Barry Kay, Drive Time Editor

The American "Jury" has spoken and Detroit has finally listened. Convertibles are back in a big way! Walking the NY International Auto Show was an eye opener and convinced me that the big three American Automotive manufacturers (GM, Ford and Chrysler) have all been doing their homework. The new sports coupes and concept cars that were shown were fabulous in their design, power and accessories.

I can still remember my first ride as a teen, (oh so many, many years ago) in my friend Bobby's two seater T-Bird. We cruised Garden City, New Hyde Park, Great Neck, and Jones Beach while reveling in the admiring looks of our friends, the hostile looks of our "enemies" and the flirtatious glances of the girls we so desperately wanted to know. Well, everything old is new again, and the T-Bird, Mustang, and muscle cars from Chevrolet and Pontiac are back. Years ago, having a convertible meant never knowing if you were going to end up soaked when it rained.

It also meant:

• A bad hair day every day.
• Inhaling copious amounts of gasoline fumes.
• Having odd looking sunburns on your neck and hands.

All of these minor annoyances meant nothing compared to the sheer joy of driving topless on a hot summer day on the North Shore of Long Island. Owning and driving a convertible immediately put you into a new & elite category. You could now share, even for a few moments, the rarified air that the "beautiful" people inhaled. People who would never design to talk to you, now honked their horns in recognition of your new status. Convertible drivers were, and continue to be, members of a very unique and special club all their own. I can still recall the "mandatory" drag challenges you could be assured of getting from lesser vehicles looking to gain some status, or from other "hot" Impalas, Mustangs and assorted foreign sports cars. Naturally, we wiped out the pretenders and held our own with the best of the elite challengers. These too were some of the joys of driving topless.

Today our world is a lot more complicated and chaotic than in the 50's & 60's, and therefore, it is hardly surprising that in midlife, we would crave the return of a much revered icon... the convertible. Today's convertibles evoke a return to a nostalgic era when life seemed so much simpler and joyful. Actually, the only time I personally indulged my convertible fantasy was when I leased a neat little front wheel drive Chryler Le Baron in metallic grey with a black rag top. I loved the car and how it handled beautifully in both good and bad weather. The only negative was that deep down, I always felt that a convertible was kind of "selfish," and really a single guys thing, but then after my 15 seconds of guilt I went back to feeling very special. The new convertibles of 2003/4 have automatic tops that fold into the trunk and have few, if any, of the drawbacks of earlier models. They evoke the same feelings of power, lust, and romance as their predecessors. So, if you're looking for a sexy, elite, nostalgic mode of transportation which will get the attention of those around you... take a good long look at America's new knockout convertibles!