Shining Star
Chicane Challenger
You've likely seen the guy in the local haberdashery holding a blue necktie in one hand and a red tie in the other. He squints to assess the paisleys on one, eyeballs the dancing circus elephants on the other, then sweeps back and forth between the two. (In the background, the salesman slowly disappears under a web of spider silk.) Finally, after a half-hour, it does indeed come down to a tie: "Can't make up my mind," says the shopper. "Guess I'll just take 'em both."
The guy undoubtedly drives one of the cars you see here.
Hardtop convertibles may just be the ultimate wheels for the indecisive. Their best-of-both-worlds boast is the quiet and security of a coupe and the fragrant air and unlimited headroom of a conventional ragtop -- the fickle-driver's choice at the touch of a switch. Watch one of these rigs perform its whiz-bang metal-folding act, and you'd swear it shares some DNA with a silver-screen Transformer.
Three of the convertibles in this test represent the new hiding-hardtop paradigm: the BMW 335i, the Lexus IS 350, and the Infiniti G37. Also along, both to help assess the virtues of folding metal and because it's a deserving member of this premium-two-door class, is the "old school" Audi A5 Cabriolet -- sporting a conventional power-folding top made of soft fabrics.
In retrospect, Mama Nature delivered almost ideal weather for testing vehicles that can swap personalities as abruptly as Sybil after a triple espresso. On our way into and through California's Death Valley National Park, our caravan encountered monsoon rains, hail, icy winds, and brilliant, warm sunshine. So sudden were some of the meteorological changes, we'd have the tops of the cars folded down, back up, then down again within 20 minutes.
In terms of specifications, it's a tight group. Base prices range from a low of $44,715 (the Infiniti) to a high of $52,075 (the BMW). All three hard-shell players are rear-drive and boast six-cylinder engines making from 300 to 325 horsepower. Just 237 pounds span the lightest and heaviest entries. Again, though, the soft-top Audi is the holdout: instead of rear drive, it sports quattro all-wheel drive. And instead of a six under its hood, the Audi's mill is a turbocharged four-cylinder.
You'll note rear seats in each vehicle -- but don't get any ideas about inviting another couple on your weekend getaway. In each machine, rear-seat headroom is minimal with the top up. Worse, legroom in back -- top up or down -- is appropriate only for the stars of "Toy Story." You'll understand why the seats are there, though, once you look in the trunks. The best of the group -- the IS 350 -- offers a piddling 13 cubic feet of cargo room, and that's with the top standing tall. Fold the hard tops down, and each rig swallows up the minuscule trunk space so voraciously, you'll be lucky to wedge a tennis racket in there (the Audi's folded soft top doesn't intrude nearly as much). No, only the two of you are winging away to wine country. It's your bags that'll be sitting in back.
To help the indecisive, then, here's how our Transformers action adventure played out.
Read more: 2010 Audi A5 vs 2010 BMW 335i vs 2009 Infiniti G37 vs 2010 Lexus IS 350 Engines and Interiors - Motor Trend
