BUYING AN AFFORDABLE FAMILY CONVERTIBLE

If the 'Buying an Affordable Family Convertible' title to this piece leads you to believe one of these cars to be practical, then you've been misled. There are convertibles you can buy that comfortably seat two adults in the back but you won't find them amongst the ranks of converted drop-top family hatchbacks, the cars we're considering here.

Convertibles in the larger so-called 'Sports' or 'Luxury' classes are based on the underpinnings of much larger executive cars. Which is why models like the Saab 9-3 Convertible or Volvo's C70 Cabriolet can claim to be genuine long distance four-seaters. The problem is that these are cars that will generally cost you an awful lot more money - both to buy and to own.

If you want something more affordable, you could consider one of those cheap out-and-out sports cars, a convertible in the so-called 'Roadster' class - something like a Lotus Elise or indeed a Mazda MX-5. But these are tiny, compromised two-seaters, unable even to cope with a weekend couple's luggage, let alone kids or the weekly shop. The noise and the rock-hard sports suspension set-up can get irritating too if you're wanting an everyday car.

Which of course is why the market for 'Affordable Convertibles' has sprung up, popularised by cabriolet versions of the Vauxhall Astra, the Renault Megane, the Peugeot 308 and the Ford Focus. We've called them 'Affordable 4-Seaters' here to differentiate them from Roadsters, a class which really needs to be addressed separately. While Roadsters are generally bought as second or third cars, these hatchback-based Cabrios are usually expected to function as everyday tools, come wind, rain or snow.

So what's on offer on the new market? Here are three great choices for three very different budgets.



Peugeot 207CC

Before the Peugeot 206CC appeared back in 2001, the folding hard top convertible wa...