Leaving a convertible parked with the top down is something I’ve noticed many convertible owners do, and quite honestly it makes me cringe. Maybe it’s that I’m just that much of an obsessive-compulsive, hypochondriac, and germaphobe. Or maybe it’s because I’ve watched too many TV shows and films.
Such as the Seinfeld episode where George wants to express his disdain at a Mercedes SL’s owner for taking up two parking spaces by spitting in it.
Or in Back to the Future, where Biff crashes his convertible into a manure truck, filling the entire passenger compartment with it. This might not be the best example, as it did not happen to a parked car, but I think you get the picture that leaving the top down is an open invitation for any unwanted matter to easily drop in.
Of course, things like how long one is planning on leaving their car parked for, and what kind of car it is are also important considerations. For what it’s worth though, I’ve seen plenty of newer BMW convertibles left top down for at least an hour in the parking lot of the grocery store I used to work at in college. Still, if I ever owned a convertible, I don’t think I’d leave the top down when parked for any amount of time. But many of your feelings will likely differ. So my convertible owners, is leaving the top down after you park a frequent behavior? Non-convertible owners are of course welcome to join in on this as well.
I would occasionally leave the top down on my ’13 Beetle convertible when parked at work – while we have no security in the parking lot, it’s well off the road and I never had any problems. I think I left the top down once or twice when running into a store quickly, too, but generally would put it up otherwise.
No birds where you work Ed?
Last place I worked was well off the street, but near a trash dump. There were hordes of seagulls hanging around, and the retention ponds attracted Canada geese.
We’re near the Illinois River, but don’t see too many birds around our campus – just your normal Robins, redwing blackbirds, etc. It’s rare that my car gets ‘bombed,’ convertible or not.
For short trips I suppose I would, and definitely depending on the area, I don’t ever keep anything important or valuable inside the car anyway but still, in the big city I’d be nervous about some vagabond leaning in and sifting through my glove box. I often leave my windows and sunroof open when run errands around the suburbs though, however Anything that requires leaving the car alone for more than an hour my ocd would be kicking in big time, I’d be fearing bird poo, unforecasted storms(very often here in Chicago) and whatnot the whole time I’m away. Parking garages are a little bit more comforting though.
My Corvette’s convertible top has been missing for twenty years. It’s a fair-weather car, anyway!
In Pittsburgh it’s a bad idea regardless of the “safety” of the location. It may be an absolutely cloudless day and five minutes later out of nowhere a thunderstorm pops up,just as quickly it’s gone!
Florida’s weather is too unpredictable to leave the top down for any period of time, and the cities are a little too risky for other reasons. I wouldn’t do it if I had a convertible.
Your car has many natural enemies. I’m a non-convertible midsize sedan owner with a moonroof but I’m not comfortable leaving anything open. A clean car always seems to attract birds that poop on everything. Imagine the wide open area of a convertible with the top down being an easier target. I think that the interior would also fade faster. My friend leaves his windows or moonroof open a crack sometimes when parked. As for me I don’t like the ideas of bugs, insects or any other creatures having an opportunity to crawl in. Vandals and thieves are another issue, but it must depend on where you live.
Sunroofs can be a problem too:
http://www.break.com/video/ugc/real-caddyshack-puke-scene-692755
When I had a convertible (’74 VW Thing), I’d leave the top down or off. I’d rather have someone look through my car than cut through the top. It’s a habit I got into and kept since I mostly own oddball cars.
Now that I’ve been driving my NSUs around, people get in and rearrange the seat and mirrors. Probably for pictures. I think I’ll start locking my cars again.
Having a convertible or a truck means it’s a trash can for people walking by. I always had stuff tossed in the back of trucks or the Thing.
I did it a lot in college. Lost a slide rule out of a Sprite and someone took my ashtray from the TR4.
These days, when was the last time you saw a new car with an ashtray, or any car with a slide rule in it? Those thieves were just early adopters.
Abso-friggin-lutely! (as shown in this picture taken 5 minutes ago). The Miata can go days and days without the roof going up. Of course, it parks in the garage when it is not out and around.
Really, the only thing that concerns me is sun damage to the seats, so I flop the seatbacks forward to sort-of shield the leather surfaces. I also keep the gloveboxes locked, but even with the top up I never lock the car.
Anyhow, that thin fabric/vinyl barrier between the car interior and the outside world is pretty much wishful thinking for anything more severe than rain or snow.
Yes, this.
Years ago when I lived in the SF Bay Area one of my friends had a ’62 Impala, a ’64 Thunderbird and a ’68 442, all convertibles. He drove them all, and parked them wherever he needed to in order to live his life. When he parked at work, he usually had the top up. When he parked in less secure areas, he always left the top down, or if the weather was turning gray, with a window open. He had learned from expen$ive experience that having to replace a convertible top was always going to be far more expen$ive than whatever a thief might steal.
In his view, if you are going to live with convertibles, you just accept this as part of the deal.
He LOVED all of his convertibles!
The top on my Miata hasn’t been up in 3 years or about 15,000 miles. It is garage kept. A convertible with the top up just seems counterintuitive to me.
I share your feelings, I owned one convertible and I never left it parked outside with the top down anywhere but on a private driveway.
Depends on the car, i had a VW Cabriolet that was a real POS, I didn’t bother putting the top up on that most of the time.
But right now my DD is a 2001 MR2 Spyder, with 37,000 miles on it. The interior is pristine. I would never go anywhere and leave the top down. Birds can crap on it, it could rain, plus there are too many mean people running around who might mess with it just for the hell of it.
I recently went bar hopping in Broad Ripple Indiana, which is one bar after another and drunk people everywhere. Right on the main street was a late 60’s GTO (I don’t know if it was real or not) in great shape…but with the top down. Anyone could have messed with that car’s interior.
That I do not get.
I might re-think the strategy of top-down at night in Broadripple. I never liked cleaning my own family’s barf out of cars, nevermind that of drunken strangers. I would probably drive the Buick instead. If I were not old enough to just not care about Broadripple at night.
LOL !
Broadripple reminds me of living in Down Town Los Angeles 1979 (Columbia & Wilshire) , no bars near but some wino broke into my Father In Law’s pristine 1957 Ford Ranchero , puked his wine soaked guts out on the cloth seat and carpets then passed out .
Vitalino was only 4’10” and maybe 124# but he was like a pissed off badger and nearly killed the sleeping wino the next morning .
It took over a _year_ to get the stench out , and the stain (? alcohol ?) buggered the brand new carpets .
-Nate
Yeah I would definitely be worried about someone throwing up in my car or one of the many drunk maniacs running around climbing into or something.
Broad Ripple isn’t my idea of a good time either, that was the first time I’ve been there in probably a decade to drink. My friends wanted to go out and they mentioned a place, I think it’s called Brugge? Anyway I had never heard of it, so I said let’s go there. I didn’t realize it was in Broad Ripple, I thought it was in downtown Indy.
Anyway, parking was a nightmare and drunk kids everywhere. Not my idea of a good time. If you’re older than 25 BR probably isn’t your scene.
Generally if the stop is 2 hours or less, yes. Living in Houston we have to always keep our eye on the skies.
If my convertible is parked somewhere other than a car show and the top is down, it’s a good bet that I’m in direct sight of the car.
Even with the top down, I will still put the sunshade in the windshield to protect the dashpad.
I left the top up in a fenced , gated & locked yard , well lit , as I was worried I never put a radio in it and always had a sheaf of road maps sticking out the radio hole in the dash along with speaker wires dangling and the doors un locked .
The shitbirds _still_ slashed the top to ‘ break into ‘ it , then walked away leaving the door open .
This on a three month old $1,500.00 German top .
Grrrr…….
If they’re gonna get you , they’re gonna get you , shrug .
-Nate
I think some people leave the top down because of the fear that someone will come along and slit it. Leaving the top down and nothing of value in the car might diminish a crook’s interest in it. I know in Portland Maine I’d see non- convertibles parked with the windows down and the interior absolutely empty, I assume for the same reason.
I figured Portland, ME was sleepy enough to not have that problem.
Had a friend who got too drunk to drive and left his parents 504 sunroof open overnight in the bar’s parking lot. There was a big snowstorm that night. I would keep anything loose in the trunk and park it only for a short time in a decent neighborhood where I could keep my eye on it. If it was a used up old beater, I would just make sure there was nothing in it to steal.
When I had my convertibles it was yes on leaving the top down if I was just running an errand and would not be gone more than a few minutes. Any longer stop than that and the top went up. I would leave the top down if I was parking in the garage at home; one morning I came out to go work and the neighbor’s cat was in the back seat of my Mustang GT. We never figured out how she came to be in the garage but she was certainly happy to leave!!!
The thing is that sometimes putting the top up and down wears on the parts / can pull more on tears or rips that are already started. So I tend to leave it down when it is down as much as reasonably possible.
Today I drove the Chrysler (seen earlier today). I parked it at 7:00 am and I’m about to go out to it at 3:48 local time. The top has been down and I’ve been 80 miles away. No worries, but it is in the parking lot where I work.
The only Drop Top I’ve owned was a 73 MG Midget. The top never went up on it. Mostly because of all the holes..
I would zip up the Tonneau at times though, especially in Oct/Nov when it got cold.
Tops only protect you from bad weather and honest people every thing else will happen in time. I leave mine down whenever possible. Only wish I still had hair to blow in the wind. Must remember they are only transportation from point A to Point B. I do not carry a cover to put on my motorcycle’s either. Norm
No
Oh sweet fluffy Jesus no. I wouldn’t even buy a convertible if it isn’t a folding metal roof.
You have to factor in weather, location and duration, but ideally it’s 3 greens!
I’m with jpcavanaugh on this, with my very similar MX-5. Part of the pleasure of an older car and an open car is seeing other people get some (albeit a lesser quantity) pleasure from seeing it in the wild. Likewise, when driving it, put a sweater and the heater on before you put the roof up!
Yes, I lock the glovebox and console locker, remove the radio front, and don’t leave anything valuable, but those are basics.
My wife’s Peugeot 207CC, is however, always covered up.
Yeah, when I had open cars I would leave the top down for short periods. Old Brit roadsters had erector set tops that had to be assembled; probably why the tonneau cover was invented. My ’62 Spridget also had side curtains held on with two thumbscrews each. In a sudden rainstorm you were better off to keep moving than to stop and assemble everything.
We will park our Z3 with the top down, if we’re in a familiar and likely to be safe area and we’ll either be in sight of the car or won’t be gone for long. Security against casual rifling through the car is not as much of a concern as you might think–the glovebox stays locked, the radio has a detachable face that can be taken with us, and the doors can’t be opened by leaning over and pulling the interior latch, if the car is locked with the key from the outside (this is a ’98 without keyless entry). The more usual fear is coming back and finding bird crap on the seats. It also helps that sudden rain is not common where we live, and if rain looks likely, we’ll leave that car at home and take another.
The same people who would slash a convertible top to get into your car would probably smash a window, so that can’t really be completely avoided. Just get good insurance and enjoy your ragtop!
In a past life I had a 67 Impala convertible ( actually a cut down 4 dr hardtop,and no, I didn’t chop it) Parked it twice with the top down. Once at home after getting home late at night to clear skies. Rained buckets in the small hours & soaked the interior.
Other time was at work. Across the road from a hotel. Some one had vomited down a rear door. I got lucky there, if they leant in a bit more they would have got the back seat.
Nothing a minutes work with a bucket didn’t fix.
Depends on what kind of Convertible it is. My dream Convertible is a Jeep and putting the top up is not as simple as hitting a button so depending on where I would park and for how long I would leave the top down especially if I lowered the windshield.
When I had the Samurai, it was a 10-15 minute ordeal to put the top on or off. It stayed off most of the time…
I only put about 4,000 miles per year on my Mustang convertible, and in two years it’s only been rained on twice, so I’m probably not typical. But here goes:
Weather permitting, I don’t think twice about leaving the top down while I dash in for a few items at the local supermarket. I consider it a perk of living in a small town, and in a neighborhood with a low crime rate. If I’m driving to Kansas City or Little Rock, I usually take my other car, or my pickup.
But even though the parking lot at my office has gated access, an armed guard and cameras all over the place, I put the top up during the day. The sun is damaging to the leather and plastic in the interior, not to mention dust and bird droppings.
For the same reason, I rarely leave the top down in my garage if the car is going to sit more than overnight. I’m amazed at how dusty the interior gets in a closed garage.
If I buy another convertible, it will likely be a retractable hardtop. But I’ll still observe the same “rules” as above.
If I cant see it, the top goes up. Too many idiots around, I picked up a nasty cigarette burn of my 2000 Firebird, a week before I sold it, and I don’t smoke. I just stopped in for a quick beer, and there it was on the passenger seat. I got friend in the trim business, and we fixed it on the cheap.
My 2008 Mustang has a perfect interior, and I don’t risk it , to sun , or idiots
I’d say it depends on the degree of difficulty of operating the top, and how long it’s parked. When we had a VW Rabbit convertible we usually put up the top up when parked since it was easy, and the black vinyl seats stayed cooler. On something like an old Land Rover, I’d park with the top off because it’s a production
Casual damage by assholes..it is the bane of the “car guy”. Had to tell my son not to lean in too close to the cars at the last car show I saw…buttons and zippers and so forth. Then, three hours later my car is scratched at a trailhead by some people in a trashed Chrysler minivan. Ironic, yes?
I can see myself wearying of top up/down/up/down. I suspect I would leave it down more often than not. Take portable electronics with me. Any convertible I buy would likely be at least 30 years old, so I can’t see anyone going for the radio. I wouldn’t leave it overnight out on a city street, or if I knew it was going to rain, but that’s about it. Drop tops can be slashed. People have felt free to key or scratch sedans I own. At some point, unless it’s a truly priceless antique, I lean towards “it’s a car, stuff will happen sometimes”.
Bait car.
I always leave my convertibles with their tops down. One has to stay down because I haven’t gotten around to fixing the power top but other than keeping bird mess off the seats or rain out the top offers virtually nothing in terms of security. Soft tops can be broken into with a pocket knife or even nail clippers so even when the top is up I leave the doors unlocked because I’d rather replace a $200 radio than a $1000+ convertible top (the radio removal tools are in the glove box so the thief won’t have to tear up the dashboard trim when taking the radio).
Fortunately I can garage them at home so their tops are down pretty much all the time.
Drove a rag top Landrover for over ten years. Mostly with the top/sides/windows down/left at home.
Nothing was stolen. Except a steel shovel, strapped to the rear tailgate door, that I booted off a building site, for those of road-moments.
I did park my ragtops top down in Brooklyn, NY,and fortunately I never incured any damage. However, there were some miscreants who would flick a lit cigarette or cigar in a car for kicks.I had a friend with a `67 Grand Prix convertible and someone flicked a lit cigar on the front passenger seat. He had a very nasty burn, all the way down to the padding under the seat upholstery.White interior too.
I have an 86 Monte Carlo SS w T-tops, so it’s as close as what I own, in my current stable of cars, as far as a convertible goes.
My girlfriend likes to leave the panels off when we go shopping. So far, no cigarette ashes, garbage or foreign objects on the seats, when we return.
So, as long as no valuables are in plain site, I’d say yes. 🙂
Top down always for my miata.
If I’m driving home from work with the top down I’ll leave it down for a quick stop at a store. Once home it goes up. My driveway and street in front are shaded by big trees. Often times the birds have an evil sense of humor. There is a guy at work who parks his 70 Cougar with the top down all day long in a big open municipal lot. He told me he leaves it unlocked with nothing in the glovebox, therefore nothing to take.
The old Magnum PI series always made me cringe, because that Ferrari would be repeatedly parked, wide open, in the sketchiest of neighborhoods. iirc, it was only stolen once, and that was when it was bait for a stolen car ring.
I would never leave a car open. Too many birds. Too many idiots. Too many people with larceny in their heart. How determined are people to swipe something? My mom got one of those little $4 LCD clocks that stuck on the dash with a bit of velcro. One really hot day, she didn’t bother rolling up the windows of her sedan when she was at the grocery store. A couple days later, I was in the car and noticed the bit of velcro on the dash, with no clock attached. Someone had looked inside the car and pinched a crummy $4 clock.
Yes. I would and I did, but that was some years back. Bird shit happens. Get on with life. Security? Another issue; I’m in Canada, and in the past, we’ve had less “crime” than our neighbours to the south… But my current address makes my
opinions even less relevant- on an island with only 3000 or so residents. When we moved here, a neighbour remarked “if anybody steals something, there’s only three guys that could have done it…”
Back in the day, I never worried about anyone taking stuff from my open convertible. An old Morgan, it was just unusual enough that people would notice it,[and notice anyone fiddling with it] Hint: park as close as you can;bonus: you don’t have to walk as far.
We currently pilot an anonymous little SUV-thing; it’s absolutely invisible;this one we have to lock when we “go to town”, but when we’re back on our rock, we can leave the keys in the ignition!
I don’t currently own a convertible, but I think I’d probably follow the “1 hour” rule. Assuming there wasn’t supposed to be rain that day, anyway! I hate the idea of bird poop in the interior, but I also wouldn’t want to put excess wear on the top assembly/motors if it was powered.
Basically the same way I treat the moonroof on my Volvo. I *really* don’t want to wear the motor on that excessively, as it currently works just fine despite its age, and I’d like that to continue to be the case. So if it gets opened, it stays open until we get back to the house, unless precipitation happens.
Too many variables. I would, however, not lock the car and keep any thing not bolted down locked in the trunk. Even replacing the radio is better than having to replace the top, at least until it was old enough that it needed replacing and I wanted the insurance co to pay the bill, although it might not be more than the deductable
My convertible is bestowed with black leather seats, there is no way I leave it topless in a parking lot. I would need a bucket of ice water to be able to sit down in it afterwards regardless of what ever may happen to get into it.
I had a Tracker wth the soft top and it stayed on most of the time. It took way too long to take down the top and the only place to stow the windows was on the floor in the back. If I wanted spur of the moment sun, I just unlatched the front part and folded it back. I lived in a good part of Little Rock at the time and thieves would still cut the plastic window to go rummaging. All they ever got was some candy I’d left on the console. I had a new clear plastic sown in the first time, after the second I just sealed it with clear tape.
One of the most critical criteria on the top-up or top-down parked convertible is how quickly and easily it is to raise the top. I had a ’97 Cavalier convertible that, while an otherwise crap-car, had the absolutely best, fastest mechanism for raising/lowering the top (without any of that speed-sensitive garbage that prevents today’s convertibles from operating the top while in motion). Ford seems to be the worst in this department as I think the emergency brake must be engaged to operate the top.
In that car and with just my right hand, I could time raising the top to almost the exact point where I would come to a full stop in a parking space. Then it was just a simple matter of raising the windows. Likewise, driving away and lowering the top while in motion was just as simple. It would be completely lowered by the time I hit maybe 10 mph.
If nothing else, the ease of lowering/raising the top was/is a solid reason for getting the final generation Cavalier convertible. It’s worth noting that the convertible conversion was not performed in-house by GM, either.
Been lurking for quite a while on this site, wanted to finally comment.
I’ve had two Mustang GT convertibles (’01 and ’06), and here in San Diego I would park with the top down very frequently. Work. Running errands. If I was going to be away for more than 30 minutes (shopping, etc), i would put the top up.
I never kept anything of value in the interior of the car, and always locked my glovebox. Sure, someone could pry it open… but my thinking was this. If they wanted to do that, they would be doing so in a very visible environment. They don’t have the protection of a closed top car would, so anyone walking by would see them breaking into the glovebox.
I never had a problem with bird’s crapping in the car. The only real problem I would have would be REALLY hot leather seats (both had black leather interiors) when I drove away.
It it’s a safe and visible area, then sure, why not? Especially if the car isn’t anything particularly special (i.e. Sebring, old Miata, or beater E36).
That said, if it was a 60’s C2 droptop or something of similar vintage/value, then no.
I sometimes leave the windows open on my old Ranger or 240 when I run into a store for a few minutes and haven’t had anything happen to them. Maybe because I don’t leave anything of value inside and my stereos aren’t worth a hoot anyway. Besides, that’s what I pay insurance for.
Honestly, if I owned a convertible, I could MAYBE park it with the top down if I had to make a quick run into a convenience store or the like. Other than that, no way. It makes me start thinking about several things like someone stealing it, spitting in it, pollen getting all over the dash and seats, etc. etc. etc…..so for me 99% of the time it would be a no.
Maybe we were just lucky. When we still had the 58 Belvedere convertible I would put the top down in May or June, and back up in September or October. We never had a problem, either with rain or with unwanted objects/materials. But I will say that, especially in the last few years we owned it, it didn’t get left parked outside that often.
We have left the top down on the wife’s 05 Mustang when running into a store or parking in friends or our driveway but you got to remember to tilt the seats forward if you are wearing shorts
I used to walk past convertibles and think “I would never do that. I couldn’t leave my car parked with the top down.” Now that I have a convertible I do it all the time.
Do not even need to be topless. Back in the almost mid 1980s my sister was working at a radio station here in Portland Or. She was driving my 1970 Ford Maverick at the time. Came out after work to find a bum sleeping in the back seat. Do not know, if she left a door unlocked (most likely) or if he broke in. There was no damage to the car.
If I’m driving my convertible, I always pay attention to the weather. If there’s a chance of rain, I pay attention to the local radar, but that’s limited to my commute between work and home.
If I’m going somewhere I’ve never been, I put up the top and lock the car down tight. It’s not like an MG B is difficult to break in to, but at least the top is relatively inexpensive to replace. I’ll keep praying for dumb thieves that can’t drive a stick.
I do this a lot. I didn’t at first, but almost 4 years into convertible ownership has made me lazy. I always lock up the glove box and center console, of course, and don’t leave the roof down if I’m going to be somewhere for more than, say, a half hour unless I can see the car. I’ve never had to deal with bird excrement or anything like that, but it is a regular occurrence to sweep out leaves or other little pieces from trees.
The way I figure it, the more often I raise and lower the (manual) top on my Miata, the more quickly it is going to wear out and need to be replaced…so I try to minimize this action.
Took my lovely bride to Culver’s in Cedar Falls for an ice cream on a beautiful Sunday afternoon this week. On such a brilliant, sunny day, of course, we took the convertible. I opted to leave the top down while we were inside, but I parked in a spot around back where I knew I could keep an eye on it. After the ice cream, we dropped by the Walmart across the road. I raised the top and locked the car. I guess it comes down to where you are in relation to the car and how long you’ll be away from it.
I hate having to raise the top when I leave the car, but I guess it’s just a concession to the cruddy world we live in today. I guess the rule of thumb is: If you’d lock a sedan, you’d lock a convertible, too.