With summer finally putting in an appearance and temperatures rising, it seems that car buyers are looking to go topless. Cabriolets are leaving showroom floors more swiftly and, according to Burchmores, they too have seen an increase in demand for cabriolets.
By Kelly Lodewyks
New car sales in this segment show that summer weather definitely has a strong influence on convertible-buyers. According to Guy Kilfoil of BMW South Africa, January and May are the months with the strongest sales figures. With the release of the 3 Series Convertible, May this year saw a repeat of last year’s high sales figures. Out of the 104 cabriolet units sold in May – 72 of them were the new 335i. Sales for the Mini Cooper have dropped somewhat, but BMW expects it to pick up with the new limited edition Mini Convertible Sidewalk and 650i Convertible. Sales of Volkswagen’s Eos show a similar pattern, with the majority of sales taking place in March, when 99 units were sold. Eos sales dropped to 19 units in July, but picked up again in August with 36 sales.
Burchmores’ managing director, Darryl Jacobson, believes that even though the season plays a role, there are other factors at play in the demand for convertibles. He points out that in a society like South Africa, where people are constantly working their way up the corporate ladder, people need something to symbolise their success, and for the sunny season, a cabriolet is the perfect accessory.
“They want a car that makes a statement; one which conveys the message that they have made it in the business world,” said Jacobson.
With it’s rising waistline and chrome strips, the Mini Cooper and Cooper S convertible is often noticed when cruising the Camps Bay and Clifton beachfronts in Cape Town. The top of this Mini drops in 15 seconds with the push of a button. The integrated sliding roof slides open, followed by the entire soft roof. While it’s the cabriolet looks that seem to be the immediate selling point, the performance is worth a mention. The Cooper and Copper S are powered by an 85 kW 1,6-litre and a supercharged 125 Kw, 1,6-litre four-cylinder respectively.
Other cabriolets worthy of mention are the Audi A4, Audi TT, Volkswagen Eos, BMW 335i Convertible, Peugeot 207 CC and the Opel Tigra. The most powerful model out of these few is notably the Beemer with its 3,0-litre twin turbo delivering 225 kW of power. Trailing behind it in second is the Audi TT with a 3,0-litre V6 that has 184 kW.
The Eos is Wolfsburg’s first coupe-cabriolet and has a five-section hard-top with an integrated sliding/tilting glass roof can be opened and closed respectively in just 25 seconds. The soon-to-be-replaced A4 convertible comes with 18-inch wheels and a wind deflector – a great addition that prevents wind buffeting, but halves the amount of onboard seating. The Peugeot 207 CC is available in a Sport 1 and Sport 2 versions, the latter featuring seats decked out in leather. The Opel Tigra has an electro-hydraulic steel roof and, in 2004, was judged “Cabrio of the year.”
With these and a wealth of other cabriolets available, it seems that almost everyone can afford to go topless.
