Advice
Gallery 1
These are the convertibles that should cost you the least to own over three years. This has been calculated by Wheels using fuel economy, maintenance and insurance costs, and the sum you can expect to lose in depreciation. Cars also get points for the length of their warranties. To read about the brains behind the formula, please click here to visit Wheels.
Fiat’s 500 C, the least-expensive ragtop on sale in Oz, was a dead cert to win here. You might as well treat yourself to the Lounge version; it’s a bit pricier than the base 500C, but its 900cc turbo two-pot will save money on fuel and give you a talking point. Retained value is not brilliant in percentage terms, but losing 47 percent of 20-odd grand over three years isn’t too bad.
| Convertibles under $60K | Fiat 500 C Lounge TwinAir | Volkswagen Golf Cabriolet 118TSI | Mini Cooper Cabrio |
| Purchase Price | $24,500 | $43,990 | $40,350 |
| Combined cycle fuel (L/100km) | 3.9 | 6.5 | 6.1 |
| Fuel RON (min. rec.) | 95 | 95 | 95 |
| Three-year fuel cost | $2370 | $3950 | $3707 |
| Redbook resale (%) | 52.6 | 59.3 | 53.8 |
| Three-year depreciation | $10,902 | $17,904 | $18,642 |
| AAMI insurance premium | $851 | $1109 | $1089 |
| Service interval (months) | 6 | 12 | 12 |
| Warranty (years) | 3 | 3 | 3 |
