Coupe vs convertible

[fgasca]

Can anyone with opinion give ideas/issues about the advantages disadvantages of 964 cabrio when compared to 964 non cabrio

I´m mainly interested in:

Safety
Vandalism
Rust / Isolation
Comfortability (can you pu 2 kids comfortably there)
Any other thing that comes to your mind

Thank you

Fernando

 

[Dave Wilkinson]

Fernando,

I suspect it will be difficult to get a meaningful answer to this as you tend to find that the cabrio has it's fans as does the coupe, but rarely do owners switch. It's just a matter of taste.

Although I'll admit to being firmly in the Coupe camp I suspect the cabrio might be a litle more expensive to insure just because it's more liable to vandal damage. Because the lack of a roof weakens the basic body structure, despite additional stiffening, the cabrio tends to benefit a little more from a strut brace up front. Then, of course, there is the benefit of open top motoring if you like that.

I don't think there is any real difference between the two as far as rear seat passengers are concerned although, of course, the cabrio will suffer less of a headroom problem with the roof down!! I've seen plenty of reports of mechanical issues with the cabrio roof which you avoid completely with the coupe.

The final choice is which one you prefer the looks of. I'm not going to go there!!!

Regards

Dave

PS I see you joined the Yahoo Group - Welcome to that!!

 

[fgasca]

Hi Dave,

Thanks for your answer. Yes I joined the other forum so I'm getting so much information that I'll need all the bank holliday to digest it!

Regarding the cabrio, I was thinking of safety in case of accident (hope never happens) but I had one with a BMW a couple of years ago (pure aquaplaning) and since then cabrios scare me a little bit. The point its that I'm not sure if I'm right or just becomeing a little bit paranoid (je, je)!

Regards

Fernando

 

[burrow01]

Hi,

Not owned a 964 Cabrio, but have had a 3.2 and now own a 993 Cab.

• Safety - would surmise that the older 911 cabs are not as safe in a roll over situation as a more modern car with flip up roll bars etc. Hood has quite a lot of reinforcement though, and I've never felt unsafe in mine, including driving it on track - you can get bolt in roll bars if its a major concern
• Vandalism - depends where you live I imagine - I do think carefully about where to park it, but to be honest its easier to "key" a coupe than slash a convertible roof, so I don't feel any more vulnerable than if I was in any "Prestige" type car - never noticed any major difference in insurance costs
• Rust - don't think this is a major difference between coupe and cab, in fact one of the typical rust spots is around the rear window, so cabs remove this
• Comfort - the rear seat backs are slightly more upright in a cab, and therefore less comfortable. Space wise they are fine for kids up to 11 or so

Additional complexity and costs are one extra issue - there is more to go wrong, and hoods need replacing eventually. The hood has been the major cost item on my car. Also earlier 911's have plastic rear windows with all the care / visibility issues that come with them (although the 3.2/964 hood has a seperate panel for the rear window, so this can be replaced independently of the main hood if the rear window is knackered)

Having said all that, major advantage of a cab is that the roof comes off - on a nice sunny day its great, and you can really hear the engine working for a living []

HTH

Pete

 

[Mutley]

Hi Fernando,

I am with Pete, I bought my Cab to enjoy the engine sound and the wind in the hair type thing, I am not one for thinking will somebody slash the roof etc, highly unlikely these days, but you never know, as with everything you take your chances.

As for handling I have tried both and can not tell the difference, not on the road in anycase, but for pure pleasure I think the Cabs are the business, no dissrespect to Dave, but its all what ever floats your boat

Unfortuantely as some of you know my 964 Cab is for sale, I have been messed about something cronic with tyre kickers, one guys wife is having a 2nd child and seems very interested but who knows, I am getting to the point were I may just keep her for another year[8D]

Mutt

 

[fgasca]

Thank you for your answers... another silly question, on the rear seats is like a tornado or is it ok? I´m thinking now of two young kids siting there.

Thanks again

Fernando