Retractable hardtop, a challenge for 987?

[ptcja]

Engine layouts and design make it a challenge to put in retractable hardtops. At least not for other cars like 911 or 987.

Because the engine is MR, I think there just is no space for a retractable hardtop like the SLK or the 2007 3 series coupe. The folding hardtop can't be stored anywhere... The increasing popularity of retractable hardtop is going to be a trend. It certainly increases safety but it is simply hard for me to fathom 987 ever installing hardtop. For that matter, Porsche's convertible will pretty much always be soft-top focused simply because of MR and RR design. There is just no way to put a hardtop in. I would wait for Porsche to rollout a roof that retracts to the front? Cool?

I wonder how Porsche would tackle this problem for 987 which has originally been designed to have no top. However, I suspect Porsche would not spend too much time on this as it had already sold off CTS to Magna and it would wanna focus on developments like Panamera and Cayman. Porsche is busy now with diversifying its line I think.

[Wads]

The hardtop and mechanism add unwanted weight to the car and take up valuable storage space. The retractable hardtop will hopefully not appear on all sports cars in the future but fashion often rules when it comes to design so I wouldn't rule it out.

The SLK weights quite a lot more than the 987 and I suspect most of that extra weight is down to the hardtop.

If the hardtop is a real problem for you (and you have space to store it) why don't you get the 987 hardtop as an option? its quick to put on or take off.

Although I liked the SLK350 and SLK55 that I tested they both felt much heavier and less nimble than the 987S that I ended up buying.

[ptcja]

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-1...4924&q=top+gear

what do you think of this?

[Wads]

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-1...4924&q=top+gear

what do you think of this?

A good bit of fun!

And the Boxster won :P

I tested the SLK55 for 5 days as it and the 987S were the two cars I ended up choosing between...... its a monster and a very nice car BUT I didn't like the auto gearbox, it didn't handle as well as the Box and it drank fuel at an alarming rate (11mpg) so the Boxster won it for me.

If you can afford the AMG and like an auto you will love it!