When the sun is shining there is nothing better than to hit the road in an open to car but which is the best rag top to use on a daily basis?  To start with we are going to concentrate on the purpose built soft tops out there, not a standard model with roof cut off.

It seems that more and more manufacturers are releasing small two seater roadsters designed to add a bit of glamour to our automotive lives.  Premium European offerings include BMW’s Z4 and the Mercedes Benz CLZK.  The latter specializes in the folding tin top roof which is becoming more common in other makes and allows for security and all weather comfort and the thrill of the wind in your hair at the flick of a switch. The downside to this luxury?  Well there is the premium over the traditional cloth option, restricted luggage space and additional weight.

Britain continues it’s tradition of manufacturing some of the most fun sports cars around but nowadays the choice is limited to Lotus and it’s wonderful Elise.  This car is the definition of back to basics thrill packed driving but this is at the cost of comfort so would only be an everyday driver for the most committed speed freak.  That aside if you are intending to store your play car in the garage and only take it out occasionally the Lotus will reward you with the finest handling car costing less than $100k.

Over the years the US has concentrated on building it’s very own take on autos in this area - the convertible muscle car.  While these beasts do not have the pin sharp handling of a Lotus or the refined quality of the German metal they do use their (not so) secret weapon, the good old V8.  Using this legendary power plant the driver can move in comfort propelled by the gigantic amount of torque at their disposal.

This leads us to the Far East, and Japan in particular.  There 25 years ago the Engineers at Mazda set out to recreate the fun and style of the classic Lotus Elan with the creation of the Miata.  This car is known around the world by a variety of names such as the Eunos, Roadster and MX5 as well as combinations of this. Although since launch it has gone through a number of revisions the basic ethos of this car remains unchanged - Classic front engine / rear drive configuration, simple fold away roof and not too much in unnecessary gadgetry.  Some enthusiasts will claim that the car is now fitted with too many luxuries but the beauty of this is that the cars have a fantastic reputation for reliability so if you want an old school Miata the pre-owned market is not a scary place.  This approach will also let you try the world of open top motoring for little more than chump change.

The conclusion to this is the Miata may not be the fastest, most luxurious or even the most head turning two seater sports car out there but for simple fun with out busting the bank you would have to crazy to look beyond this gem.