Is the Corvette Convertible That Much Better Than a Removable Roof Model?
The Chevrolet Corvette has offered a drop-top driving experience since its inception in 1953. However, beyond a traditional convertible car, most Corvette generations offer a removable roof panel or roof sections. So, is a later model Chevrolet Corvette Convertible, like a C7 or C8, worth it? Or should fans stick to the old-school removable convertible roof?
When did Corvettes begin featuring removable roof panels?
The Chevrolet Corvette got its first removable roof section for the third-generation (C3) model. However, the earliest removable roof models, like the 1968 Chevrolet Corvette Coupe, were more of a Targa Top (T-Top) application involving two panels and a structural member across the roofline.
However, later models, like the C4 and C5 Corvette, moved to a single-panel application. Since then, Corvette coupes have incorporated some kind of removable roof panel. There were exceptions; the C5 Corvette Z06 swapped the modular roof for a stiff, solid application. Of course, America’s sports car also has a history of traditional soft tops.
Do all C7 Corvettes have a removable roof?
The seventh-generation, or C7, Chevrolet Corvette offers a single-panel removable roof and a traditional soft top convertible. Better yet, the C7’s roof panel is easy to remove, lightweight, and stored in the liftback trunk of the coupe model when it’s not in use.
As a result, the C7 coupe yields many of the benefits of a conventional convertible without losing as much structural rigidity as a soft top. Moreover, coupes tend to be more affordable than convertibles. According to Kelley Blue Book, a 2014 Chevrolet Corvette coupe has a mileage-dependent fair value of around $40,218. However, a 2014 model with a soft top raises that value by about $1,540.
How much is a convertible Corvette?
A new 2023 Chevrolet Corvette C8 Convertible starts at around $73,395, $7,500 more than the coupe. That’s a pricey proposition considering the rigid coupe has a removable roof and space to store the panel.
Of course, the new C8 Corvette Convertible isn’t a soft top application. Unlike the C7, the C8 has an electric hardtop, which stows and moves back into place with the press of a button.
What’s the advantage of a new Corvette Convertible?
The convertible Corvette offers an electric hardtop in place of a fabric top. Consequently, Chevrolet says the new electric hardtop model is one of the most rigid and track-ready convertibles in the model’s history.
However, with the affordability and ease of the roof panel in the coupe, a Stingray with a removable roof section could tick drop-top boxes without breaking the bank.
