After VW discontinued the Cabrio, the only other non-Beetle VW convertible I was aware of was the charming yet short-lived and little-loved Eos. Which is why I was dumbfounded when I laid eyes on this Mk6 Golf cabriolet on the outskirts of Salzburg, Austria.
In fact, VW did produce the Mk6 generation Golf in cabriolet form, for the 2012-2017 model years in select markets, and even offered GTI and Golf-R versions of it. VW buffs will know that the Mk7 Golf went on sale as a 2013 model in Europe, yet the Mk6 cabriolet soldiered on alongside other bodystyles of the sharper-styled Mk7. Facing slow sales, the Golf cabriolet was discontinued following the 2017 model year, prior to which I was even aware of its existence. Please forgive my ignorance.
Photographed: Frohnburg Palace in Salzburg, Austria – November 2018
Nice find! That thing is weird looking.
The Golf convertibles have tended to last two generations, facelifted to change details to more nearly match the later model. I guess the Eos threw out the sequence (Mk1 alongside Mk.2, Mk.3 alongside Mk.4, etc.)
I wonder which car would have been more expensive and which more popular (had the Mk VI Cabriolet been available in the US), the Eos or the Cabrio?
To my eyes the Eos never looked like the expensive car that it was while the Cabrio pictured looks like it would have been quite expensive.
So I guess this was never offered here in the US? I have certainly never seen one. I wonder if they made a mistake by not trying to sell it here – the US has always had a small but steady appetite for open cars.
I think the convertible market in America is at the point where it can only accommodate the Mustang and Camaro. Look how the Chrysler Sebring and Buick Cascada fared. A FWD convertible will share the looks of whatever cars its based on, and that will automatically make them less interesting than the American pony cars, which probably cost around the same when sold new.
Nope, the Mk.6-based Cabrio was never offered in the ‘States.
Really, our love affair for transverse-engined cute coupes and convertibles is just about over. The G6 Coupe and Convertible? Gone. The Eclipse Coupe and Convertible? Also done for. No more Saab 9-3 Cabriolet (indeed no more Saab). Ditto for the Camry Solara and Solara Convertible.
In present day, like Edward said, the Cascada is doing predictably poorly at holding up the FWD bathtub category, just like the Eos and Sebring/200 Convertible did. The Beetle Coupe and Convertible’s swan-song model year is 2019, after which VW will kill those models worldwide. There is currently an A3 Cabriolet, but I’ve heard rumors that this won’t be the case once the next A3 family hits the market.
Even the Audi TT Coupe and Roadster, which have genuine performance credentials, are having such trouble selling that Audi is considering a four-door-coupe version of the TT (despite the similar A5 Sportback’s existence).
Literally, the only non-premium/non-performance coupe whose immediate future is guaranteed is the Honda Civic Coupe. And by immediate, I mean that Honda will at least complete the current model’s production cycle before potentially retiring it.
On the other hand, manufacturers may be able to sell cars like this by turning them into cute crossovers, like Land Rover’s Range Rover Evoque Convertible. But…I’m not sure how well sales are doing on that model. They already announced and debuted the 2nd-gen Evoque, and a convertible was nowhere in the press release, likely because Land Rover had to kill off the hardtop Evoque Three-Door Coupe, so the convertible’s unique body shell might not justify its expense.
That is the fun part Brendan! Just when you think you are getting pretty good at cars you stumble across something new that has to be researched and it gets added to your knowledge base.
I’m 30 years older than you. Two months ago car shopping I stumbled across a 2002 Acura 3.5 RL. I thought I knew Acura’s pretty well yet did not know they had a bigger sedan than the TL. And in googling it one of the articles I came across that mentioned it was by some young pup named Brendan Saur.😂😉😂
In my case I ended up buying the car. Did you smuggle a Cabrio back in your luggage?😎
The problem with Acura is those maddeningly confusing letters. It took me a long time to figure out the pecking order of those letters only to forget which one is smaller or larger.
That’s actually really cool!!
The 3.5 RLs weren’t necessarily the flashiest, most powerful, or most luxurious, but they were reasonably well-equipped, well-rounded nonchalant large luxury sedans.
Do you have any pictures of it? And how do you like it so far?
Sorry for the delay Brendan. I had to find a half decent day to snap some pictures. I like the car for what it is. It’s roomy, fuel efficient for its size and easy to drive. I have received several compliments on the car and for a 16 year old Canadian car is in remarkable original shape due to being a one owner dealer serviced model with not a lot of miles.( 140,000 )
However your comment of nonchalant hits it right on the head. I thought I was having trouble adjusting to it after a decade of riding high in minivans and a Jeep. It took me a while to clue in that it just doesn’t have a personality as a car. I’ve had very eclectic tastes in vehicles over the years and have had just about one of everything. The Acura is my first reasonably modern Japanese car. I expect a good , easy couple of years out of it but I question if down the road it will be spoken of with fond memories or as ” just a car”
First time I’ve ever uploaded pictures. It’s a challenge!
Lol..I give! I swear the pictures are right side up when I start.
You get the idea anyhow.
VW had a neat TV advert for these, tho it took a long time to get to the point.
*perk*. I hadn’t seen this VW ad before.
0:32 – those trading cards called Quartett Spielkarten Autos und Traumwagen! They were very popular in Germany during the 1970s and 1980s. My brother and I used to trade them with our neighbourhood kids and at school.
I just came across one of my sets when I was sorting through some boxes last weekend! I have NO idea why I still have them but remember playing them all the time with my brother as well as friends back in the day.
In English English, known as Top Trumps. Most of my secondary education was devoted to the various packs……no one ever realised.
Until now.
Almost forgot about these. Thanks for refreshing the memory banks.
Never saw that before. Great commercial that also highlights VW’s breadth….Bugatti, Lamborghini, Porsche
A car created to extend the life and investment of the second generation Audi A3 cabriolet. As the new third generation A3 cabriolet moved upmarket on the MQB arcitecture, VW essentially reskinned the old A5 platform car to mimic Golf styling and voila, a new Golf cabriolet. The somewhat strange “distorted Golf” profile is due to the windshield, side glass, and top assembly being directly carried over from the old A3:
Bahahahaha. That’s basically what happened. The Mk.7-based one looks a lot nicer, thankfully.
I really, really miss the four seater convertible. To me a lot of convertible fun is best enjoyed with at least the possibility of having people on the backseat. I had a ’93 Cutlass which had a useable backseat. The Sebring did quite well and was consistently a top seller despite v6 problems before Chrysler gave up on it, and the solara did well also. The cascada does not have a useable back seat nor do the mustang or Camaro. I wish the Challenger was available as a convertible.
Being in the back seat of most four seat convertibles was no fun. Anything larger than a Beetle and passengers were assaulted with gale force winds. Longer, lower, wider produced windshields that laid down too much to provide protection for those in the back seat. One had to shout to make themselves heard.
However, they presented an awesome profile. It seemed the bigger they were, they better they looked. What they needed was that second windshield that big phaetons had in the ’30s.
I can just barely remember the car we had until I was about 7 – a 1958 Morris Minor Tourer. This was a four-seat convertible but I don’t remember the top ever being lowered. My mother said they discovered quickly that it wasn’t very practical to do so with children – experimenting with aerodynamic properties of a much-loved teddy bear often led to tears.
I knew these existed but a Golf R convertible?
I need proof!
Golf R Cabriolet.
Well I am surprised. Another 4wd convertible that isn’t an Audi. These must have been offered in some selected European markets only.
This isn’t a bad looking car, the A3 had the fixed roll bar at the rear and looked, not nice.
The EOS is a much unloved car, the roof rarely works and the cars are worth nothing in the trade, wholesalers don’t even want them. I always have the vendor demonstrate the roof on any cabrio after having a grub say his Astra roof worked fine and it got stuck halfway, then he says you have to wiggle this and that. So much for it working fine. Now I don’t touch them.
We bought a mk6 golf gti cabriolet last year and took it from Scotland to lake Garda this year going through the Netherlands, Germany, Austria, Italy, Switzerland, France Belgium Netherlands back up through the uk. 3000 mikes and it didn’t miss a beat. Took it up to 130 moh on the autobahn, buffering my from no roof stopped me going faster. It’s great car and there can’t be many left on the road.