Why Do People Drive Convertibles?

In My Humble Opinion
21

Bad memory of driving a convertible:

People on the street or in the car beside me talking to me when I stopped at a light. Sometimes these people were attractive and I welcomed the interruption. Many times, however, strange people asked questions like, “How much did that cost?”, “How’s the weather in there?”, or “What do you do when it rains?”

Good memory of driving a convertible:

Getting a blowjob while driving 80 mph on the highway with the top down on a beautiful night. Ill-advised, yes, but not to be missed.

I always laughed at the people driving convertibles with the top down and windows up. If you want to look stupid, spend $10K on a Hyundai and leave the $50K Benz ragtop for someone who knows how to have fun.

22

BTW, the other night I was waiting in the drive-thru lane at McDonald’s in the red Mitsubishi Eclipse convertible, and two teenage hotties who had been sitting behind me in a truck with their boyfriends hopped out, ran over to the car and asked if they could sit in it. They hopped in, and we chatted for a while.

So, another reason: Convertibles are total chick magnets. :slight_smile:

23

Surreal, there is this thing called “fun” that is worth checking into.

24

Well nobody has explained why it’s fun to drive a convertible.

25

They are fun to drive because, generally, they are small, fast, nimble, and sporty. There are also the big, fast, lumbering, cruise boats like Cadillacs, which I’ve never driven but have their own charm.

One time I stopped at a red light in my Celica convertible and a big old Fleetwood convertible pulled up beside me. The guy said, “I could put your car in my trunk.” He wasn’t lying.

26

If the weather’s nice and the scenery’s good, there’s no better way to travel. It’s like taking the blinders off a horse.

Mine’s got bot the ragtop and the removable hardtop so it’s really like having three cars. When conditions vary, so can you.

It’s a good way to tan on a longer trip and I’ve even brought home an oak tree in back that nothing else short of a pick-up could have accomodated.

27

Why it is fun.
Driving with the top down is just more intense than with a hard top car. You get better all round view, you hear other vehicles, smell the trees, and feel the wind through your hair.

28

Well, here’s another vote for… “You get it automatically, or you just never will.”

I have never owned a car that was not a convertible. I’m 33. I’ll hit your points real quickly…

But as a friend of mine said the first time he ever rode in mine… “This is SO much cheaper than therapy!”

I simply do not think that they are all that expensive. Many of my friends drive various sizes of SUVs to and from work, and each and every one of those vehicles cost more than my convertible (which is a pretty upscale model)

Not so sure about that. I have rollbars, which surely provide at least close to the same amount of protection as a roof, but I guess I could be deluding myself here.

They are noisy, but I don’t hear particularly well, so it never bothered me so much. I have very short hair, so that’s not a factor. And mine handles quite well, from a performance, speed, and gas milage perspective.

And this is different from every other car on the road how? SUVs seem to top the “most stolen” list every year, and I rarely see convertibles on the list. I dunno, I figure if someone decides they want my car, they are going to get it, whether or not it has a cloth top.

Believe it or not… this has never been a factor. Seriously. Once, in 17 years, a bird crapped directly on my head, but I have always operated under the assumption that I had done something to deserve it, and God was going to get me no matter where I was. :slight_smile:

I don’t expect to convince you, or anyone else. Actually, I am not trying. It’s just something I enjoy. Driving down the road at sunset, radio blaring some song that I really enjoy, wind in my hair… it’s a great feeling. Can make a lot of life’s troubles go away, at least for me, and at least for a little while.

And, the offer is on the table… any Dopers in the Dallas-Ft. Worth area that would like to see what it’s all about, drop me an e-mail :slight_smile: We’ll work something out.

29

7AM leaving Carmel headed south along Hiway one. Top down, bundled up against the morning chill. This early the motorhomes are not yet awake, and you have the road to yourself.
As you enter the twisty part of the road, remaining tendrils of fog, still cling to the low points in the road.
Brake, downshift, feel the fog on your face as you accelerate through the corner. Smell the dew on the redwoods. Hear the creek that runs down the cliff and under the road. Head back up the hill, fell the sun on your face as you break back into the open. Upshift and listen to the exhaust rumble.
Repeat for the next 40 miles.

Your face at the end of the drive :smiley: :smiley: :smiley: :smiley: :smiley: :smiley: :smiley: :smiley: :smiley: :smiley: (on a scale of 10)

30

Surreal, go try it. Pop yourself down to the nearest…um…Mazda or Mitsubishi or Audi dealership and take a test drive. Don’t just take one around the block, either. Take it out for a good quarter-hour. If possible, avoid having the salesperson go with you.

Report back, and tll me if you understand. I never thought I would like convertibles, either. “What’s the big deal,” thought I. But then we got one for my girlfriend. And now I don’t know how we lived without one.

31

I also used to be in the “they look nice, but I don’t see the total appeal” camp. Note–I also live in the Midwest, which would render riding with the top down an extremely chilly, if not impossible, option during large portions of the year.

Then my dad’s sister-in-law got a black Spyder, and let him take it for a spin. I got to ride shotgun. After just a few minutes of cruising on some country back roads with the top down and the sun shining, I looked to my dad and said “I can totally see why people driving convertibles have a smug look on their faces.” Because they know they’re having so much more fun than the average driver in a hard-top.

32

2 of my first 3 cars I ever owned were convertible and some day I will own another. Car #1 was a beautiful 62 Pontiac Catalina. It had an electrical problem and I was able to buy it for $35. This was in 1972 when it was just another 10 year old car. One just like it recently sold at an auction for $55,000. My third car was a 1963 Mercury Comet S-22 convertible. 170 cubic inch 6 with a 4 speed transmission. The oil pump went out in it and I was about 50 miles from home. I added 3 quarts of oil and I made it to about 5 miles from home before the engine seized up. Last year I almost traded my 66 GTO for a 68 Mustang convertible. I changed my mind at the last minute.

33

I used to live in the desert. As I’ve already mentioned, my hood stowed in the trunk so it was easier to just leave it off. Mornings in the desert can be cold in the Spring, but afternoons are brilliant. So in the mornings I’d have the tonneau cover on, an N-2B hooded parka, and ski gloves. I’d put a blanket over my lap, and the heater would be on. You can work around the weather.

34

I don’t have a convertible yet, but I took driver’s ed in one (we only put the top up when it was raining) and I wish to get one in the future. My taste in cars is a bit…um…odd, so I’ll do a point-by-point.

What exactly is the appeal of the convertible automobile?
Fun.

**For starters, they have a higher initial cost than an equivalent hardtop. **
Not an issue for me; the one I want is almost 40 years old (1965 Mercury). Size reference: about as long as a fullsize pickup (123-inch wheelbase).

They’re also less safe than a hardtop, particularly in a rollover
I’ll give you that one, although it’d be hard to roll that wide, low behemoth.

or if you slam into an SUV that rides higher off of the ground.
Again, not an issue for me — it rides as high as most stock SUVs.

They are much noisier, even with the top up.
That’s one of the main reasons I want it. There’s just something about the roar of a big V8 and the wind rushing by…

And your hair gets all messed up if you drive with the top down.
My hair’s too short to get really messed up by the wind (and if it does, simply running my fingers through it will suffice), and I usually put on a hat when I get out of the car.

Structurally, their frames are not as rigid, so they don’t handle as well as hardtops unless the underside is heavily reinforced.
Back in then, they were still building the fullsize cars with a real frame underneath, so it’s about as stiff as the pickup I currently drive. Would probably handle about the same, too (same type of suspension and tire size).

The have more aerodynamic drag, so they’re slower and get worse gas mileage than a hardtop.
With the 390 cid V8, it’ll go plenty fast, and the gas mileage is horrendous anyway (which is fine by me). Science corner: it’s not a whole lot more drag, anyway: one would assume the cabin fills up with a static “bubble” of air, so the only drag is off the back of the windshield, just like a pickup bed (yes, boys and girls, those flowthrough mesh/net/removed tailgates actually hurt your mileage); and any additional drag from that as opposed to a fastback metal roof would be negligible in my case, considering that big parachute of a grille up front.

And then there’s the issue of theft. You might as well just leave the door wide open because anyone with a pocket knife can get inside in just a few seconds.
As has already been said, it’s no more difficult to knock a window out of a hardtop.

And then think of all the dirt and bird poop you get on the roof of your car. Image what it would be like if all of this got on the inside of your car.
Put the top up when parked, and get easily-wiped-with-a-damp-rag leather/vinyl seats for the occasional lucky hit while driving.

So why would anybody want to own such a vehicle?
Because I like the messed-up hair, and the noise, and the wind.

I second the suggestion to test-drive one.

35

Anyone who derives pleasure from sitting in an automobile is a loon. There, I said it.

36

Oh man, a subject near and dear to my heart.

For 5 years I owned a 1989 LeBaron convertible. The engine was a POS 4 Cylinder Turbo, the Check Engine light would constantly come on, it leaked when it rained, and I had to replace the top and glass rear window. Besides, I only was in California for two years with it before I moved to the Pacific Northwest, and was only able to drive with the top down maybe two months out of the year. When I moved back to El Lay, I sold it to a cow-orker who totalled it 7 months later. I almost cried as the wrecker towed it away.

I have regretted selling that POS ever since. Even though I love my Cadillac, there was nothing in the world better than a warm day in Bellingham, putting the top down and driving down Chuckanut Drive, or a drive from LA to Vegas, putting sunblock on and rolling down I-15 wide open and the audio system blaring.

Yes, the Sedan De Ville not only has sentimental value to me, but it is practical and comfortable. When Kathy and I went out to dinner with several Dope friends recently, we all piled in the Cadillac and drove to the restaurant. This would have never been even close to possible in the LeBaron.

But, as several have noted, the experience is not definable by words. You either love it or hate it. I look forward to being able to afford another convertible. I miss the POS LeBaron.

37

Eternal, no one is talking about sitting in the car. It’s the feeling of being in the open air while driving, i.e. moving along in the open air that I think most people are referring to. Although I don’t mean to speak for everyone else who’s posted here, I’m just summarizing what I’ve read.
You on the other hand seem to be comfortable making such sweeping judgements. Because you don’t derive pleasure from it, then anyone who does is a loon? What do you derive pleasure from? If I don’t happen to agree that it’s pleasurable, can I call you a loon?
I could, but I wouldn’t. I might say I don’t understand why you find pleasure in something or that I don’t agree with you, but it’s your opinion and you have a right to it. People find pleasure in different things. As the old saying goes “I’ll defend to the death your right to be wrong.”

38

No you wouldn’t. Don’t say it if you don’t mean it.

39

Umm, no I wouldn’t what? I wasn’t saying anything I don’t mean.
That is exactly how I respond to people. I have no problem with the apparent fact that you don’t enjoy sitting/riding in a car. I will gladly tell you why I do and maybe I can explain the way I feel and it might make you see a point you hadn’t considered. But in the end, it’s my opinion, my preference which I’m entitled to and you are equally entitled to yours. I’m not a loon for preferring something, any more than you are a loon for not preferring the same thing. And I wouldn’t say you are a loon for not liking a convertible. I would say I do and this is why and if that doesn’t do it for you, then I guess you don’t understand /see/agree with my perspective. Just like I did above. Does that clarify things? And I don’t mean that to sound snarky. I’m really trying to clear up any misunderstanding.

40

You wouldn’t die to defend my right to be wrong. People say that a lot but they’re all lying. FACT.