Fire up the... Vauxhall Cascada

FORGET any ideas of this being a sports car. Even though it’s a swoopy two-door offering with a droptop roof and the word ‘Turbo’ in its name, to blast down the backroads is to miss the point of this al-fresco offering from Vauxhall.

Nope, the Cascada’s charms are altogether more grown up – four plump seats, a traditional, soft-top roof which stows away electrically in 12 seconds and endless opportunities to improve your tan. Enjoying this Astra-based open top tourer is all about relaxing, taking in the scenery, and letting the car’s supple suspension take the strain.

That’s why the Cascada is smooth and cosseting to drive rather than livewire, firm and immediate – in fact, the composed, chilled out way its front-wheel-drive underpinnings take corners is immediately familiar to anyone who’s piloted an Astra or Insignia for any meaningful mileage. The ride, in particular, is superb, with the uncomfortable shakes and vibrations of big cabriolets from a generation ago (Saab 900 Convertible, anyone?) all but a distant memory.

In fact, the only real weak link in the Cascada’s easy-going chain is that turbocharged engine – it’s a 170bhp 1.6 litre petrol lump and it’s far from lacking in pace, but the way it revs and scrabbles to put down its power is utterly at odds with the rest of the car’s character. The silky smooth, unstressed urge of a big V6 is what this car really deserves, but in this cost-conscious day and age the best engine the Cascada range offers is Vauxhall’s superb 2.0 litre turbodiesel.

One thing that is consistent through the range, however, are the looks; it’s not going to grace any bedroom wall posters any time soon, but you can’t deny the Cascada’s handsome in a restrained, intelligent sort of way. There’s an argument it’s not only better looking than Renault’s Megane CC, but BMW’s open-top 3-Series too.

Vauxhall’s biggest challenge is going to be persuading image-conscious convertible connoisseurs that the saving over a BMW 3-Series or an Audi A5 is worth forgoing the street cred of the German rivals. However, there’s still a gap left where the Saab 9-3 convertible left off.

In the Cascada, the company’s got a convertible capable enough of exploiting it.

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Fire up the... Volkswagen Golf GTI Cabriolet

PERHAPS it's a case of saving the best for last. Across the country fans of all things Volkswagen are being asked to give the new Golf a go, but in doing so they're missing out on the outgoing model's finest moments.

The sixth generation of Germany's bestseller wasn't exactly left wanting for kudos but that hasn't stopped the company from making sure it goes out with a bang rather than a whimper in the shadow of the slightly longer, roomier and sturdier new model. The Golf GTI Cabriolet covers two bits of automotive territory VW's awfully good at; the hot hatch, which it's been doing since the original Golf GTI of 1977, and the solidly-built ragtop beloved of middle class families everywhere.

Step aboard and it's business as usual for Golf lovers; detractors might call the interior dull, but Veedub fans will be delighted by the seemingly unbreakable build quality and the nice visual flourishes you get with the tartan seats and the subtle red stitching. It's also definitely a ragtop in the traditional sense- no folding metal roof here, sorry - but that's no bad thing because it a) keeps the boot free for things such as luggage and b) keeps the weight down, which means the performance familiar to fans of the GTI hatchback is still there in abundance.

All of which means you can enjoy this car's best feature - its engine, which thanks to having two litres and a turbo to call upon can muster up 208bhp. It's a fabulous bit of hardware which not makes this open-top Golf fast enough to wear the fabled GTI badge with pride but is smooth, rev-happy and happy to play along with enthusiastic driving.

But you can get this engine in the hatchback, which offers more practicality and ever so slightly sweeter handling for £3,000 less than this cabrio's £30k pricetag. Look at this car as an open-top hot hatch and you're missing the point, because it'll almost certainly seem too expensive. See it as a classy, go-faster cabrio that neatly fills the gap left by Saab's 9-3, however, and it's a very tempting prospect indeed.

Now all we need is some proper summer weather to enjoy it...

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