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Open Season
For car enthusiasts, the arrival of summer means it’s time to take the top down and feel the wind whip through your hair as you navigate the road. If you’re ready to cruise in a convertible, try one of these sporty numbers. BY ERIC PETERS
 When it comes to cars, nothing satisfies quite like a convertible. It makes the trip itself something special -- and getting there something you’ll get to ... eventually! Here are eight ways to enjoy the sun this summer -- from retro-muscle to modern hustle.
•Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren
•MSRP: $495,000
•ENGINE: 5.5-liter supercharged V-8, 617 horsepower
•THE BOTTOM LINE: Spread your wings and fly
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The half-million-dollar mark represents the deep end of the automotive pool; it’s a place where very few of us will ever get to swim. But if you are ready to dive in, the SLR will provide sufficient exclusivity.
Finished in liquid-looking black or silver, the super-roadster absolutely dominates the space it occupies; other cars fade into the backdrop like extras in a movie overwhelmed by the star power of an A-list celebrity. The four wheels alone -- ginormous 19-inch custom-made super lightweight alloys -- cost more than some cars.
And escaping the paparazzi is easy when you’ve got 617 supercharged horses at your command.
The only downside? Door dings and stone chips. After all, this is a car you’ll want to drive everywhere. But that’s a small price to pay for the privilege of driving paradise.
•Jaguar XKR Portfolio
•MSRP: $92,035
•ENGINE: Supercharged 4.2-liter V-8,
420 horsepower
•THE BOTTOM LINE: Heads will turn |
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There’s wind in your hair -- and under the hood -- courtesy of the XKR’s forced-induction supercharged 420-hp V-8 and 0 to 60 capability of 5 seconds.
The ultra-exclusive Portfolio Package tops off an already sumptuous array of features with über-amenities such as 16-way, multistage heated seats, custom-made thick-pile carpeting with embroidered Jaguar “leaper” crests for the mats, massive 20-inch “Cremona” alloy wheels, 525-watt Alpine audio system, and a high-capacity Alcom brakes system featuring 40-mm discs and six-piston calipers up front.
One reason people buy six-figure convertibles is to get other people to look at them; with the XKR, you will definitely get your money’s worth of head-turning.
•Porsche Limited Edition Boxster S
•MSRP: $59,900
•ENGINE: 3.4-liter “boxer” six, 295 horsepower
•THE BOTTOM LINE: James Dean would approve |
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Enjoy your own James Dean Moment behind the wheel of the spiritual heir to the 356 Speedster the legendary actor drove into Valhalla. While not as ferocious as a 911 -- or as focused as the hardtop-only Cayman coupe -- the Boxster roadster arguably delivers the purest expression of the Porsche experience.
Like its ancestors, the Boxster S is well balanced. It is powerful -- but not overpoweringly so; the driver is expected to work the drivetrain to extract the available performance. But the effort is its own reward as the revs climb and the corners come at you faster and faster.
Boxster S models feature an up-rated 295-hp version of the classic, horizontally opposed “boxer” six-cylinder engine, mounted amidships for optimum balance and handling. The new-for-2008 Limited Edition offers a unique exterior color scheme (orange with contrasting black trim) and trim upgrades including crushed suede accents for the steering wheel and shift knob as well as metallic dash and console facings.
Ford returns an icon to the showrooms -- not once, but twice. The retro-muscle styling of the ’08 mustang convertible’s hunky shell and the rumbly menace of an old-school Detroit V-8 will take you back to those warm summer nights of ’68. Add the resurrected GT California Special -- a modern-day version of the California Special packages of 40 years ago -- and your trip down memory lane will be complete.
•Mustang GT California Special
•MSRP: $32,085
•ENGINE: 4.6-liter V-8, 319 horsepower
•THE BOTTOM LINE: The best of yesterday is even better today |
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The GT California Special comes with a mean-looking chin spoiler, custom 18-inch mag wheels, side scoops, and prominent rolled exhaust tips to let the 4.6-liter, 319-hp engine breathe more freely. Thepackage also includes embroidered dove- or parchment-colored leather seats and a unique paint/stripe package to make an already standout car stand out even more. Add the optional 10-speaker Shaker 1000 premium audio upgrade and you’ll have the perfect tool for carving up the Pacific Coast Highway.
There are more costly convertibles -- as well as faster and more powerful ones. But few at any price can match the aesthetic supremacy of a DB9. Even among sheet-metal supermodels, it is a standout stunner -- the perfection of proportion that one has trouble imagining either biology or engineering delivering, until you see it in the flesh.
•Aston Martin DB9 Volante
•MSRP: $177,400 (manual)
•ENGINE: 5.9-liter V-12, 449 horsepower
•THE BOTTOM LINE: When the world is not enough, only a DB9 will do |
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The Volante’s exotic beauty is matched by its equally exotic 5.9- liter, 12-cylinder powerplant -- and near 200-mph top speed capability. Naturally, only the finest leather and wood envelop the interior. Every conceivable gadget is at your fingertips — including Bluetooth wireless, hard disk drive navigation, and a custom-engineered 128-watt Linn ultra-premium audio system.
Of course, one buys a DB9 as much for how it looks when standing still as how it performs on the road. By either measure, you’ll find your money has been well spent.
•Rolls-Royce Phantom Drophead Coupé
•MSRP: $407,000
•ENGINE: 6.75-liter V-12, 453 horsepower
•THE BOTTOM LINE: Nothing rolls like a Rolls |
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In the ancient world, pharaohs had pyramids erected in their honor. Today -- if you have the means -- you can have a Rolls built in yours. And that is no exaggeration, because even in this age of mass-produced everything, Rolls-Royce motorcars are essentially built one at a time and largely by hand to each customer’s individual specifications.
Like the pyramids of Egypt, the massive four-seater Drophead Coupé is monumental in every respect, from its sheer mass (an asphalt-crushing 6,724 lbs.) and dreadnought size (220.8 inches long, 130.7-inch wheelbase) to its mogul-like opulence (hand-fitted and custom-dyed leather and rugs, and real wood inlays cut to fit each individual car), to the hand-of-God thrust provided by its titanic 6.7-liter V-12 engine. It is the biggest -- and has the most -- in almost every conceivable way.
With the hand-fitted top down, motoring along in a Rolls convertible is like piloting your own private Queen Mary -- lesser vehicles deferentially moving aside as you glide on by. Just don’t forget your gas card; with the Drophead Coupé’s “best case” mileage in town of 11 mpg, you’ll be needing it … often.
“That which is behind me does not matter.” So (reportedly) said Ferruccio Lamborghini in reply to critics of the not-so-great rearward visibility of his V-12 super-cars, which had the power to leave just about anything far, far, behind them.
•Lamborghini Murcielago LP640
•MSRP: $367,700
•ENGINE: 6.5-liter V-12, 632 horsepower
•THE BOTTOM LINE: What’s behind you does not matter |
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Lamborghini has a long tradition of being Mr. Hyde to Ferrari’s Dr. Jekyll: a bit hairy and intimidating, brutally powerful, and with styling so outrageous it often made its Ferrari competition seem tame by comparison.
However, Lambos have historically been hardtops -- from the legendary Miura of the early ’70s through the scissor-door Countach of the ’80s. That pattern has been broken by the mucilage LP640.
It comes as both a coupe and an even more come-hither convertible. If its looks don’t kill, the Lambo’s overwhelming 6.5-liter, 632-hp V-12 engine should definitely fill the bill. Few people will ever get to experience the wind in their hair at 200 mph. Not that you would. But in this car, you absolutely could!
In the ’80s, BMW’s menacing “shark nose” 635CSi prowled the streets like a hungry great white. It was an instant icon and legend in its own time. But unfortunately, it was never offered in convertible form, in part because the technology of the time didn’t allow removal of a major portion of the car’s structure (the metal roof) without compromising chassis rigidity and thus, handling. For BMW, which built a reputation on being a purveyor of the “ultimate driving machine,” form had to follow function.
•BMW 650i
•MSRP: $83,475
•ENGINE: 4.8-liter V-8, 360 horsepower
•THE BOTTOM LINE: An executive express with the goods to impress |
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No such worries with today’s 650i convertible, which is every bit as tight feeling as the hardtop coupe version. Form still follows function, however. When the top is up, there are few visible signs you are driving a convertible. No seams, no pleats -- and the seal is so tight it almost pops your eardrums.
An eight-speaker stereo, DVD navigation system, and 360-hp V-8 engine with your choice of six-speed manual or six-speed automatic transmission are four more things no Reagan-era 6-series ever offered -- but which are standard equipment on today’s 650i.
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