No, she isn’t participating but she’s talked about her preferences before as something she’d like to get herself if she had the money. By US standards we are not poor by any stretch of the imagination, I simply meant that I’m not rolling in cash. I may ask my stepdad about it once I get things narrowed down to see if he thinks we could sell her existing car to get something a little nicer.
All I can do than is to offer you my sincere best wishes.
My comments were not meant to be derogatory in any way, simply a quick summary of things that you’d stated throughout the thread and justifications for the conclusions I’d reached. You seem to be looking at this in great detail and I applaud that, but your conclusions sound like they’re maybe being too highly influenced by your love for your mom.
Talking about it with your stepdad is a great next step. Let us know how you make out. We care, but many of us have over a half century of car buying under our belts and are only trying to offer the benefit of our own mistakes. .
Yeah, that’s what @the_same_mountainbike meant when he said they weren’t affordable. Sure, you can afford to buy 'em, but then you’re gonna break the bank keeping them on the road. They aren’t reliable, and they’re expensive to fix when they break.
TSM is also right - you’re going to have to compromise. Euro cars in general suck for reliability. So if you want a reliable convertible, you’re going to have to look outside of the Euro makers.
Instead of putting the strain of what could be costly repairs on someone this person needs to buy the convertible for them selves and then when there is Goldilocks weather ( Not to Hot and Not to Cold ) just let the mother drive it if she wants to.
The Miata and the Toyota Solara siggested above are both excellent, practical choices that will satisfy the yearning for a convertible without breaking the bank or being more trouble than they are fun.
If it MUST be European, the Volvo would be worth researching.
My wife loves her BMW 328 convertible and a friend at work loves her BMW 335 convertible, but I would not recommend a used one for anyone other than a seasoned BMW enthusiast.
ratings for city/hwy for 08 solara is 18/26? how can joe blow get almost 40 on the hwy? if factory says you will get 26 on the hwy at 55mph, than how can you beat that by 10mpg? i know all about using a light foot but there is no way to tip toe at 55mph?
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That might be the first recommendation for a Volvo to appear on this forum.
Mine was 2001, EPA at 24/33. Using the cruise control and driving at reasonable speeds it was not not hard to get nearly 40
What you’re describing applies to you, not necessarily the average driver
You should take this as a compliment, not as a disagreement 
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