HELP: WIfey wants a convertible that seats 4

The 2.0l is pretty snappy (I have a 2010 Sportcombi [wagon] with a stick). The six is a little more maintenance intensive but should still be good if you are used to MB. Buy chassis bracing immediately. My wagon is a noodle, I can't imagine what a vert would be like.

I just picked up an E46 M3 because I wanted a convertible and I have two kids (9 and 10 years old). It has your typical older german car electrical gremlins, but it drives well. It is my first convertible, and it certainly isn't as rigid as a hardtop, but it isn't terrible. The kids fit a bit better than they do in the old 911. I would certainly recommend it.

Does it have to be "new"

No one looks good in the back seat of a convertible unless they are Hitler (or maybe Mussolini)

911, or better yet 911 turbo. 4 year old will fit in the back seat....probably.

In reply to Karacticus:

He did pull it off better then Kennedy

dean1484 wrote: Does it have to be "new"

She would love that.

We are going to look at 1 and e90 3 series convertibles today.

Triumph Stag should fit the bill

In reply to Raze:

Sure, if you pay half.

Raze wrote:

I think the caddy would be lighter and just as much fun to try and drive.

yupididit wrote: In reply to Raze: Sure, if you pay half.

YOLO

Not luxury but... Cheapish (have summer vert tax going right now), enough room in back for a pre-teen, sport-ish (not quite sporty but not a failure either)

We despise 3g eclipse

Does it have to have air conditioning?

Yes of course, we live in SoCal

Don't overlook Audis.

I'm not sure how the kids will fit in this.

I would suggest you skip the E46 M3 droptop and look at a E46 330 since I don't think your wife is an avid autocrosser or will whip that car on curvy back roads, so the extra performance wouldn't be used, plus high maintenance costs.

This may work, especially the V6 powered car.

Fr3AkAzOiD wrote: Not luxury but... Cheapish (have summer vert tax going right now), enough room in back for a pre-teen, sport-ish (not quite sporty but not a failure either)

These are terrible cars. Terrible.

It feels like the front and rear ends are not attached to the same car, it bumbles and shakes about in a barely controlled manner. I drove a C3 Corvette convertible and it was dramatically more composed than this thing was.

THis was my last 4 seat convertible:

It's available right now at the dealership for under $15k (minus the custom wheels, which I sold separately):

http://www.cars.com/vehicledetail/detail/628889609/overview/

And hopefully, after we sell our house, this will be my next 4 seat convertible:

The supercharged XKRs can be had in the low teens as well for good examples.

tuna55 wrote:

Fr3AkAzOiD wrote: Not luxury but... Cheapish (have summer vert tax going right now), enough room in back for a pre-teen, sport-ish (not quite sporty but not a failure either)

These are terrible cars. Terrible. It feels like the front and rear ends are not attached to the same car, it bumbles and shakes about in a barely controlled manner. I drove a C3 Corvette convertible and it was dramatically more composed than this thing was.

Hmmm...have never owned one and only test drove one once several years ago. Didn't seem bad, but then again that was before I started HPDE and learned more about car handling.

turboswede wrote:

Raze wrote:

I think the caddy would be lighter and just as much fun to try and drive.

A guy brought one of these to our latest dyno day, still had the drive out tag on it, less than 2k miles, auto trans, and still put down over 500HP and TQ to the wheels....crazy.

Another guy had a coupe with a manual and had done injectors, tune, headers, pulley, maybe a cam, and put down over 700 to the wheels.

My 2 cents, The Saab 9-3 is a nice 4 seater vert. It does everything well and is low cost with lots of dodads and lux items. The chassis is pretty rigid for a vert. There are good value for the $.

The BMW SMG is does not have a great reputation for reliability. A regular auto might be a better choice.

I have a MINI cabriolet. It is pretty good as long as the kids are very small. Avoid the auto transmission, REALLY JUST DON'T.

In reply to Chris_V:

Yah she actually has no issue doing autocross or taking twisty roads. We live near so many canyon roads they can be hard to avoid but we love them.

Its hard to find those Jags. I seen a few XK8's but no R's. And that Saab seems like the best all around deal. She is pretty into the 135i, it's nice and had great power in my opinion.

yupididit wrote: In reply to Chris_V: Its hard to find those Jags. I seen a few XK8's but no R's.

I tend to do nationwide searches on those, and can find a fair number. I've got one saved in Wisconsin, Florida, and San Diego right now, all under $13k.

http://www.autotrader.com/cars-for-sale/vehicledetails.xhtml?listingId=379230848&hideBackLink=true&Log=0

One just popped up in DC but got snagged pretty fast.

I don't see one in San Diego.

Edit: nvm http://www.autotrader.com/cars-for-sale/vehicledetails.xhtml?zip=92555&endYear=2016&vehicleStyleCodes=CONVERT&modelCode1=XKR&showcaseOwnerId=0&startYear=1981&makeCode1=JAG&searchRadius=100&mmt=%5BJAG%5BXKR%5B%5D%5D%5B%5D%5D&listingId=375633518&Log=0