Fight the plague by driving with the top down?
Now that things are open in most states (not here in Massachusetts, though! We liked Months 1, 2, and 3 of Shutdown so much we’re going into Month 4.), people have a reason to get in the car and drive. I wonder if convertibles will become more popular as a way of reducing coronaplague. If you have to drive with a non-family member, just put the top down first.
Suppose that you’re stuck in traffic on America’s roads built for 150 million and now serving 330 million. If everyone is in a convertible with the top down then everyone is breathing on everyone else (not okay unless at a BLM protest, right?). Maybe that problem could be solved by rolling up all of the windows? Now it is like being a grocery store cashier: you’re protected by a clear barrier.
What about exploiting a height advantage? To avoid any virus exhaled by someone stopped next to you at a light, try to have a taller vehicle. If he/she/ze/they bring a Miata, you bring a Mini convertible. If he/she/ze/they bring a Mini convertible, you bring an SUV with the top cut off. If he/she/ze/they bring an SUV with the top cut off, you bring an SUV that has been jacked up before the top was cut off.
My Facebook feed is now packed with panic regarding coronavirus infections that are occurring post-reopening in various states. This is exactly what “science” told us would happen under our March 2020 dogma (example). And it is exactly what Angela Merkel told us to expect. But somehow people are treating it as new information.
One thing that is odd is that people are refusing to consider adapting. People who live in tiny San Francisco dwellings say that they are proud to wear masks all the time and make sure that their only connection to the rest of humanity is Internet. They express pride in not being “selfish” by going out and/or going unmasked. Example:
I feel very lucky in San Francisco and the bay area. SF protocols have been very strict and remain so and there has been only 44 deaths out of 800,000. We’re starting outdoor dining this weekend but not much more. And masks are required if you are within 30 feet of anyone outside (not just 6). Goal is to set culture of mask wearing before things open more. I have seen too many Americans online complaining about mask wearing as if it’s an imposition. I totally agree about too much entitlement as you note and very selfish. I hope we keep this mask requirement for quite a while!
Why does she stay, though? She could have a bigger house in Wyoming, the same Internet, zero income tax, and be as isolated as she wants to be (though does not have to be, since Wyoming is mostly reopened, including for school).
At least until the fearful are confident that coronavirus has burned its way through the U.S. population and/or there is an approved vaccine, why wouldn’t people without a job that requires physical presence seek to move to places where life (and driving) can be conducted outdoors?
Readers: What convertibles do we need? Personally, I want a five-seat convertible, but there is nothing on the market except for one Jeep. Given the height issue discussed above, it would also be awesome to have a topless SUV or at least minivan. At the risk of being tarred with the label of “Tesla fan-boy/girl/zirl/they”, I have to say that electric drive would be more valuable in a convertible than in a regular car. When going slowly downwind there is no exhaust to be blown back into the seating area. It should be easier to keep the cabin quiet if there are no explosions in cylinders.
Related:
Between the covid (less important) and the riots, having one of those teslas with the insane air filtration system has started to sound pretty desirable. But yes, a 1950s style lifestyle with a house with a huge yard at the end of a cul-de-sac, and a big convertible for mobility, is starting to sound like a better deal than a downtown apartment and a bus pass.
Convertibles are pretty darn awesome. Make sure yours has good heating, and even better a/c. Really decadent to drive down the highway with the top down and the a/c on, but also very fun (and needed if you’re driving in Arizona or Florida)
My guess is that a 1960s Cadillac Convertible is just the 5 seater convertible you need. When I last checked they could be found for a few thousand and then restored. A gas guzzler to be sure, but probably only a bit more expensive than flying…
Jerry: We don’t have a garage so we can’t have a classic car. It would just get ruined by the miserable Massachusetts weather, not to mention the road salt that dissolves cars of that vintage.
The MB E400 Cabriolet is a wonderful car. So is the E350 model if you want to spend less but still have a nice safe modern convertible. They drive and ride great and are quiet with the top up or down. They have a big back seat that adults can actually use and a trunk that will hold suitcases even if the top is down. My wife and I have been looking at these as a weekend fun car. COVID 19 or not you cannot beat a nice drive in the country in the clear air for a fun time.
https://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/a22002849/2018-mercedes-benz-e400-cabriolet-4matic-test-review/
bill: That’s $87,000 (as tested) for 4 seats. Our Honda was closer to $30,000 for 8 seats!
https://www.mbusa.com/en/special-offers-regional says it is about $1,000/month to lease for 36 months. They don’t show any E-class convertible other than the E450.
Leave it to Greenspun to drive the 1st convertible Honda minivan. Urban millennials definitely don’t like working remotely. They spend a fortune to live in cities & would rather pay extra to rent a wework.
You can’t fool us, Phil. You love that minivan too much!
Fortunately, you can roll the windows down. Done.
G C: I do love the Honda! And it does have a sunroof!
Since I identify as a Martian, I am looking for a convertible that looks flying saucer.
A new Alfa Romeo Disco Volante would be good, but more expensive than a real flying saucer.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfa_Romeo_Disco_Volante_by_Touring
Or maybe I can borrow the Avrocar
https://www.blogto.com/city/2013/11/that_time_toronto_hid_a_flying_saucer/
Looks like I would have to settle for a cheap used convertible that goes fast, a 2000s, Audi TT Roadster Quattro with a 6 speed manual of course.
Speaking of flying spaceships, no blog post yet on SpaceX beating Boeing to the first manned launch in the commercial crew program?
Go Amish. With two acres you can humanely keep a horse.
Everybody should own one convertible during this life. It’s a humbling experience. Fortunately mine was a second-hand Porsche so I got away with little financial damage. It was glorious about 5 percent of the time, and I remember those times vividly. The wind on the lady’s hair and my contact lenses, not so much.
Convertibles are fun, no doubt about it, but keep in mind the extra maintenance and TLC the soft top requires. If you want to keep it looking good, it’s an extra chore that may be worth it to you for the fun factor. Since you don’t have a garage you’re going to also be investing in a very good car cover. You definitely don’t want ice and snow on the naked top during the winter, and you will want to spend the time to wash the car by hand and protect the top. Googling “Maintain Convertible Top Weather” is a good place to start.
As far as large passenger convertibles are concerned, you asked this question back in October 2018 and the answer is still: bupkis. A lot of engineering goes into making a convertible anything chassis stiff enough to qualify as a modern, safe car, where the wheels and tires all go where the suspension is supposed to take them, and won’t fold into a pretzel during a crash.
I had a ’68 Corvette convertible in my misspent youth with a 4 speed transmission, A/C and a bunch of tricked out suspension and engine parts that made it go real fast and handle pretty well – when the tires were hooked up. And only up to about 120 MPH, at which point the “coke bottle” body shape wanted to fly – you could feel the front end get light. I adored that car. It was a brutish lout of a vehicle by modern standards, and the chassis was like a rubber band. Body-on-frame construction, and since the “body” of a Corvette is plastic and the frame was agricultural without the structure provided by the top, the chassis twisted and buckled just like you expect a ladder to do when you torque it.
https://journal.classiccars.com/2019/08/02/1968-corvette-convertible-restored/
I used to drop the clutch and light the tires for 100 feet and you could watch the frame flex enough to close the door gaps. But it sure was pretty and I loved it dearly. It looked just like the photos at that link, close to that condition. Gotta have skinny legs to fit them between the seats and the steering wheel. You’re also tall, so you’d be uncomfortable in that car.
The top never fit completely “right.” It looked good, but weather and wind sealing was more wishful thinking than reality. I actually had the optional hard top also, which looked snazzy but didn’t do much for the structural rigidity. Those cars were made before anyone could do finite element analysis, hence the “charm.”
I relate all that just because the basic fact of a convertible is that it’s a sensory pleasure, but a trade-off, with extra maintenance involved, even today. I have to admit I was drooling over a guy’s 427 Cobra replica the other day…what a beast of a car. Best in small, terrifying doses.
@philg, Haven’t you ever flown open cockpit? I mean slide the canopy open not, ‘I’m so rich I own a Sopwith Camel’. I did it once, briefly – fly OC, not own SC. No offense to the terrestrials, but way better.
Related, I drive oil-burning ’05 Civic. Doing so has it’s own rewards.
How about flying convertibles to help the ailing air travel market? Considering the risk of being surrounded by potential covid carriers, surely flying in a R44 with the doors off would surely be safer than flying a Airbus/Boeing.
How about a Nissan Murano? They are ugly but are cheap and tall(ish). Maybe you could get one lifted.
If kung flu is super infectious flying around such that we need masks wouldn’t a convertible be worse? Death RNA whipping around everywhere in the wind. From the ‘science’ I would think you either want steady wind from a clean, no humans have ever been there, direction or absolute still air. If you can smell cigarette smoke from another car no doubt you are inhaling their Chinese deathbreath.