Five hot convertibles for Summer 2015

Was that the start of summer I spotted?

A hint of sun; a breath of warmer temperatures; and the ‘official’ start of summer at the beginning of June.

It all leads to one thing: me getting my top down and choosing my convertible favourites for summer sunshine fun.

Here’s my pick of soft-tops for Summer 2015 – some more sensible than others…

Audi A3 Elegant looks, quality build and a choice of engines that will please any fleet manager – the latest cabriolet version of the Audi A3 has the lot. Business-friendly versions of the svelte A3 drop top are the 1.4-litre petrol and 2.0-litre TDi diesel, with emissions of 114g/km and 110g/km respectively.

BMW 2-Series New for summer 2015, is this stylish convertible version of what I think is BMW’s best-looking small convertible yet. Yes, rivals are more spacious, but the 2-Series is going to be great to drive and in 220d form, cost effective to run with 60+ mpg fuel consumption and low 124g/km emissions.

Vauxhall Cascada Unfairly overlooked in the UK, the Cascada has in my view, a lot to offer convertible buyers with proper four-seat practicality and attractive looks as well. Diesel power doesn’t quite fit in with those sharp looks, but with 138g/km CO2 and 54.3mpg figures, the Cascada makes real sense as a convertible to run on your company. It’s well built too, and brilliantly specified.

Ford Mustang The Mustang is back and finally available officially in the UK. Okay, to remain vaguely sensible, my pick of the convertible pony cars wouldn’t have the V8, but instead have the 312bhp 2.3-litre Ecoboost.  CO2 emissions of 184g/km and 34.4mpg consumption mean with some rose-tinted maths, I’m sure you could make the figures work.

Porsche Boxster Okay, this is likely to be the most expensive convertible on this list priced from around £37,000, even in entry 2.7-litre form. But in my opinion if you can cover the considerable cost, even with CO2 figures of 180g/km, this Porsche is one of the best looking and finest handling sports cars available.