Hybrid Convertible
Created October 20, 2004, at 11:56 am by Anonymous
Any word on the street about a manufacturer putting out a convertible hybrid? I'd like a convertible when my lease is up in 2006, but I'd like a convertible, too.
advertisement
Most Popular Pages
Free Email Newsletter Sign-up
All the latest news in a free and engaging bundle. Totally free!
I think the carmakers are just inching toward the full range of options, such as a convertible top, for hybrid cars. I've seen articles about hybrid convertibles in a concept car, but nothing even close to production.
Here's the url for one of those articles:
http://autonet.ca/Spotlight/Concepts/story.cfm?story=/Spotlight/Concepts/2004/01/19/532168.html
It seems to me that a convertible wouldn't be very aerodynamic, but might appeal to a whole new segment of buyers--and it would be a blast to drive.
Anybody else seen a mention of a hybrid convertible?
i think overall the current demand for hybrids in general is showing the manufacturers that they need a batch of hybrids to cover:
1. commuter gas mile needs
2. general "green" people
3. larger trucks & vans for simply decent mileage
4. classy looking cars that are also hybrids
the technology seems transferable to all these styles. just gotta wait some more...
steve
Has anyone seen the CS&S on Toyota's concept page? It's 2+2 hybrid convertible with 4 wheel drive. Perfect, but I can't figure out from the web page when it's going to be released!
No. They just seem to be teasing us. I also like the Subaru B9 Scrambler - great retro look hybrid convertible with AWD. But they don't have any plans to produce it! It was a smash at last year's show in Tokyo, but still no plans. I tried to find a way to go to Europe and buy a SmartCar roadster; hybrid convertible, but no AWD. Altho WA state won't hassle me about licensing it, the Feds won't allow it to be imported! There's the Bush mafia at work. So we're at least two years out. I do also like the Pontiac Solstice coming out next summer/fall. Cute! But no hybrid option. It does have what they call an Ecotec engine. Also a FAB feature - the clamshell top hides completely in the trunk. Check out autos.yahoo.com/newcars/future_cars/pontiac_solstice_2006.html. But if you're like me, you're holding out for a hybrid, and this is just another frustration.
I researched this about 10 years ago and unless rules have really changed -
You can import any car to the US- models prior to a set year (it used to be 1966) need no modification.
Others need to be modified to be allowed in the country.
DOT, Customs, and EPA all have rules.
Look here
http://www.epa.gov/otaq/imports/factmtop.htm
If you decide to go somewhere to acquire a convertible hybrid Smart and want company- let me know and I'll go with you. If not- will you pick one up for me?
I need a new car but I'm waiting for a Hybrid Convertible. My kids are finally growing up and I've been waiting over 18 years for a convertible! I wish they'd come out already. I can't imagine why they wouldn't make an upscale convertible car in hybrid. I just know they'd sell quickly with all of the 40+ baby boomers getting their kids off to college and ready for nice luxery cars. Most mature people respect the earth and want to contribute to a clean environment. With gas prices and my love of nature I really want to go hybrid. Thus, I'm patiently waiting for a hybrid convertible. I just hope my old little honda civic holds out long enough or I'll be forced to buy a mercedes convertible instead :-(
Me too! I'm eagerly waiting for a hybrid convertible to be my next car!! The toyota concept hybride convertible looks hot. I can't believe they're not keeping up with the demand on hybrids. Plus, Toyota's not offering any great deals on their Prius. Financing is > 6%!!#!$
It seems to me that I saw a Toyota hybrid convertible in a toyota commercial on Aug 1st, but I can not find any info on it anywhere, Was I hallucinating when I saw this or did my dreams come true? Anyone?!
I thought I saw the same toyota commercial. Mass hallucenation I guess
I am also in the market for a new 4 passenger convertible such as the Toyota Solara, however, I really want a hybrid convertible and would wait if I knew Toyota (or another good mfg) had one in the pipeline. I am also in the mkt for a hybrid minivan.
j. wolf
fullerton, ca
Big Poop, I called toyota regarding the commercial I never saw again, they told me the convertible is a mustang and a hybrid highlander driving by it. Stupid people make our hopes high for nothing!
S2000 Hybrid!!
I think the hybrid market is really ready for an affordable hybrid convertible. There must be a million families like mine: middle class, already own the "family car" station wagon, need a new second car and would snatch up a more environmentally friendly convertible in seconds. I'd already be on the list if it was out there. Instead I'll drive my gas guzzling '89 truck around a few more years waiting for the market to catch up to demand- I hope they hurry
I saw the Toyota commercial too and got my hopes up! :(
fOR ALL MANUFACTURING AUTO MAKERS, make a affordably hybrid convertible!!!!!!!!
I drive a 2001 Solara convertible and always drive top-down. I will replace it when some auto maker has the good sense to offer a hybrid convertible. The CS&S looks great, but in the software business, that's called "vaporware."
Anybody out there crazy enough to hybridize a stock convertible? I might be interested...
for all you insight drivers out there:
how about taking a hacksaw to the roof - add some panel work, reinforcement, modify an S2000 soft top - sure it's possible - I've been eyeing up my own insight for some time now - but no time on hands
someone take up the challenge...
I HAVE BEEN WAITING FOR A FEW YEARS, TOO. mY CONVERTIBLE IS ALMOST 15 YEARS OLD AND WILL NEED REPLACING SOON...WITH ANOTHER CONVERTIBLE. IS ANYONE IN THE INDUSTRY LISTENING?
egr
Yes, as soon as a company offers a hybrid convertible, I know many people (MYSELF INCLUDED) who will buy one immediately.
Any news yet on any plans for the "hybrid convertible concept?" We are waiting ever so patiently. As the gas prices continue to soar out of control, surely this idea has to appeal to the automobile manufacturers! PLEASE!
I'm ready for a new car, and the logical next step is to move into a hybrid...I only drive convertibles, and I need a 4 passenger car this time. Is anyone making the car I want?
HYBRID S2000 OPTION:
If the hybrid version of the Accord is $3200 more than the standard V6 why can't they add the same thing to the S2000:
Think about it:
S2000 has something like 240 hp.. bump it up to like 280
it has like 160 torque.. bumps up to like 220-240 (VERY GOOD IMPROVEMENT AND NEEDED).
Wt may go up 200-300 lbs.
But then you have something like 18mpg city turning into 27 and like 25 hwy turning into like 37.
Very nice overall car.. for $35,000 with this type of performance I would be driving this over my 350Z Roadster any day of the week
im waiting for a coveritable hybrid car i need it in the next few months
If you;all want a real car, back off the HEVs. Did you not see the articles (with real data) showing HEVs are not really as big a deal as SOME (eg Toyota) want you to believe? Not to mention the added weight of a hybrid, added cost , and finally - we can see the durability of the Prius - it is STRANDING people on the freeways.....some dependability. I believe other companies are looking at HEVs but being very CAREFUL and not EXPERIMENTING wiht Americans like Toyota is! Look at the commentary by Bluewater on Toyotas performance there - and Bluwater is an enviro group!!! BE CAREFUL efore you jump in to subsidize Japans economic development strategy.....
YESS!! Hybrid convertible. Perfect. How long must we wait? PLEASE, car manufacturers! Give us a deluxe hybrid convertible - with back seat, navigation, leather - the works!
I think there is a market for hybrid convertibles. I want one. I guess we'll have to keep looking. How about if all of the convertible loves contact the major car companies individually? Maybe they will get the point. Let's do it! They can custom any car they have with a convertible top.
I too have just searched the net for a hybrid convertible...I love my pt cruiser..best car I have owned and just contacted dealer about convertable...
any suggestions on the most fuel efficient convertible out therecurrently...or rave reviews on another type of convertible for safety??
A hybrid convertable would be ideal.
Quiet electric at slow speeds, once you get moving the wind noise out does the engine.
I'm with all you guys, give us a convertible hybrid!!!
I love my convertible but I really want to switch to a hybrid, I just don't want to be caged into a regular hard top, lets be able to breath in some of that nice clean air we are trying to help save!!!
I want and need an AWD vehicle. I want a convertible much like the Bentley four seater, but not the Bentley $$$. I saw the Subaru B9 Scrambler on the net and felt nirvana! I know I'm not comparing apples to oranges, but it seems that I've got plenty of company out there in dream-land. I like the idea of contacting manufacturers about building my car. I'm going to try it! Humm- let's through something retro-looking into the stew pot while I'm dreaming. Oh- that's the B9! Ha.
I want and need an AWD vehicle. I want a convertible much like the Bentley four seater, but not the Bentley $$$. I saw the Subaru B9 Scrambler on the net and felt nirvana! I know I'm comparing apples to oranges, but it seems that I've got plenty of company out there in dream-land. I like the idea of contacting manufacturers about building my car. I'm going to try it! Humm- let's through something retro-looking into the stew pot while I'm dreaming. Oh- that's the B9! Ha.
If anybody knows where can i get a hybrid convertible please let me know
Chrissy when I first saw this discussion I thought u mite of been reading my mail,lol.
I know this is gonna sound real sick(good)
A convertable
A sports car
And a hybrid maybe PHEV
doesnt that sound real sick ? I just wish anybody would actually try it ?
I am another person just waiting for a hybrid convertible. The excitement here made me think about a business opportunity for someone. Would anyone here be willing to pay an extra $10K on top of the standard price of the hybrid of their choice for a good solid convertible top? I believe I have a very good mechanic that will modify a car, including strengthening the support structure. What is the general consensus?
Hard to get, but check this one out:
L3Research Enigma Sports Car (Hybrid).
http://www.l3research.com/products/highlights/index.html
It'll be a while before any big brands make one, but there are a number of engineering groups tackling it. These guys are taking L3research's system and putting it in Classic sport Kit cars.
http://www.quantumworks.com/L3Research.html
I've had two Prius cars since 2001--they're GREAT. Am also wanting to hear about a Solara hybrid--thought Toyota was making one.
I thought I was alone in the universe of wanting badly a Hybrid Convertible. Won't someone please make one! I am driving my mini pickup until the day they make a hybrid convert. I am waiting.....still waiting......still........
It Looks like something may be on the way. Perhaps you have heard of the SAAB version of a hybrid convertible. Also, I found this article on SMART cars, which are scheduled to come to America (already in Canada). Smart is testing an electric version of their Convertible Auto. Look here: http://driving.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,22749-2068291,00.html
Wow! i thought I was alone. I have never driven nothing but a convertible and i really feel that its necessary for our environment to drive a hybrid...So any have any better an idea how long it will take to bring the SAAB Hybrid convertible out? I drive the 93 Convertible now... so any thoughts or assistance anyone has would be very welcomed!
Within reason, money is no object if I could have a convertible hybrid. I'd like it to look like my Sebring or a Miata. The Toyota shown at the
http://autonet.ca/Spotlight/Concepts/story.cfm?sto... Website is just plain ugly. But if that’s the way it’s gotta be, so be it.
There is a Camry Hybrid for 2007, can a Camry Solara Hybrid (convertible) be far behind?! I certainly hope not!!! Surely, if some of the auto companies could see how much interest there is in this vehicle, they would get really excited. Maybe GM/Ford could swith some of their Stupid Ugly Vehicle production lines to a hot niche like this...
I stumbled on this page searching for a hybrid convertible. It seems I'm not alone in my quest. Like others, my kids are growing up and I would like to enjoy the outdoors while doing by bit for the globe and save some $$$ on gas as well.
Manufacturers, are you listening?!?!
Please someone bring this product to market! A hybrid convertible would sell faster than any mfr could make them. And with a converible hard-top design (all the rage in convertibles these, witness the this year's Volvo C70 and the Volswagen EOS coming next year) there could be no arguments about road noise nuisance or poor aerodynamics.
I would gladly pay $5 to $10K more for a hybrid version of my Sebring convertible...
The VW EOS may be available. That might be your only hope. Otherwise, just look for an old Geo Metro convertible. If you need 4 seats, go for the Mercury Capri from the same time period.
dream car: convertible, hybrid (mid 40s), AWD, stick
I am also looking for my next car to be a "hybrid convertible"
sharon
While I like my Toyota Solara convertible, I don't like its gas milage, its the same as my Hybrid Highlander at 27mpg that seats 7 with tons of power. I would REALLY like to see a 4 cylinder Solara Hybrid. The electric motor has plenty of low speed off the line torque, and 4 cylinders could get near Prius quality gas milage? I will sell my Solara in a heartbeat for a Toyota 4 cylinder convertible option. Any plans? Heck, I will settle for a Prius convertible option as well!
They should (and could quite easily) make the solara hybrid you want because the solara is just a two-door camry (but they give it another name for some reason), and we already have a cmry hybrid, so the solara hybrid you want is feasible.
Toyota has a Hybrid Convertible on their website name the CS&S although not available yet. Looks a bit small but cannot tell yet.
Also why can't the Solora Convertible be made into a hybrid since it is only the 2 door version of a Camry and there is already a Camry Hybrid?
Please I really want a hybrid convertible
Me too.
Well, skip the hybrid and go with diesel at 40 mpg. Reliable car, convertible! check out the gorgeous new VW Eos Convertible!! Luxury, and affordable too.
VW is crap! Look at consumer reports.
Please, Toyota, make a hybrid convertible!
Bring back the Celica convertible and make a hybrid. I have a Solara convertible, and it's not sporty enough for me. I miss my old Celica!
I hope the manufacturers are reading this!
If there were a hybrid convertible, I'd buy it today.
Kate Bransfield
September 2006
Amen! And while we're wishing, could we please have a convertible that maximizes cargo space? I don't need four seats, but I do need to be able to bring stuff back from Home Depot. The only thing you can bring back from Home Depot in a Miata, for instance, is the hot dog (and that only if you eat it first).
I currently drive a 1988 hatchback Civic. The body is falling aprt from the inside out, but the engine is great, it gets 40 mpg hwy., and it has fantastic cargo space. I want the hybrid for fuel economy and emissions reduction, and the convertible top for fun, but a convertible could be a practical car as well. I figure you could carry just about anything in a convertible as long as there isn't some awkward top-stowage somewhere in the middle of the cargo space.
It looks like the PT Cruiser is unique in stowing the top in the very back of the vehicle. Could we have a sporty hybrid convertible four-seater with fully collapsible back seats and the top stowed all the way in the back so that all of the cargo space is concentrated in one big, flat area?
(Just in case the auto makers are not listening, I'm forwarding the link to this discussion to the dealer that sold me my Civic eighteen years ago.)
PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE Would someone make a hybrid convertible? I really want to do what is right for the environment but I also want to look good doing it!
OK, manufacturers, one more on record. We are waiting for a decent-sized hybrid convertible. Like some of the other folks who have written on this site, our kids are out of college. We will only buy a car that minimizes our (our own personal and our nation's) dependence on oil. But we'd like to live a little too. Bring that convertible on soon, will you PLEASE!!!
Add me to the list of hybrid convertible dreamers. Would prefer mine to be small like the Miata I have now, or perhaps something similar to an Audi A4 so I could actually make it to work during winter.
Elliott Benson, a Sacramento based marketing research firm, is currently conducting interviews with Northern California residents who own hybrid vehicles. Specifically looking for those who own Honda Accord, Toyota Camry, Ford Escape, Toyota Highlander or Lexus 400h Hybrid vehicles. Call us at 916.325.1670
I have never owned anything but convertibles but would like to do the right thing next time out and get a hybrid. Maybe something like the Volkswagen Cabrio or the Audi A-4
Check out Saabs new convertible fossil-fuel free hybrid.
I agree there are no hybrid convertibles on the market. I would buy one if some one would make it. I am sure that other people would also.
Fisker announced a hybrid convertible (plug-in) for late 2009:
http://blogs.edmunds.com/.eea37bd
Saab showed a concept hybrid convertible last year at a European auto show.
I've been driving a mustang convertible for 3 years and I absolutely love it - probably more than when I first bought it. I've had no problems and I've sworn I will always have one...even when I have kids. I am also waiting for a hybrid convertible! I hope they come out with one soon and I hope they do their market research to make sure they make enough to keep up with demand b/c I think it will be high. And(crossing my fingers) - I hope they do not screw with the body and make it look like a hybrid. Why can't they make a good looking sporty hybrid? Even Honda's "sporty" hybrid still has the weird boxy look. I hate it. They act like they don't want to sell hybrids with the way they're designing them.
There is someone in Florida who can convert Porsche convertibles to hybrid or electric. However, I can't find that information.
Here's the people's project website:
http://peoplescar.pbwiki.com/
Also, there's the Tesla, a bit expensive:
http://www.teslamotors.com/
Ok sports car fans. There is finally a real option for you. The Tesla Roadster is now fully in production. There's a new forum here dealing with it.
http://www.hybridcars.com/forums/cars/tesla-roadster
As Marcela says, its expensive but at least it is real
Its greener than a Prius and quicker than almost anything else on the road.
I've been waiting for a hybrid PT-Cruiser Convertible to be introduced, but instead have discovered that PT-Cruisers will be phased out completely! No hybrid. No convertible. No more PT-Cruisers.
Manufacturers, particularly American manufacturers, seem to think fuel efficiency and hybrids are just a "phase" the American public will grow out of... But then again, that's probably why so many corporations are struggling lately: They're out of touch with American reality.
Own one of the first Prius off the line. Perfection to this day. But as a committed ragtop guy since college, I have to keep my 13 year old MBZ E320 4 seater for those 11.5 months of the LA year when top-down commuting almost compensates for having to live here. Still, am starting to feel guilty, and would gladly trade it at a loss for a Hybrid rag, as there's no point in living here without the smog blowing thru my hair plugs. Aging boomers w/a conscience would eat them up. Hello, Detroit? It's time to reclaim your throne.
Don't thank me. Read all of the above.
Yeah, why no hybrid convertibles?
Post a new comment