MINIs are ticking time bombs. The VW Eos was nicely trimmed but leaked a bit.
They are getting a bit old now, but most are lightly used, consider Ford Focus CC. They drive fine, reliable, and cheap to maintain. My dad had one (before dreaded AD), and the roof was utterly reliable, even when in his AD-addled state he tried to lower it in the garage, and the roof kind of crashed. Still worked perfectly afterwards.
Why this sort of car is suggested is the door length. My mother is a paraplegic, and while past using a wheelchair much now, the wide opening doors made it very easy for her to transfer it. The passenger seat on the top of the range CC3 were height adjustable. While there was space in the boot with the top down, I used to sling the folded wheelchair into the back seat.
These Fords were built by Pininfarina, alongide a similar Volvo convertible. The early ones leaked, so much so, Ford brought them all back, took over the Pininfarina plant, and did it right. Looks alright in the right colour combination
The most you’d pay is £5k for a 2011 run out.
I’d save you the bother; Peugeot 308CCs were frankly awful inside and to drive. Tacky.
The brave pill wiill be the 2011 Mercedes E350 on Autotrader now.
An either braver pill would be the Jaguar X150 convertible, which are just about sneaking in to under £8k with higher miles. But tax on them is horrendous.
Then there is the Vauxhall Cascada, badged as a Buick in the US. GM spent an enormous sum developing this car, only for Ford et al to bail out. By all accounts a decent car. Based on the Delta 2 platform, so its a cousin to the Astra, but doesn’t share any panels. It was killed off by PSA’s acquisition of GM Europe.
They all seem to be mostly well specced up. Folding cloth roof. Unlike the Ford, designed ground up to be a convertible (which the Eos was as well, but it has problems)
£8k should get a low miles (<40k) 2016 example.
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