A convertible is type of car with a flexibly operating roof that can convert between open-air or enclosed cabin configurations.

Roof designs vary is both construction and materials.
First there is the venerable folding textile roof, also called soft top or ragtop.

Mercedes no longer offers convertibles with textile tops.

There is also the folding rigid multi-section roof known as a retractable hardtop, coupé cabriolet or coupé convertible.

This is what you will find on current Mercedes convertibles.

But for the sake of historical perpsective let’s tak more about the cloth or vinyl soft top

The collapsible textile roof section is fitted over a folding frame and sometime includes linings.
These linigs can act either as a sound-deadening layer, or an interior cosmetic headliner to hide the frame or both.

THese tops may have electrical or electro-hydraulic mechanisms for raising the roof.
When the top is in place is can secure to the windshield frame header with latches.
These latches can be manual, semi-manual or fully automatic.
When the convertible top is lowered and folded it is referred to as the stack.

Convertibles such as the second and third generations of the Mercedes SL featured fully rigid, detachable, manually installable hardtops.
These hardtops provided acoustic insulation but also required space-consuming off-season storage and a cumbersome two-person installation.

The convertible isn’t entirely about the top however. There are also variations in the style and function of the side windows.

Convertible side windows have evolved from the earliest models where windows were non-existent to detachable side screens and finally manually or power operated glass side windows.

Rear-windows have evolved similarly, where they started out with plastic rear-windows. However plastic windows would degrade, fade, yellow and crack over time, ths diminishing visibility.
Contemporary convertibles and retractable hardtops are made auto glass to maximize visibility and usually feature heatable windows.

Mercedes offers several cabriolet convertible models.The term ‘cabriolet’ is now virtually synonymous with convertible.
Cabriolet has its roots in the horse-drawn carriage industry. Like most coachbuilding terms, the meaning has changed significantly over the years.
When applied to a car, it originally meant a four door body with opening top, a division between driver and passenger compartment and open drive: no roof over the driver’s compartment.
The meaning has further evolved over the years and today the term cabriolet is frequently used for any convertible version of four seat cars; it is rarely applied to two seat or sports cars.

Here are a few variations on the cabriolet.
In the Cabriolet de ville, the front portion of the folding top over the driver could be folded back separately making the front open while allowing the rear passenger compartment to remain closed.

A coupé cabriolet, or convertible cabriolet, originally only had two doors.

There are two Mercedes classes that offer a convertible model.

• the Mercedes CLK-Class
• and the Mercedes SLR-Class

Here are the specific convertible models that are offered.

• CLK350 Cabriolet
• CLK550 Cabriolet
• CLK65 AMG
• SLR McLaren – Roadster Convertible

THe SLR McLaren is the most expensive model offered by Mercedes coming in at just under a half million dollars.

Unless you have more money than you could spend in 10 lifetimes then you might want to consider some of the CLK Class convertibles instead.

Click here to get the absolute best pricing for a Mercedes convertible