Buy/Drive/Burn: Luxury Convertibles From 2010
Three luxurious convertibles of six-cylinder and rear-drive persuasion. Which one is worth over 40,000 of your hard-earned dollars?
Infiniti G37
Infiniti followed up its very popular third-generation G sedan and coupe with a fourth version in 2007. The car was larger, the engine was larger, and new corporate styling modernized its appearance over the old model. The two-style lineup was expanded for 2009, when Infiniti introduced its first convertible since the Leopard-based M30 of 1990. Convertible G37s were all prepared the same way in 2010: 3.7-liter VQ V6 up front, 325 horsepower to the rear wheels, and no all-wheel drive option. We forego the manual transmission today, opting instead for the seven-speed automatic. $44,350.
Mercedes-Benz SLK300
Mercedes introduced its SLK model in 1996, whereupon it was quickly ignored by most every car enthusiast. Things got sharper when the second generation debuted for 2004. It was larger, more serious, more safe, and sported a nose mimicking the AMG SLR supercar. The new SLK maintained its basic initial characteristics of being a two-seat, metal-roof cabriolet. For our money, we’re in the base model SLK300 in its last year of production. The 3.0-liter V6 produces 228 horsepower, transferred to the rear wheels through the seven-speed G-TRONIC. $46,900.
Lexus IS 350C
Lexus debuted its new sub-ES model as the IS back in 1998. A badge job on a Japanese-market Toyota Altezza, it found fans among tuners and stance bro types alike. Lexus fixed their delight in 2006 with a second generation that was not JDM in any way. Gone were the inline-six Supra engines and sports wagon options. In their place was a single sedan, with an inline-four or V6 mill. In 2010 Lexus expanded the lineup to include a convertible, with engine options of 2.5 or 3.5 liters of displacement. The more expensive 350C is today’s choice. With a Lexus-exclusive V6 (in North America), 306 horsepower travel to the rear via the six-speed automatic. $44,890.
Which tin top convertible gets your money?
[Images: Mercedes-Benz, Lexus, Infiniti]
Interested in lots of cars and their various historical contexts. Started writing articles for TTAC in late 2016, when my first posts were QOTDs. From there I started a few new series like Rare Rides, Buy/Drive/Burn, Abandoned History, and most recently Rare Rides Icons. Operating from a home base in Cincinnati, Ohio, a relative auto journalist dead zone. Many of my articles are prompted by something I'll see on social media that sparks my interest and causes me to research. Finding articles and information from the early days of the internet and beyond that covers the little details lost to time: trim packages, color and wheel choices, interior fabrics. Beyond those, I'm fascinated by automotive industry experiments, both failures and successes. Lately I've taken an interest in AI, and generating "what if" type images for car models long dead. Reincarnating a modern Toyota Paseo, Lincoln Mark IX, or Isuzu Trooper through a text prompt is fun. Fun to post them on Twitter too, and watch people overreact. To that end, the social media I use most is Twitter, @CoreyLewis86. I also contribute pieces for Forbes Wheels and Forbes Home.
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Buy them all, don't drive any of them. put them in a barn because they're all going to be worth a lot of coin one day. Burn the barn.
No love for the oft-forgotten Solara, which was out of production by 2010 and never a luxury car during any of its production.