These are the best affordable used convertibles to enjoy this summer

It can often feel like winter drags on, with all the cold days and dark nights. So when summer arrives, it’s a good idea to make the most of the best weather.

A great way of doing this is buying a convertible for these warmer months, with that roof-down experience being particularly enjoyable. You might think a drop-top needs to be an expensive purchase, but that is far from the case with many great choices available for just a few thousand pounds.

Here we look at the best used convertibles costing under £10,000.

Audi TT Roadster

Audi’s TT will go down as a design icon in the car world, and with the German firm recently confirming it will discontinue the TT later this year, now is a great time to get an original model. Available as a Coupe or the Roadster we’re focusing on here, high-mileage but usable examples can be bought for as little as £2,000.

The 222bhp 1.8-litre model, equipped with quattro four-wheel-drive, is the most desirable and is great to drive, yet still feeling secure should the weather take a turn for the worse. The TT’s interior still feels well-built by modern standards, too.

Mini Convertible

Mini’s Convertible is one of the most popular drop-tops around, and there are hundreds available on the used market with used prices starting from as little as £1,500. As with any convertible, it’s worth inspecting the electric roof for any rips and tears, while also checking it opens and closes with no issues.

This Mini is good fun to drive, looks the part and offers four seats as standard, though the rear two are quite tight. We’d recommend a sportier Cooper S model, which is available from around £3,000, but diesel examples are available if fuel efficiency is more important.

BMW Z4

BMW offers one of the widest ranges of convertibles of any manufacturer, but a real highlight in its line-up is the Z4. The purest ‘roadster’ it offers, this model is great fun to drive with a combination of agile handling and rear-wheel-drive.

We’d recommend a first-generation Z4, sold between 2003 and 2009, with a choice of lighter four-cylinder engines or more powerful six-cylinder units. The cheapest usable examples are available from around £3,000.

Mazda MX-5

One convertible that’s impossible to ignore is the brilliant Mazda MX-5. Over the years it’s been the best-selling roadster of its type, and continues to be sold brand new as a fun, lightweight sports car.

But if you’re shopping used, we’d recommend a third-generation model (codenamed NC) that was sold between 2005 and 2014, which gets a more modern interior but is still hugely enjoyable to drive. Tidy used MX-5s of this age start from around £3,000 and because of its popularity, there are plenty available.

Fiat 500C

Not every convertible needs to be fast or ‘sporty’, so if you’d prefer a more relaxing, easygoing drop-top, you should take a look at the Fiat 500C. While it won’t be to everyone’s taste, it’s hard to dispute this model’s style, while Fiat’s broad personalisation options mean there are plenty of more colourful examples on the market.

Equipped with a small petrol engine, the 500C will also be more frugal and cheaper to insure than other models on this list, making it ideal for new drivers. Around £4,000 will buy you a 10-year-old car with 100,000 miles on the clock.

Porsche Boxster

But moving back to the sportier variety, we have got the Porsche Boxster, which remains brilliantly affordable for one of the German firm’s models. Introduced in the late 1990s, the Boxster sits below Porsche’s 911, but is still widely regarded as one of the best convertibles to drive.

Used Boxsters can be bought for around £4,500, but it’s worth factoring in extra for maintenance as repair bills will be quite steep. That said, the Boxster is widely tipped as a future classic, meaning prices are only set to continue rising.

Mercedes E-Class Cabriolet

Mercedes’ convertibles are largely targeted more towards comfort than performance, and one of the best affordable choices is the E-Class Cabriolet. First introduced in 2009, it still looks great while the interior is also well-finished.

It’s one of the more practical convertibles on the market, with a useful boot and slightly roomier rear seats. A wide choice of petrol and diesel engines are offered, with the latter being in greater supply. High-mileage examples can be bought from £6,000.