Best convertible cars in the UK: Top picks for 2026

The Porsche 911 is one of those rare cars that manages to be both an exceptional sports car and surprisingly usable every day. The Cabriolet adds the appeal of open-air driving without compromising the 911’s character, with a folding fabric roof that can be opened and closed at the touch of a button. There’s a wide choice of versions, but even the entry-level 911 Carrera Cabriolet has 394PS and can accelerate from 0-62mph in 4.1 seconds.

The steering is superb, the chassis feels wonderfully composed and there’s enough refinement to make long journeys genuinely enjoyable. It’s a brilliant all-rounder, even if its rear seats are best left for children — or folded over for extra luggage space.

Higher-performance versions are seriously quick, with the 711PS 911 Turbo S Cabriolet capable of 0-62mph in just 2.6 seconds. Yet the 911 remains comfortable and refined enough for long-distance trips, while it's more practicality than most two-seat convertibles. It’s expensive, of course, but if you want one convertible that does almost everything brilliantly, the Porsche 911 Cabriolet is hard to beat.

If the 911 Cabriolet is objectively the best convertible on sale, the Mazda MX-5 gives you much of the same feel but for a fraction of the price. A fraction of the power, too, but it’s proof that driving enjoyment isn’t necessarily directly linked to speed.

The MX-5 is small, light and beautifully balanced, which means you can drive it enthusiastically and stay well within the legal speed limit. You’ll enjoy every manual gear change and every turn of the wheel — top down on your favourite B-road on a sunny day, very few cars are more enjoyable than an MX-5.

The downside? It really is tiny, so the cabin is uncomfortably cramped for anyone approaching six feet tall. So small, in fact, that the cupholders are removable because they tend to get in the way. Top-of-the-range specification is currently called Homura, but Mazda loves to rename its trim levels every few years, has meaningful dynamic upgrades, yet it costs over £7k more than the entry-level MX-5. Skip it unless the dealer goes full Don Corleone on the price.

Convertibles used to be all about compromise — a wobbly body (cutting the roof off does that), a tiny boot (filling it with the roof will does that), they're noisy (cloth roofs do that) and back seats designed for… Well, it’s never clear whom. Yet the BMW 4 Series Convertible seems immune to these drawbacks.

Its folding fabric roof means it's lighter than the older 3 Series Convertible's hard-top, while still doing an impressive job of keeping wind noise out when it's closed. The 300-litre boot with the roof lowered is genuinely useful and expands to 385 litres when its raised again, plus the rear seats are actually usable by adults — for shorter journeys, anyway. All that and it cruises with the sort of refinement that makes four-hour motorway drives genuinely enjoyable.

Today's 4 Series Convertible line-up is simpler than it used to be, with no diesel options, so at least ordering a new BMW no longer feels like like sitting an exam. We'd keep it simple — the 420i M Sport has more than enough performance, is quiet, will comfortably manage 40mpg on a long run and suits the car's laid-back, grand touring character perfectly.

Unless, of course, you fancy a BMW M4 Competition Convertible. We all do, but with 530PS and at over £97,000, it’s a handful in more ways than one.

If your idea of the perfect convertible involves the word 'wafting', then buy this — the Mercedes-Benz CLE Cabriolet is all about drop-top comfort. A sort of Poundland Rolls-Royce, if you like.

Replacing the Cabriolet versions of both the old Mercedes C-Class and E-Class, it’s quiet, smooth-riding and full of features designed to make driving all the more enjoyable. Equipment including the Airscarf system, which blows warm air around your neck from vents in the head restraints means you can leave the roof folded away long after everyone else has given up and put theirs back up for chillier months.

On a more basic level, though, there’s surprisingly little buffeting thanks to the Aircap wind deflector system and the engines are really quiet — even the diesel, which we’d recommend. The CLE220d Cabriolet will give you 50mpg without chugging like a tractor and really suits the laid-back nature of the car. If you want a bit more dynamism, get a 4 Series, but for comfort it’s the CLE all day long.

Like those tiny Louis Vuitton clutch bags that you see people with, the MINI Cooper Convertible is an accessory you own because it’s cool. Not because it’s necessarily useful.

The cloth roof renders both the rear seats and the boot almost entirely useless — especially the latter, which loses its tailgate for access, so that it basically becomes a shoebox with a hole cut in the side. From the front seats you won’t care, though — it still drives like a MINI, with quick and heavy steering, a brilliant driving position and being loads of fun… All with added sunshine. Or rain, more likely.

The Cooper S Convertible version hits the sweet spot, feeling genuinely quick thanks to 204PS and a 0-62mph time of 6.9 seconds, without being overly firm-riding or too expensive — £31,000 will get you one. And unlike the MINIs of yore, today’s cars don’t really need a fully ticked options list to feel like a lot of car.

There are faster convertibles, better handling convertibles, more economical convertibles. But none of them come with a 5.0-litre V8 nor the heritage of having featured in a Vanilla Ice video.

The Ford Mustang Convertible is still gloriously old-school in all the right ways. Long bonnet, rear-wheel drive, proper V8 soundtrack — it's a car that turns every tunnel into an event. And despite appearances, it's no longer the slightly clumsy American muscle car which Robert Van Winkle once drove. The latest version is actually quite comfy and sporty.

The previous-generation Mustang Convertible was available with a four-cylinder engine, purely for economy reasons. It was just as unsuited to the word 'Mustang' as an electric SUV is, so thankfully it’s no more. These days, every Mustang is a 20mpg muscle car that’ll cost a fortune in road tax, insurance and fuel. But worth every penny. Get one while you still can.

Most modern cars are packed with screens and sensors, readily able to update their software systems every other night. The Morgan Plus Four is the opposite of that. It’s Ron Burgundy in a world of AI news anchors.

Made almost entirely of aluminium, wood and leather, it looks like it's driven straight out of the 1930s and yet still makes complete sense in 2026. It’s genuinely brilliant to drive because it weighs barely over a tonne — or about about half the average family SUV — and is powered by a 258PS BMW 2.0-litre turbo engine from BMW. So it’s quick.

There's no power steering, no fancy suspension trickery and no pretence that it's practical. You do, therefore, have to accept some hardship. There’s no real boot to speak of, getting in and out requires dexterity and if it rains… You’re getting wet. Approaching £80k seems a lot for this sort of character building experience, but drive one and you’ll immediately know where your money has gone.

Some people think electric cars have no soul. MG responded by building one with scissor doors — the sort that open upwards, that is, not cut you in half.

The MG Cyberster isn't trying to recreate the old MGB or MG TF. Instead, it's a futuristic electric roadster with dramatic styling, a surprisingly posh interior and enough performance to embarrass cars costing considerably more. The all-wheel-drive version has 510PS and will hit 62mph from a standstill in 3.2 seconds. Oof.

Is it as delicate and involving to drive as an MX-5? Not even close. Batteries weigh a lot and you can feel it, but the Cyberster is about theatre rather than outright good handling. It’s actually pretty decent value, too. For £55k, it’s a comfy, tech-laden and rare roadster which happens to be electrically propelled, which means it’ll cost a pittance to to run. Definitely worth a punt if you want something flashy rather than something with nuanced handling.

The Bentley Continental GT Convertible weighs around two-and-a-half tonnes — roughly the same as a Ford Transit. And yet, somehow, it corners, accelerates and cruises like a car half its size. Well done, Bentley.

Obviously the GT Convertible isn't a sports car in the 911 Cabriolet sense, but it’s not about that anyway. It’s a first class cruising experience — every surface is covered in leather, wood or metal, as opposed to the polished plastic you’ll find in most cars. It's astonishingly refined, even with the roof down, making almost every other luxury car feel a bit ordinary.

Two V8-powered plug-in hybrids are your power choices in 680PS and 782PS guises. Both sound fantastic and can still haul this Transit-heavy drop-top from a standstill to 62mph in around 3.4 seconds if you choose the more powerful one. Not cheap, not a sensible purchase but one you won’t regret if you can.

Poor BMW Z4. It's the middle child of the convertible world. Too expensive to tempt MX-5 buyers, not quite special enough to steal people away from the now off sale Porsche 718 Boxster. Hmm.

That’s a shame, really. — the Z4 is excellent. The steering is sharper than the 4 Series', it's compact enough to feel genuinely sporty and unlike most rivals, you can still have one with a proper six-cylinder engine.

Better still, BMW finally came to its senses late on in the car’s life and decided to make a version with a manual gearbox. That seems antiquated, but we’re glad the Z4 M40i existed.

The entry-level, automatic-only, Z4 sDrive20i is perfectly decent if you're more interested in roof-down cruising than anything else, but if your budget stretches, the 340PS M40i is the one to have. It sounds fantastic, is very quick and might be the last genuinely old-fashioned BMW sports car we'll ever get.

Yes, just like the 718 Boxster, the BMW Z4 went out of production in 2026 — you might just be able to find a new and unregistered in stock if you're quick.