A retractable hardtop looks simple from outside, but the mechanism behind it has challenged engineers since the 1950s. These cars range from a famously ambitious Ford to compact European coupe-cabriolets and luxury roadsters. Here are twelve of them, each with its own take on the folding metal roof.
1. Ford Fairlane 500 Skyliner: The Seven-Motor Original
Counting production by year, Old Cars Weekly figures puts Skyliner output at 20,766 for 1957, 14,713 for 1958 and 12,915 for 1959. Seven electric motors folded the steel roof away beneath the rear deck, a feat of 1950s engineering that other manufacturers did not match for decades.
The falling numbers show how hard the gadget was to sell. Complexity, cost and a trunk that lost most of its space once the roof stowed made the Skyliner a showpiece more than a volume model.
2. Volvo C70: Cleverer Than The Miata
Writing about retractable hardtops past and present, Core77’s retractable hardtop survey states that the 2007 Volvo C70 T5 carries a roof mechanism more complicated than the one on the Mazda Miata. That comparison places the Swedish coupe-convertible among the more intricate folding designs of its period.
More moving parts mean more to go wrong with age, so a used example deserves a careful check of the roof cycle. Buyers should confirm that it opens and closes smoothly before committing.
3. Ferrari 458 Spider: A Targa In Disguise
Core77 notes that the retractable hardtop description for the Ferrari 458 Spider is technically a retractable hardtop, although purists might call it a retractable targa top. The semantics matter little to the result, since the metal roof still disappears behind the seats.
The distinction shows how loosely the label gets applied at the exotic end of the market. Whatever the name, the roof gives a mid-engined Ferrari a coupe-like closed profile and an open-air alternative.
4. BMW 3 Series convertible: The Slickest System
Among the designs Core77 reviewed, the author calls the hardtop on BMW’s BMW’s hardtop system the slickest, and notes that the same arrangement served the 3, 4 and 6 Series. Sharing one folding roof across several model lines spread its development cost.
For shoppers, that broad use suggests a mature, widely built mechanism rather than a one-off. It also means the roof comes with the usual folding-hardtop trade-off, which is reduced luggage room when the top is stowed.
5. Mercedes-Benz SLK: The Roadster That Popularised It
The SLK-Class is a two-seat roadster with a folding metal roof, and Core77 traces the Mercedes-Benz mechanism back to the 1990s. As described in the SLK-Class entry, it packaged an open car and a coupe into one compact body.
That compact formula helped make the retractable hardtop a mainstream idea again after decades of rarity. Buyers get quiet coupe manners with a roof that stows in the trunk, at the price of the luggage space it occupies.
6. Pontiac G6: Detroit’s Folding Roof
Pontiac offered the G6 as a retractable-hardtop convertible, as the G6 article records, bringing the folding metal roof to a mid-size American car. It sat far from the sports-car end of the market where the idea usually appeared.
The convertible gave family-sized motoring an open-top option without a fabric roof. As with other designs of the type, the folding panels reduce trunk room whenever the roof is stowed. Few rivals in its price class offered anything comparable at the time, which gave the model a distinct place in the segment.
7. Chrysler Sebring: A Sebring With A Steel Top
The Sebring was offered as a retractable-hardtop convertible, according to the Chrysler Sebring entry. Chrysler thereby sold an affordable open car whose roof folded in sections into the trunk instead of relying on cloth.
The steel roof gave the open model the security and quietness of a coupe when closed. The compromise was familiar from rival designs, since stowing the panels leaves noticeably less cargo space. The approach was one of several attempts in the 2000s to bring a folding metal roof to mainstream pricing.
8. Lexus SC 430: Luxury With A Lid
The SC 430 was a retractable-hardtop luxury convertible, as the Lexus SC article describes. Lexus placed the folding roof on a grand-touring two-seat car aimed at comfort rather than outright speed.
Its appeal rested on refinement: a coupe-like cabin with a roof that vanished at the touch of a button. Prospective owners should still check the roof mechanism, as with any complex folding hardtop. The model remains a clear example of the folding hardtop applied to the luxury segment, where quiet and comfort mattered most.
9. Cadillac XLR: Cadillac’s Roadster Gamble
The XLR was a Cadillac two-seat roadster with a retractable hardtop, as the Cadillac XLR entry lays out. The car gave the brand a halo model whose roof folded neatly out of sight.
That roof was central to the car’s pitch, pairing open-air driving with the shelter of a closed coupe. As on similar cars, the stowed panels take a share of the luggage space. Few two-seaters of the period combined that layout with such a plush interior, which made the folding roof a selling point.
10. Peugeot 206 CC: The Small Coupe-Cabriolet
The 206 CC was a small coupe-cabriolet with a folding steel roof, as the Peugeot 206 article notes. Peugeot brought the concept to a compact, affordable hatchback-sized car instead of limiting it to luxury models.
That made the folding hardtop accessible to ordinary buyers, not only to those shopping for roadsters. As with any such roof, owners trade a portion of the trunk for the ability to go topless. The car became a well-known example of how a French maker carried a folding steel roof into everyday small-car territory.
11. Mercedes-Benz SL: A Roadster With Two Faces
The R230 SL-Class roadster has a folding hardtop, as the R230 SL-Class entry states. Mercedes-Benz fitted the metal roof to a large grand-touring two-seater, giving it a closed-coupe character.
The choice of a rigid roof on a flagship roadster signalled how far the idea had moved from novelty to expectation. Buyers should expect the usual trade-off of reduced luggage space with the top down. Across the decades, the roadster kept a place in the lineup as the form that defined the model line.
12. Volkswagen Eos: Four Seats, Folding Metal
The Eos was a Volkswagen coupe-convertible with a retractable hardtop, as the Volkswagen Eos entry records. It carried the idea into a mainstream European model range that was far from the exotic and luxury cars first associated with it.
Its roof let a mainstream convertible work as a quiet coupe in bad weather. Like others of the type, it gives up trunk space when the folding panels are stowed. It stands among the clearest cases of the folding hardtop spreading from luxury models into volume production.
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