Mini John Cooper Works Convertible

Cute only goes so far. Fast and cute goes a lot farther (comments posted about girls you knew in college will be deleted upon reciept).

But fast and cute will cost you money, just like that girl in college (I'm invoking one-time editor/founder privilege).

This is the story of the Mini John Cooper Works Convertible. Its base price is $10,000 and change more than a base Mini Cooper Convertible, but that ten grand buys you the difference between 118 horsepower and 208....between a top speed of 123 and a top speed of 146...while giving up only 3 miles per gallon in both city and highway fuel economy (the EPA says 25 city/33 highway).

                       

It also gets you a six-speed manual Getrag transmission, 17 inch alloy wheels with run-flat tires, and red Brembo front brake calipers. All of which covers going and stopping. And it handles like a slot car.

                      

Inside, it's six-way adjustable sport seats with height adjustment, an on-boarad computer, a leather three-spoke steering wheel and the Sport button...which produces quicker throttle and steering response....neither of which was in short supply to begin with.

This is one of those cars that will put a grin on your face that will take days to go away.

No, $34,700 for a Mini convertible isn't cheap....nor is the $38,400 as-tested price (Mini threw in a cold weahter package, premium package with alarm, automatic air conditioning and chrome interior and exterior accents), Xenon headlights, custom paint, a Bluetooth and USB/iPod adapter (frankly, Mini's got....what's the German word for cojones?...charging $500 for that piece...which most automakers are including free of charge)...and white turn signal lights ($100? Really?) .

But find another convertible with this blend of speed, handling and fuel economy...and then find one anywhere near $38,400....much less $34,700.

A truly exciting car today...and, because it's likely to sell in smallish numbers, a collector's performance machine you'll be glad you kept years from now.

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2011 Bentley Continental Supersports Convertible Unveiled At NY Auto Show

More pulse-quickening stuff from the New York International Auto Show as Bentley showcases the 2011 Continental Supersports Convertible.

The juicy details: Twin-turbo W12 with 621 horsepower that can run on both gasoline and E85 bioethanol.

0-60: 3.9 seconds.

0-100: 9.6 seconds.

Top speed: 202 mph.  It's 198 pounds lighter than the Continental GTC Speed model.

                         

And the Supersports Convertible features a "unique, driver-focused cabin".

For you? $280,400.

Full press release from Bentley here.

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8 Vehicles You Probably Didn't Know You Could Still Buy New

 

Looking for a real bargain? Here are 8 cars dealers can't wait to get off their lots...because they aren't even being made anymore. One of them hasn't been in production since Fall 2007, but you can still find it, likely at a big discount.

From Automobile.

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Jaguar XK Convertible Review

And so it goes. Jaguar changes ownership again...this time moving to Tata of India.

So, can they build a proper Jag?

That's a question best answered over years of ownership, but my week in the 2010 XK Convertible suggests they won't miss a beat.

What's new? Well, power is up...now at a standard 385 horsepower as the XKR reaches 510.

And the rotary dial gear selector from the XF sedan has made its way into the XK. Does anyone really like this? A knob larger than BMW's iDrive that controls only one thing...the gear? And I'm on the record as not liking iDrive...or any intrusion of a "mouse" into the console. A lever would do just as well...in fact, better. As bad as Jag's old automatic J-gate shifter was, there was some sense of having locked in a gear. And that's not there with the rotary.

And then there's price. Base for the XK Convertible is now $88,150. Ours had only one option...HD Radio (digital broadcasting technology that makes AM sound as good as FM and FM as good as CD, while allowing up to 3 additional channels to each FM signal). It costs $300, and there are several issues. Perhaps the biggest: There are so few cars with HD available, and even home units cost $300, that there's nearly no one listening...and that means broadcasters are getting edgy. There's a real chance, unless manufacturers start making HD Radio standard equipment(and cutting themselves out of $300 per car) that broadcasters will abandon HD Radio as a failed experiment sooner or later. And you'll be $300 lighter with a radio that gets nothing but plain old analog AM and FM.

The other problem is one that I ran across in the last Jag convertible I tested. And that is that the standard 525 watt Bowers & Wilkins audio system just doesn't sound very good. Run it loud enough to compensate for the usual convertible noises and it can't get there. The whole thing sounds thin and bordering on distortion. Admittedly, the acoustics of convertibles, both in terms of extra noise and limited places to put speakers, are a challenge. But other manufacturers found their solutions long ago.

Anyway, with HD Radio and transportation charges, the bottom line was $89,300. EPA estimates, if anyone is counting, are 16 city/22 highway.

The XK is what it is and you're either a likely buyer or not. The good news is that a change in ownership so far appears to not be a factor in your decision.

Jeremy Clarkson at Top Gear pretty well nails how gorgeous and how much fun it is to drive in this piece, done before the power bump, the rotary shifter and the sale to Tata:

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Lexus IS 350 Convertible Review

Despite some drawbacks (air and water leaks, an easy target for knife-wielding thieves, noise that drowns out the stereo, the need to preserve TV-ready hair, sunstroke in five minutes or less....okay, those last two are strictly my problems), I'm a sucker for convertibles. Always have been. My Uncle Ron drove nothing else...a '55, '60 and '63 T-Bird (the '63 was a Sports Roadster) and a '69 Mercury Cougar XR-7. Riding in Uncle Ron's cars was always a big treat...and that's probably where I got it.

One of the best ways to address most of the above problems is a retractable hardtop. Top up, it's just like driving a fixed-roof coupe...top down, you've got a convertible.

Until now, you could get one from Lexus, but only one...the SC 430. Styling? A matter of taste. Price? 66 grand and change, base.

But this year, Lexus brings a new prize to the party...the IS 350 Convertible. As you can see in the photo above, it's a retractable. It's also, at least in my opinion, a bunch better looking than the SC 430 (also a retractable hardtop), a bunch more contemporary (the SC's been in production 11 years now, with no substantive changes) and a bunch more affordable....with a base price of $43,940. A bit of a bargain can be had by opting for the IS 250 Convertible...you give up about 100 horsepower (getting 204 instead of 306), but the base price falls to $38,940. Whether there's 5 grand worth of enjoyment in the bigger engine is your call.

All we've been exposed to is the 350...and it was a very nice ride. Since it carries the IS badge, there's more of a sporting feel (at least by Lexus standards)...and it's got more usable room (though not tons of it) than the SC430 for the driver and passengers (just don't take that back seat seriously).

EPA estimate: 18 city/25 highway.

With headlamp washers, the Luxury Package (Bi-Xenon high-intensity headlamps, adaptive front lighting, heated and ventilated front seats, leather, wood, memory seats, illuminated scuff plates, and rain-sensing wipers), and a nav system that also upgrades the audio system to a 275-watt Mark Levinson AM/FM/5.1 Surround DVD system, the bottom line wound up at $51,860.

That's up there for the size of the car (apart from the new HS hybrid, the IS is the smallest Lexus) and the level of the luxury, but more than 20grand cheaper than a similarly-outfitted SC 430. Your call.

Here's a cool CGI video created for the Lexus website that shows off the retractable hardtop's operation and other features:

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Pontiac Solstice GXP Review

GM built a reputation over the years (especially the bad years) of introducing cars that weren't quite ready and then refining them during the production run so that the final few years of a model were pretty close to perfect.

Well, this wasn't supposed to be the end of the Solstice (or Pontiac, for that matter), but events have overtaken the once-mighty GM and this is in fact the end of the line for Pontiac.

And, wouldn't you know it...the last Solstice is way better than the first. Part of it certainly has to do with the fact that the Solstice I just drove for a week was the GXP...the one with the 260 horsepower turbocharged engine. Yep, it's quick.

Plus, there's been some attention to niggling little details...the reverse-hinged trunk actually shuts on the first try now...ending the frustration of jumping out of the car, closing it again, getting back in and finding the "trunk ajar" light still illuminating on start-up.

Base price is $28,460...quite a bit more than a Miata, but again, more powerful, too. The tester was loaded up with a Premium Package (leather, steering wheel audio cotrols and Bluetooth), air conditioning (yep, it's an option), 18-inch chrome wheels, the Monsoon audio system and a rear spoiler.

Bottom line: $32,125. Not a bargain, but not bad.

And...this is a huge surprise...I beat the EPA mileage estimates by a large margin. They say 19 city/28 highway and in my mix of city street and freeway driving I saw 32.5 for the week. I've beaten the government numbers before, but not by so much. I wonder what it would've done if a six-speed manual were available instead of the five-speed.

It's not my first choice for a 2-seat roadster (the Miata wins that one based on handling, build quality and sheer fun), but if you've never driven the Mazda and love the look of the Solstice (and a lot of people do), now's the time.

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I Feel So Much Better Now...

After three weeks of agonizing over whether I was too tough in my review of the Chrysler Sebring Convertible, Jon Stewart tops me. Thanks, Jon.

Wait for it...it's about 1:40 in.

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	M - Th 11p / 10c
Carmageddon '09 - Lemon Aid
comedycentral.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Economic Crisis Political Humor

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Mazda MX-5 Miata Review

After 20 years, we should all be so over the Mazda MX-5 (Miata).

But we're not. At least, I'm not.

Equipped with a new, larger, smiling grille, the slick little two-seater hugs you until you love it. It's quick, handles better than most any other car you could name, and makes a strong value argument. Base price for the top of the line Grand Touring model is $26,350. The base model? $21,305.

Even optioned to the max, the Grand Touring I drove managed to slide in under $30,000(at $29,170).

It's the modern-day equivalent of the Austin-Healy I wanted as a kid. Only better. Way better.

EPA says 21 city/28 highway. I say go drive one.

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Chrysler Sebring Convertible Review

For 11 and a half years, I've told people that the great thing about being an automotive journalist is that no one makes a truly bad car anymore.

Hmm.

Yes, the Yugo is dead and gone...but words cannot express the huge wave of depression that came over me every time I got behind the wheel of the Chrysler Sebring convertible.

Regular TireKicker readers know I have no problem with American cars in general or Chrysler products in particular. I have, prior to TireKicker, enjoyed and given favorable reviews to previous-generation Sebrings and their forerunner LeBarons.

The 1999 Chrysler Sebring convertible was actually attractive and appealing. I mulled over what it might be like to own one.

The regression over a decade here is staggering.

The 2009 model makes a bad impression with flat-out ugly styling, compounds it with a cheap interior, multiplies that with an unrefined powertrain and tops it off with numb handling that still manages to telegraph the feeling that something could happen at any time and it's likely to be bad.

I haven't driven a car that felt so out of touch with what could be built since....I don't know....maybe 1982?

EPA says 18 city/26 highway. Base price $29,370. As tested (with electronics convenience group, electronic stability program, uconnect phone and destination charges) $31,620.

Not that it matters. I wouldn't take one as a rental.

Chrysler makes several fine vehicles. This one they need to get off the lots and off the streets before someone on President Obama's automotive team drives one and thinks that this is where the loans will go.

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