Middle age men and convertibles?

[dtype38]

Prompted by a reaction on another thread, I was wondering if there are ANY convertible cars that it's acceptable for a greying 50yr old bloke to drive round town in? I know our good friends at Top Gear would say a definite NO, but I'm not so sure that's the case. For example, if for the word convertible we put cabriolet then I'd agree, but if instead we try the words roadster or spider it conjures up a completely different idea of motoring. Would one of those be acceptable? Or is it a matter of size, eg a Mini would be a no-no, but would an Aston V12 a yes-yes?.... or just a knob-knob?

So that's the question. Can a self respecting man of a certain age find anything he can enjoy the sunshine in? Any ideas?

A Jaguar E-type roadster perhaps? Although I suspect that would just mean enjoying the sunshine while waiting for the breakdown truck. Something a bit more modern maybe?

[Tim Falce]

I think you'd look good in this.

[nicanary]

My reaction in the other thread should really have been :- I'll get my Uggs and my husband's credit cards, darling.

I really don't care what people think, but some cars seem to have social connotations. My daughter (26, bright as a button) has all cars compartmentalised according to their perceived owners/users.

I had an MGB for a while ( no problems with that, it's a classic and therefore a hobby) but when I talked about a Honda S2000 to keep for fun and long-term investment she said "no way". Apparently all modern open 2-seaters (MX5, MGF etc.) are hairdressers cars.

Similarly, to her all cabriolets are for "ladies that lunch", and are too effete for any self-respecting man. She drools over the "Coburn" 250GT California, and anything that oozes class with an engine of 6+ cylinders,but doesn't realise that Daddy the Wallet hasn't the funds to fill the tank, let alone buy one.

I don't think this is a product of our times - the SSJaguars were regarded in their time as a "cad's" car. Social stigma isn't new.

[Steven Humphrey]

Well I'm 42 & have owned a MK2 MX5 for nearly a year. Yes, I get all the hairdresser jokes (a mate even made up a magnetic 'mobile hairdresser' sign & planted it on my passenger door!) but then most people say, 'actually, they're really good cars'. And they are-you won't get more driving pleasure for your money.

I get the odd stare when driving through towns with the roof down but I don't really care-better than sweating my **** off! So just hide under a hat & dark glasses & don't worry what other people think

[garcon]

It's also worth remembering that the only two men who looked good in the back of a four seater convertible were Hitler and Mussolini.

[bella]

we had a convertible m3 for a while but to be honest i felt like a bit of a div in it. went nicely, but so did your street cred.

i think mazdas and hondas do work for guys - you don't really see that many girls driving them in reality. they don't have enough taste for starters

[Steven Humphrey]

My (slightly) younger brother had a Z3 for a while & got a lot more abuse in that than I do in the 5. The Alfa Spider is a nice looking car & ok for blokes, though you'd probably get plenty of abuse while standing beside it waiting for the AA. I think Porsches seem to have a bit more of a stigma attached to them, for some reason (probably a throwback to the yuppie days) so my next step would be a Lotus Elise (not a true convertible but close!). Anything above that & your talking silly money.

[JHamilton]

The reason people make jokes about older gentlemen driving nice, convertible sports cars is because they are typically the only ones that can afford them. My dad is 62 and drives a torch red corvette vert. Screw what anyone else thinks, buy what you want.

[terence]

Chap opposite us has a new Merc whatever,always think of the old joke about the difference between a Hedgehog.Hedgehog has the pricks on the outside.

[mountainstar]

In my late teenage years I recognized that if I did what everyone else thought I should do or not do, I'd have a miserable life. Political correctness and conformity is constantly forced on us and how sad is that.

I wouldn't worry about what is appropriate or not, buy what you want.

Of the cars I have driven, if I had the money and wanted a car like this, I'd buy a 2007+ Jaguar XKR.

For more of a classic, I would think a Porsche 911(964) from 1989-1994 would be a good bargain that would also look great.

For something cheaper I'd get an American Ford Mustang 5.0 from 1987-1993. There are still plenty of nice convertibles out there that can be found and they are easy to fix and work on. Put some Flowmaster mufflers on and change the horn to one of those Dukes of Hazzard horns and you are all set. It's not hard work to import something from the USA.

Example:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/VERY-...item4163b8c411

[Adam43]

Originally Posted by mountainstar

In my late teenage years I recognized that if I did what everyone else thought I should do or not do, I'd have a miserable life. Political correctness and conformity is constantly forced on us and how sad is that.

I wouldn't worry about what is appropriate or not, buy what you want.

Did you get an ear-ring? Don't you worry, none of us here are trying to conform, we're just having a little fun with a stereotype.

Anyway, back to talking about cars.

An MG midget is the one. Lots of fun and you look great because everyone can see your driving gloves with the string lace on them.

[bella]

big old american cars are fine if all you're going to do is sit in them and fluff your hairdo. i don't think anyone in their right mind would run them in the uk at our fuel prices :/

[Steven Humphrey]

Originally Posted by bella

big old american cars are fine if all you're going to do is sit in them and fluff your hairdo. i don't think anyone in their right mind would run them in the uk at our fuel prices :/

And those darn corners

[Tim Falce]

Get an old man's car, an MGB...................ooops.

[barnettracing]

Originally Posted by Tim Falce

Get an old man's car, an MGB...................ooops.

They're not old man's cars. My first car was a 1968 MGB GT. At the age of 17 I was the envy of many of my schoolmates. Ah, such a shame I couldn't afford the upkeep.

[Tim Falce]

Originally Posted by barnettracing

They're not old man's cars. My first car was a 1968 MGB GT. At the age of 17 I was the envy of many of my schoolmates. Ah, such a shame I couldn't afford the upkeep.

I had an MGB GT when I was in my early 20s and I've just bought an MGB now I'm in my mid 50s so to me it is now an old man's car.

[Clive Brown]

Originally Posted by Tim Falce

Get an old man's car, an MGB...................ooops.

What, the Austin Cambridge A60 convertible?

[Adam43]

yep, that certainly is fun.

[GORDON STREETER]

I have a couple of A6 V6 ragtops on my books that belong to "gentlemen" of a certain age

[The Fat Clerk]

I'm 52 and the Wife's a couple of years older we both love driving our SAAB 9-3 with the lid off

[nicanary]

It's interesting about the Saab - Now I have to say that I have seen plenty driven by men with the top down, whereas Audi/BMW/Merc cabrios tend to be driven by the fairer sex.

This car may be the answer - definitely not a Fiat 500 Gamine, unless you have blue shorts and a red hat with a bell.

It does appear that acceptability is down to the individual owner and his ability to ignore/deflect snide comments. Cars that are universally acknowledged as "OK" are usually not practical - Caterham types or Jeep types.

I recall that back in the 60s all the big manufacturers had a soft-top as part of the range, although you didn't see that many on the roads. I seem to remember that this was all pre-"wimmins' movement" and I don't recall too many female drivers on my street. So it must ahve been likely that the convertibles were being bought and driven by men.

All this was pre-Nader, and would stop in the 70s. By the time that soft-tops came back in vogue (206cc ?) there were far more ladies with licences, and they liked the generally more attractive lines of these new models. Am I sexist here - being too general?

[Dave Brand]

Originally Posted by nicanary

By the time that soft-tops came back in vogue (206cc ?)

The 206CC isn't a soft-top, it's a retractable hard-top!

Second comment removed by mod

[bella]

Originally Posted by nicanary

All this was pre-Nader, and would stop in the 70s. By the time that soft-tops came back in vogue (206cc ?) there were far more ladies with licences, and they liked the generally more attractive lines of these new models. Am I sexist here - being too general?

not really, i think you're right. girls like pretty cars. guys like it to look The Business. are girls more likely to buy a car on the emotional pull of being able to drive it with the roof off on a nice day?

course, this is all rendered useless by the fact i know two guys with convertible sportscars as second cars, and a total of zero ladies who drive convertibles...

which brings us back to why the heck do people still think convertibles are for girls? is it the grace kelly thing? (yes, we all know how that ended up)

[johngee]

Originally Posted by bella

which brings us back to why the heck do people still think convertibles are for girls? is it the grace kelly thing? (yes, we all know how that ended up)

Maybe it's because girls with windblown hair look 'kinda nice'. We blokes, on the other hand, have to preserve, at least the illusion, of still having a full head of hair ........ or is that just me?

[mountainstar]

Originally Posted by bella

not really, i think you're right. girls like pretty cars. guys like it to look The Business. are girls more likely to buy a car on the emotional pull of being able to drive it with the roof off on a nice day?

course, this is all rendered useless by the fact i know two guys with convertible sportscars as second cars, and a total of zero ladies who drive convertibles...

which brings us back to why the heck do people still think convertibles are for girls? is it the grace kelly thing? (yes, we all know how that ended up)

I've never really seen it either way preferring men or women, but over here in the USA we don't have the little topless Peugeots, Renaults, Fiats etc. running about like you do in Europe. There is a small market here for those "hairdressers" cars, the old VW Cabriolet for instance was always considered a chick car.

In the USA, you are more likely to see women in cutesy little CUV/SUV's like RAV4's or Nissan Rogues than any convertible.