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

[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 :/

[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.

[Tim Falce]

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

[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

[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

[peckstar]

seems to me if you are worried about what other people think then maybe you are not ready for a convertible yet.

Get what you want because its what you want, teh teasing and the haters will happen no matter what

PS convertible driver for 13 years, currently in a 306

[Adam43]

Hairdresser.

[Tim Falce]

The main girlie convertibles have to be the Audi TT and Porcshe Boxter (posh hairdressers cars) and BMW convertibles (chav Essex girls).
Dtype38, just go for the XKSS rep, you know you want to.

[dtype38]

Originally Posted by peckstar

seems to me if you are worried about what other people think then maybe you are not ready for a convertible yet.

Now that's a fair point. It's not the attention I'm concerned about: I used to drive my Jaguar D-type replica round town and I'm not averse to going to Tesco's in the Mk2. It's just that I'd prefer not be an object of ridicule. For example, a chap who lives not far from me bought a canary yellow bentley convertible with matching hub caps and upholstery. I expect he thought that it was the dog's danglies, but I don't think I could cope with that much pointing and laughing from pedestrians!

How do we feel about the number of seats in a rag top. I agree with the problem about having anyone in the rear seats of a full on four seater. Is a 2+2 like the Jag XK better (4 seats but only two usable), or is that a pointless waste of leather?

Oh, in case anyone doesn't know the XKSS Tim suggested above...... (although a good replica comes in over £40k)

[Adam43]

It is odd, but I never considered anything like that here. Perhaps that is because it doesn't just win the desireable convertible prize it challenges for most desireable car ever.

[nicanary]

This is getting interesting.

I agree about the Midget - I've had two RWA models over the years and they were nicer to drive (IMO) than the MGB, and they attract friendly attention of the right kind.

As has been pointed out, classics do tend to strand you at inconvenient times. For me it therefore has to be a good (Lynx,Proteus) C-type rep, alloy body ,proper XK motor and a modern 'box. Surely that passes muster?

As for four-seaters, what about a Willys Jeep?

[Tim Falce]

Originally Posted by nicanary

As for four-seaters, what about a Willys Jeep?

I had one as my first car, along with a Mini, and it was the best fun outside the bedroom or kitchen table.
I am often tempted to get another but the prices now seem quite high.

[dtype38]

I agree that if it's going to be a "classic" style car then a replica is probably the way to go. With modern brakes, electrics, etc. at least you're likely to actually get to a country pub. But even the ones you suggest are pretty expensive... last time I looked Lynx C-type's start around £80k which I think is too much for most of us here. For that price you could have a really nicely prepared E-type with change to buy a comprehensive spare parts store and tool kit for the boot

Money no object there are quite a few options in that direction... but lets keep this thread to something more affordable that you'd be happy to put the hood up/tonneau on and leave in a pub car-park without feeling the need to check on it every few minutes.

[Adam43]

The Jeep is a bit left-field. What if it is decked out as if in a war. Camouflage, spade, radio, fake gun? Do you need to be concerned what people say then?