The convertible car, once the ultimate symbol of freedom and rebellion, is vanishing from British roads. Sales have fallen by nearly 90% over the past two decades, from 109,171 in 2005 to just 11,484 last year, according to the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders.
The decline mirrors the dramatic rise of the Sports Utility Vehicle. SUVs now account for 59% of car sales across Europe, data from Dataforce GmbH shows. Where Grace Kelly and Cary Grant once cruised the French Riviera in a Sunbeam Alpine in To Catch a Thief, today’s celebrities favour the Lamborghini Urus, Mercedes-Benz G Wagon or Bentley Bentayga.
“UK convertible sales fell 90% in 20 years, from 109,171 to 11,484, as SUVs dominate.”
“It's a simple fact of people wanting more practicality these days,” said Steve Fowler, automotive journalist and founder of Carblah. “SUVs are sports cars for people who can't have sports cars any more. They've got that kind of image that perhaps a convertible used to have.”
Fowler added: “It's very difficult to put the kids, the dog, the bike, and everything else we have in our lives into a convertible.”
The open-top car’s fall from grace is also a manufacturing problem. “It costs so much money to build any car these days,” Fowler explained. “And it's not just as simple as chopping the roof off... with safety regulations and everything else, there's a lot of work that goes into building a convertible.”
Philip Nothard, insight director of Cox Automotive Europe, also commented on the trend, but no further details were available in the source.
Once a fixture of silver-screen elegance in films like The Graduate and Thelma and Louise, the convertible now faces an uncertain future. Whether it can reverse its fate remains an open question.