Affordable Two-Seater Convertibles

published 7 June 2007

Warmer weather has arrived and if you have your eye on a cool new set of wheels, you're in luck. Now's a good time to buy a new convertible because there have never been more good, reasonably-priced roadsters to choose from.

In this slide show, we rank six two-seater convertibles on their cool factor, with five stars being the highest ranking. All of these models are rear-wheel-drive cars priced with a manual transmission. Insurance premiums and service costs are supplied by Vincentric. Take a look. You really don't have to have bags of money to drive a fun, sporty car.

--By Mark Solheim

CHEVROLET CORVETTE

Sticker/dealer cost: $53,335/$47,821
Horsepower: 400 (zero to 60: 4.2 seconds)
Miles per gallon: 18 city/28 highway
Service cost (five years): $3,830
Trunk space: 11 cu. ft.

The latest 'Vette is less muscle car and more Euro-style sports car, but it still has wicked power and generous cargo room. A little too much plastic inside can be forgiven.

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MAZDA MX-5 MIATA SPORT

Sticker/dealer cost: $22,030/$20,399
Horsepower: 166 (zero to 60: 6.5 seconds)
Miles per gallon: 25 city/30 highway
Service cost (five years): $3,279
Trunk space: 5.3 cu. ft.

Lightweight and balanced, the Mazda is built to achieve a "driver and car as one" sensibility. Trunk space is decent; a hard-top-convertible version sells for a $2,815 premium.

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NISSAN 350Z

Sticker/dealer cost: $36,165/$33,553
Horsepower: 306 (zero to 60: 5.6 seconds)
Miles per gallon: 19 city/25 highway
Service cost (five years): $3,281
Trunk space: 4.1 cu. ft.

Speed and exuberant owners make the Z the most expensive of the bunch to insure. Trunk volume is stingy, too, but it has better center-console storage than the others.

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PORSCHE BOXSTER

Sticker/dealer cost: $46,395/$40,543
Horsepower: 245 (zero to 60: 5.1 seconds)
Miles per gallon: 20 city/29 highway
Service cost (five years): $4,895
Trunk space: 9.5 cu. ft.

The Boxster corners and brakes like a dream. The engine is placed mid car, so there's storage fore and aft. But options can run up the price, and service costs are steep.

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SATURN SKY RED LINE

Sticker/dealer cost: $29,025/$27,177
Horsepower: 260 (zero to 60: 5.7 seconds)
Miles per gallon: 22 city/31 highway
Service cost (five years): $4,044
Trunk space: 5.4 cu. ft.

Beautiful, fast and fun to drive. But rear and over-the-shoulder visibility is poor. Putting the top up and down is time-consuming, and trunk space is tiny.

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HONDA S2000

Sticker/dealer cost: $34,845/$31,433
Horsepower: 237 (zero to 60: 5.8 seconds)
Miles per gallon: 20 city/26 highway
Service cost (five years): $4,679
Trunk space: 5 cu. ft.

A pure roadster with a no-frills design, the S2000 hits the sweet spot on the price/performance continuum. Handling is superb thanks to a 50-50 front-rear weight distribution, and its modest horsepower from the VTEC four-cylinder engine belies its speedy acceleration. The power top is simple to drop, too. And although cargo space doesn't appear capacious, you can fit several grocery bags in the trunk.

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Mark was the editor of Kiplinger's Personal Finance magazine from July 2017 to June 2023. Prior to becoming editor, he was the Money and Living sections editor and, before that, the automotive writer. He has also been editor of Kiplinger.com as well as the magazine's managing editor, assistant managing editor and chief copy editor. Mark has also served as president of the Washington Automotive Press Association. In 1990 he was nominated for a National Magazine Award. Mark earned a B.A. from University of Virginia and an M.A. in Writing from Johns Hopkins University. Mark lives in Washington, D.C., with his wife, and they spend as much time as possible in their Glen Arbor, Mich., vacation home.