babypuppi: [6] 2004 Bmw Convertible On This Week Topic

Some domestic cats regard parked convertibles as feline hammocks, a great place to nap while depositing furry evidence. Pro detailing tip: Stash one of those sticky lint rollers in the glove box alongside the sunblock, bandana, and hairbrush. Especially if the convertible has a nice fabric top like that on the BMW 228i tested here. Pet hair clings to this quality woven fabric more than it does to cheaper vinyl tops.

Sleepy cats may be disappointed to learn that convertible sales are down 44 percent in the past decade, with only 1 in 100 U.S. buyers opting for folding roofs, per research firm IHS. Not even wider availability of the retractable-hardtop variant stemmed the global tide—from a 21st-century peak of more than 800,000 units in 2004, worldwide convertible production is down to 450,000 or so, a meager 0.7-percent share of the market. Americans and Europeans have embraced crossovers (the Nissan Murano CrossCabriolet sadly failed to establish a beachhead for softtop crossovers) while buyers in the Middle East, India, and China have shown ostensibly zero interest in top-down motoring. Fears of sun-induced melanomas and breathing urban air that hasn’t first passed through a charcoal filter probably contribute to the shift in preferences. Whatever the reasons, mass-market standard-bearers like the Toyota Camry Solara and the Chrysler 200 (née Sebring) convertible have gone out of production.

In the 1970s and ’80s, too, eulogies for the convertible were as common as black cat hairs on white linen trousers, so let us not rush to doomsaying. Sales could well rebound as those who remember the ’70s move into retirement age. Droptops make us think about being young, single, and free, but in reality most buyers are empty-nesters and retirees from cold-weather states now living in the Sunbelt. That windblown hair? It’s probably gray.

Long gray locks would look good behind the wheel of this BMW, handsomely turned out with Glacier Silver paint ($550) and a Coral Red Dakota leather interior highlighted with brushed-aluminum and gloss-black trim. Prices start at $38,895 and even this heavily optioned example’s $53,870 sticker barely breaks into the price zone of a larger 428i convertible with the same turbocharged four-cylinder/eight-speed automatic powertrain (starting price: $49,745). Those figures are for 2015 models like the tested car, although BMW has already adjusted content and revised stickers upward on both 2-series and 4-series models for 2016.

View PhotosMICHAEL SIMARINot Just for Sunbathing

Serious drivers have long chosen coupes over convertibles, knowing they’ll get a stiffer, lighter chassis, usually for less money. And, as we noted when a 228i coupe placed second to an Audi A3 in a three-way comparo, BMW tuning has tilted toward luxury and away from sport, making some of the 2-series offerings less exciting than their 1-series antecedents. This example, though, was equipped to dispel low expectations that it’d be a car best enjoyed by shirtless, hairy-backed old men cruising the Florida Keys in search of a third wife.

This 2.0-liter turbo four makes 240 horsepower and revs eagerly to 7000 rpm, while the 255 lb-ft of torque peaks early at 1450 rpm. Moving up to the M235i convertible with its 3.0-liter inline-six buys 80 more ponies along with 330 lb-ft for an additional $10,000. The extra ask for the six-cylinder coupe, which grabbed a spot on our 10Best list, is more like $6000, but without the charms of open-air motoring. We haven’t tested an M235i convertible yet, but the base M235i coupe with a manual got to 60 mph in 4.9 seconds, stickered at $44,025, and returned 23 mpg. We saw 25 mpg in this four-cylinder convertible.

The Sport Line package ($2050) brought more supportive sport seats as well as 18-inch wheels with Michelin Pilot Super Sport tires and an inflator kit in place of the Bridgestone run-flats on the comparison-test car. The Track Handling package ($1600) added M Sport brakes, an adaptive M suspension, and variable sport steering. Together, these served to give a crisper, more responsive feel that made us wonder, again, why BMW no longer lets convertible buyers opt for the six-speed manual transmission in the 228i. A clutch pedal was the only thing lacking to make this car truly engaging.

The coupe is undoubtedly more rigid, but even with the firmed-up suspension the convertible showed no signs of cowl shake, rattles, twisting, or flexing. At the track, the tire and suspension upgrades scored with skidpad grip of 0.92 g, on par with the manual six-cylinder coupe (the comparison-test turbo four managed only 0.86 g). It stopped from 70 mph in 157 feet. On the road, turn-in response and handling felt eager and sharp, if a bit heavy.

The convertible is significantly heftier, weighing in at 3700 pounds compared with the 3353-pound coupe. It’s more massive, even, than the 3460-pound 228i coupe with xDrive. The fully lined top and the power mechanism to stow it under a hard tonneau (20-odd seconds down or up, even while rolling at up to 30 mph) add mass. So, too, must the pyrotechnic rollover-protection gear, dual roll bars stowed all-but-invisibly behind the rear headrests. Making room for all that squeezes 7 cubic feet out of the passenger space (the raised top is also 0.2 inches lower than the fixed roof) and 2 cubes out of the trunk—or more with the top lowered. BMW itself claims near-equal cargo volume; we assume the difference is measuring top-down versus top-up. Regardless, the rear seat is sized more for grandchildren than for double-dating, unless both the passengers and the distance traveled are short.

View PhotosMICHAEL SIMARI

The mass penalty: Six-tenths of one second in the dash from rest to 60 mph (5.5 for this car versus 4.9 for the 228i coupe). The 30-to-50- and 50-to-70-mph sprints also showed the coupe to be quicker, by 0.2 and 0.4 second. Not a huge penalty, but not just at launch, either.

Sporty, at What Price?

Let us not bang on about BMW pricing schemes beyond noting that Munich’s base prices are like anteing up to play an online game: Expect to make in-app purchases if you want to win. Point is, before deciding if this is the BMW you’d choose, consider the in-house alternatives.

This car had the $2150 Technology package (navigation and apps, mostly), the $3400 Premium package (passive entry and a long list of other things you’d think would be standard but aren’t), plus the Cold Weather package ($700 for a heated steering wheel and heated front seats), Driver Assistance ($950 for a rear camera and parking sensors), Driver Assistance Plus (Active Driving Assistance—we left it turned off), and the Lighting package ($900 xenon headlamps). Another $550 for paint that was neither black nor white, plus $500 for the Parking Assistant, and it all seemed a bit over the top.

Assuming the buyer wants open-air motoring, we’d go with Sport Line and Track Handling, for sure, then look for stuff to leave off because $53K crosses into where you might consider a lightly equipped 4-series or a Z4 as your cat’s hammock. An empty-nester/retiree reward car is all about having choices. A 228i convertible would be a good one.

Specifications

VEHICLE TYPE: front-engine, rear-wheel-drive, 4-passenger, 2-door convertible

PRICE AS TESTED: $53,870 (base price: $38,895)

ENGINE TYPE: turbocharged and intercooled DOHC 16-valve inline-4, aluminum block and head, direct fuel injection

Displacement: 122 cu in, 1997 cc
Power: 240 hp @ 6500 rpm
Torque: 255 lb-ft @ 1450 rpm

TRANSMISSION: 8-speed automatic with manual shifting mode

DIMENSIONS:
Wheelbase: 105.9 in
Length: 174.7 in
Width: 69.8 in Height: 55.6 in
Passenger volume: 82 cu ft
Cargo volume (top up/down): 12/10 cu ft
Curb weight: 3700 lb

C/D TEST RESULTS:
Zero to 60 mph: 5.5 sec
Zero to 100 mph: 15.1 sec
Zero to 130 mph: 29.6 sec
Rolling start, 5-60 mph: 6.5 sec
Top gear, 30-50 mph: 3.2 sec
Top gear, 50-70 mph: 4.0 sec
Standing ¼-mile: 14.3 sec @ 97 mph
Top speed (governor limited, C/D est): 120 mph
Braking, 70-0 mph: 157 ft
Roadholding, 300-ft-dia skidpad: 0.92 g

FUEL ECONOMY:
EPA city/highway: 23/34 mpg
C/D observed: 25 mpg

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