People buy convertibles for one of three reasons: they like the idea of open-top motoring; or they like the idea of other people thinking they like the idea of open top motoring; or because the car they really want is only available as a convertible.  Either way, you’ve got to figure out if convertibles are for you, and that starts with deciphering a bit of jargon.

• What’s in a name?
• What you could buy and what you should buy?
• Are all convertibles sport cars?
• Converting a convertible to a tin-top
• Converting a tin-top to a convertible

If your dream car is only available as a convertible, but you really don’t like the idea of a convertible then for popular models there are aftermarket hardtops available which pretty much semi-permanently turn a convertible into a hardtop.  Two common examples are the MX-5 and Boxster.

Customers don’t expect you to be perfect. They do expect you to fix things when they go wrong.

It is also worth scouting around to see if there is in fact a hardtop version available from the manufacturer, and the Boxster is again a case in point as it was followed into production later by the Cayman – same car, different name. A Lotus Exige is a hardtop version of the roadster Elise, although in that case the Exige is more track-focused than its sister car.