefore dates from after the facelift that the SLK received in 2000. With that facelift, the grille, the bumpers and the rear lights were tackled in a subtle way and Mercedes-Benz spooned the 218 hp 3.2-liter V6 into the nose of the roadster. That means that you can accelerate to 100 km / h in 7 seconds and, if you wish, you can continue pedaling up to 245 km / h. Only the 32 AMG was faster. The above example still looks good and has things like leather upholstery, heated seats and even a real car phone. Of course, the latter is of no use at all, but at the time it was undoubtedly a pricey option.
Peugeot 307 CC – € 6,800
Peugeot is truly one of the first manufacturers to use the steel convertible top. Even before the war, the brand had a car with an opening hardtop: the 402 Eclipse. A few years after the SLK, Peugeot contributed to the revival of the steel convertible top with the introduction of the 206 CC at the Paris Motor Show in 2000. Three years later, the French came up with the same concept, but a bit bigger: the 307 CC . This copy is pretty good in its stuff with leather upholstery, heated seats, climate control and JBL audio. Under its bonnet is a naturally aspirated 2.0-liter four-cylinder with 140 hp and 200 Nm of torque. That power source does not really provide overly spectacular performance (0-100 km / h in 10.1 seconds, top speed 207 km / h), but it is relatively reliable. The 307 CC is also more of a convertible for cruising quietly with the roof open when the weather lends itself to it. Fortunately, you are also warm in the winter.
Ford Focus CC – € 5,985
Where you sometimes see the other cars in this list popping up in the streets, the Ford Focus CC drawn by Pininfarina is a relative rarity. The convertible version of the Focus saw the light of day at the Geneva Motor Show in 2006, but after a facelift in 2008, Ford finally killed the model in 2010. So it has not been in production for long. That the Focus CC is not very popular, is also apparent from the asking price of this copy. This is in fact almost € 1,000 lower than the 307 CC from this list, which dates from the same year of manufacture and has run just under 30,000 km more. If you can appreciate the styling of the Ford, you have a lot of bang for your buck. This Focus CC is a Titanium version, which means that things like leather upholstery, seat heating and an automatically dimming rear view mirror are included. You should not hurry with the 101 hp 1.6-liter four-cylinder under the hood.
Volvo C70 – € 9,450
The first generation of the Volvo C70 was available as both a coupé and a convertible. For the second generation, Volvo decided to change course and combine the two body styles in one car. In 2006, the C70 with a steel folding roof came onto the market. This was also the last convertible from Volvo, because in 2013 the model went out of production and then did not return. This copy is from 2006 and is therefore one from the first year of construction. It has 197,761 kilometers on the clock and is dressed in a black-on-black composition. Striking for a Volvo: it has no seat heating! What it does have is a 2.4-liter naturally aspirated five-cylinder under the hood. With 140 hp, that is certainly not a sprint cannon, but with the windows or the roof down you can at least enjoy the characteristic rumble.
5. Mazda MX-5 Roadster Coupé – € 9,994
Yes, the Mazda MX-5 also had to believe in the steel folding roof at one point. The ‘Roadster Coupé’ was launched in 2006 and for the first time in the history of the model had a steel folding roof, which consists of two parts. You might think that that adds a lot of extra weight, but with 36 kilograms that is not too bad. However, that also means that the roof is not super thick, so there is no enormous noise reduction compared to the soft top. In winter, however, the hardtop is a lot more practical. This copy is one with the 1.8 and that means that it has 127 hp power at its disposal. With an acceleration of 9.6 seconds to 100 km / h, the MX-5 is not overly fast, but you don’t buy it specifically for that either. After all, with the MX-5 you can also steer nicely on back roads in winter, even with the hood down. In this copy you have to stoke the heating considerably, because despite the leather upholstery, seat heating shines in its absence.