21 £15k classic cabrios for winter fun

Don’t wait for summer to get your drop-top kicks

We tend to think of convertibles as summer toys, cars to wheel out when the sun is shining, the weather is warm and the smell of freshly cut grass fills the air.

But driving a cabriolet in winter can be great fun, too. There’s something really life-affirming about wrapping up and dropping the top, connecting with the elements while everyone around you is isolated from them in their modern metal boxes – especially right now when travel across much of the world is subject to coronavirus restrictions.

We’ve pulled together a list of winter cabrios you can buy for £15k or less. Some are here because they’re tough enough to cope with any winter weather, some because they can lock that weather out in a matter of seconds when it turns really nasty, and some we’ve chose purely because they’d be brilliant at banishing those winter blues.

1. Triumph Vitesse

Dropping a six-cylinder engine into the Herald turned it into an appealing sports saloon – and convertible. Today, the good news is that £15,000 buys an absolute peach.

Early cars were called Vitesse 6 and came with a 1600cc engine, but the later 2.0-litre version’s extra muscle makes it more fun in modern traffic.

2. Lotus/Caterham Seven

This skimpy sports car might seem about as well suited to winter as a bikini, but you’d be amazed how cosy a Seven is with the side screens in place and the transmission tunnel warming your legs.

No, the worst bit is trying to slot yourself through the gap between the tent-like roof and the sill without pulling a muscle.

You won’t be buying a BDA-engined rarity at this price point, but even the humblest Sevens are a hoot.

3. Morris Minor Convertible

The Minor might not be as exciting as a Seven but it gets a 10 for charm, while its 20-year production run means there are plenty to choose from.

The art-deco interior on early cars is stunning, but later cars with the A-series engine and taller gearing are easier to live with.

4. Austin-Healey Sprite

If you want something a little sportier that’s as simple to maintain as the Moggie, its Frogeye Sprite cousin is a great option. They’re simple, tough and parts are readily available.

Our notional £15k budget buys a good Frogeye Mk1 or a genuinely immaculate later car.

5. Porsche 911 Carrera 4

The only truly affordable route into 911 ownership these days is the water-cooled 996, which was available as a coupé, a targa (which, as on the 993 was basically just a big sunroof) and a proper convertible.

Traction shouldn’t be an issue with all that engine weight over the rear wheels, but there’s always the option of the four-wheel-drive Carrera 4, if you want extra winter security.

6. Mazda MX-5

What better way to banish the winter blues than by slithering around in a classic lightweight, rear-wheel-drive sports car, roof off and woolly hat on?

Especially one with modern benefits of electronic ignition and fuel injection to ensure it’ll start on those icy mornings.

MX-5s are as prone to rot as the classics that inspired them, but with £15k to play with you can buy the very best.

7. Land Rover

A Landie might not be the most obvious winter cabrio, but you certainly won’t have to worry about getting caught out by the worst of the season’s weather in a Series model or a more modern, coil-sprung Defender.

8. Peugeot 205 CTI

The 205 GTI is often touted as the greatest hot hatch ever made, but you don’t often hear mention of the CTI, its cabriolet sister.

They’re a little slower and bendier than the GTI, but they’re still great fun and the bodies are surprisingly tough.

9. Mercedes-Benz SLK

Though the SLK wasn’t the first convertible to feature a retractable hardtop – Peugeot and Ford had both been there decades earlier – it created a trend that’s still with us now.

Sadly, they’re much less sporty than they look, but the ability to seal out those winter elements has plenty of appeal, and the 350bhp supercharged AMG version our £15k buys has plenty of punch.

10. Alfa Romeo Spider

You’d have to be pretty heartless to subject an Alfa Spider from the 1960s, ’70s or ’80s to the salt and grime of a UK winter, but the late ’90s, early ’00s version is a different story.

These pretty, front-wheel drive Spiders have galvanised bodies and proper modern wheelarch liners, and the V6-engined version our budget buys sounds sensational.

11. TVR Chimaera

The Chimaera is the most user-friendly of TVR’s occasionally crazy 1990s cars, and most came with milder V8 engines than the Griffith, making them less of a handful in slippery conditions.

The glassfibre body removes worries about salt corrosion, but keep an eye on those chassis outriggers.

12. Lotus Elise

Like the Chimaera, the Elise comes with glassfibre bodywork, but since the chassis is made from aluminium, it comes without most of the hidden rust headaches, too.

But don’t expect that bare aluminium interior to feel cosy until the engine is fully up to temperature!

13. Jaguar XK

If the thought of shivering away in an Elise turns you cold, maybe you’d prefer the luxury of a Jaguar XK and its heated leather seats.

These big Jags are great value, the 370bhp supercharged XKR in particular doing much the same job as an Aston Martin DB7 Vantage Volante for a third of the price.

14. Volkswagen Beetle

Anyone who has ever owned a Beetle, Fiat 500 or 911 will know one of the greatest benefits of driving an air-cooled car in winter.

Since the interior heating comes from exhaust heat, and not from water heat, their cabins warm up much faster.

15. Toyota MR2 T-bar

If you only want a taste of the convertible experience, Toyota’s MR2 T-bar lets you glimpse the crisp winter sky, while still enjoying all the comfort of a conventional coupé.

The glass panels store behind the seats, meaning they don’t rob the generous boot space, but watch out for leaks from old roof seals.

16. Fiat X1/9

The MR2 was a critical and commercial success, but it wasn’t an original idea: Fiat’s conceptually similar X1/9 had been around for a decade by the time the Toyota appeared.

Our allotted £15k gives us access to examples in excellent condition, but it’s up to you whether you go for a pretty early car, or a more powerful later version with the uglier bumpers.

17. Audi Cabriolet

Princess Di has been back in the news lately thanks to the latest series of The Crown, which gives us a perfect opportunity to visit her classiest car.

No, definitely not the Mini Metro, or even the special-order black Escort RS Turbo, but the Audi Cabriolet she used in 1994.

These elegant 80-based convertibles came with four-, five- and six-cylinder engines and values are comparatively low, so £15k will buy one fit for a princess.

18. BMW 325i

Prices for most classic BMWs, including the M3 and 325i Sport, have shot up in recent years, but the E30 3 Series convertibles still look great value, as well as looking, well, great.

The six-cylinder 325i can be a bit of a handful in bad weather, but there’s always the meeker 320i and four-cylinder 318i, if you’re bothered less about the power than the pose.

19. Lotus Elan M100

Front-wheel drive can be really useful on slippery winter roads, but most classic open-topped sports cars send their power to the rear wheels.

There are a few exceptions, including the 1960s Berkeley Sports, the Australian Ford Capri from the 1990s and this, the much more appealing Lotus Elan M100 introduced in 1989.

20. Reliant Scimitar GTC

The Scimitar is best known as a stylish shooting brake, but the early cars were saloon-shaped coupés, and from 1980 you could buy it as a GTC convertible.

Think of it as an uglier, hardier alternative to a Triumph Stag: you get a winter-friendly glassfibre body with a Stag-like T-bar roof, and a simple 2.8-litre pushrod Ford Cologne V6.

Or if you’re looking for a Reliant that’s a little more open to the elements, take a look at the later two-seat Scimitar SS1 sports car.

21. Saab 900 Turbo

If you’re in the market for a classic four-seat convertible with plenty of character, but the kind of refinement you expect from a modern car, take a serious look at the Saab 900 convertible.

Our £15,000 budget should mean you can buy a really great Turbo with a full history, but watch for rot in the bottom of the doors.