Had a bunch of convertible unicorns saved in my CarMax profile in addition to the 2016 Mercedes E550 from earlier this week – under $45,000 and 60,000 miles, and thought I would do a dump here so I can move on to other cars next week. Trying to keep this to more limited models, so while they may be great cars, no Mustangs, Camaros, or Miata convertibles since they are just too plentiful. See what you think of these. Cheapest to most expensive.
Okay, right off the bat, I’m vulnerable to getting my chops busted for a Mini. CarMax has 448 of these little German impressions of a British icon. But only 38 John Cooper Works models. And only three with a manual transmission. The John Cooper Works is a different animal entirely — BMW’s performance division, 228 turbocharged horses, a chassis tuned at the Nürburgring, and a 6-speed manual gearbox in a convertible.
Yeah, a six-second 0-60 mph time, but Car and Driver called the JCW “the most fun Mini ever built.” Black on black with 28,000 miles and a $21,998 price tag on a car that stickered at $35,000 makes this one of the best performance bargain on the list. Amused CarMax has an “imperfection” sticker on the shifter. This 2017 Mini Cooper JCW is a one-owner, LA car currently reserved here in Clermont, Florida. How it went coast to coast to be sold, I don’t know.
Stock No. 28740784 VIN WMWWH9C51H3A78568
2018 Buick Cascada Sport Touring. Four thousand miles. On an eight-year-old car. Someone bought this, drove it to the vineyard twice, and turned it in. The Cascada is a German Opel in a Buick costume — built in Poland, sold in the US only 2016–2019, and now extinct. Heated seats, heated steering wheel, a soft top that folds in seconds, and a red-over-black color combination on an essentially new example. When it launched in 2016, buyers balked at the price for a Buick. At $24,998 – $10,000 less than when new – with virtually no miles, that argument is long gone.
The Opel Buick has a 1.6-liter turbo four good for 200 horsepower and a middling 7-second 0-60 mph “sprint”. Not a performance convertible by any means. Consumer Reports summed it up well: “The car isn’t particularly quick or fuel-efficient… but if you don’t mind those compromises, you’ll have the wind in your hair without breaking the bank.” Reminds me of the VW EOS, without the hardtop. It’s a one-owner, accident-free Illinois car that’s now reserved here in Rivergate, Tennessee.
Stock No. 28625372 VIN W04WJ3N5XJG083436
Still in the category of “Cute Red German Convertibles for $25,000, Alex”, here’s another hardly driven, totally adorable little drop top. Tan over red outside, pretty much the same scheme inside, and among the most cheerful pairings in the CarMax inventory, consisting of mostly black, white, and silver cars. Fifteen thousand miles in twelve years. Roughly 1,400 miles a year — a Sunday driver’s Sunday driver. The A5-generation Beetle convertible was discontinued after 2019 and won’t return, making low-mileage examples increasingly collectible. The 1.8T is no muscle car at almost eight seconds to 60, but the Golf platform underneath it is sound, and the car simply hasn’t been used.
Oddly, this car is selling for only $4,000 less than when new a dozen years ago. Didn’t know Volkswagens that weren’t Golf R’s held their value like this. It’s also on the cusp of CarMax extinction as 2014 models of European cars are phased out – of the 1,500 cars from 2014 in the CarMax inventory, only 37 are European. It’s a one-owner, one-accident VW also reserved here in Indianapolis, Indiana.
Stock No. 28763216 VIN 3VW517AT4EM819566
Sticking with the red unicorn theme for a bit. I actually saved this in my profile as a possible and unlikely replacement for my M3. Here’s why. Manual transmission. Oddly, adaptive cruise control, heated seats and steering wheel, automatic headlights…many of the things I’d like in a modern car, and didn’t know they were available in the Jeep Wrangler. Pleasantly surprised. And legit 4×4 offroading credentials to get me into trouble. Here is a Wrangler that can’t decide what it wants to be — and that’s exactly what makes it interesting. The Wrangler is the only car on this list where you can drop the top, remove the doors, engage 4-Low, and ford an actual creek. Most convertible buyers will never do that. But knowing you could is half the appeal. “The most capable off-road vehicle that also happens to be a legitimate convertible.”— Car and Driver.
The Jeep is powered by a 3.6-liter six cylinder making 285 horsepower. Not bad. It does 0-60 mph in 7.4 seconds, quicker than the Beetle, but not why you buy a Wrangler. I abandoned the idea of this as a replacement for the M3, as much as I want a manual transmission convertible, for one reason only – I want a manual drop top to handle well, sprinting around country roads, and a Wrangler ain’t that. Otherwise, it’s a very well-equipped daily driver. It sold new for about $38,000 and is now $27k with 29,000 miles. Accident-free. Two owners. Find it here in Smithtown, New York.
Stock No. 27795027 VIN 1C4GJXAGXMW534240
Needed to include a hard top convertible and elected to add this sleek SLK300 rather than an M4, since I already have two BMW’s on this list. A 2016 Mercedes SLK300, that, like some of the others, has hardly been driven – 7,000 miles in a decade. The 2016 SLK300 was a genuine refresh: a new 2.0-liter, 241-hp turbocharged four-cylinder replaced the old, anemic 1.8, and a 9-speed automatic replaced the previous gearbox. It surprises me with a 0-60 mph time of 5.1 seconds. The folding hardtop means you get a proper coupe in winter and a roadster in summer, with no wind buffeting, although a slightly compromised trunk. The Mercedes hard top convertibles also have the built-in skylight – a bit unusual. Red over cream is a striking, classic pairing on a car this small and this tidy. The VW Beetle’s prettier twin? AutoGuide noted the SLK “builds speed in an effortless, assuming way” — which is another way of saying it’s faster than it feels.Â
This is a one-owner, accident-free car from the southeast, and sold originally for nearly $50,000. At the moment it’s here in Palmdale, California, north of Los Angeles.
Stock No. 70003630 VIN WDDPK3JA7GF123017
I promise this is the last red convertible. It’s maybe as unwelcome in the enthusiast car community as Tim McGraw’s hit, “Red Rag Top”, was in country music radio back in the day. IYKYK. Here’s a historical footnote most buyers will miss: 2018 was the final year Nissan offered the 370Z Roadster with a manual transmission. After this, you could only get the automatic in the drop-top Z. That makes this the last of a lineage stretching back to the 1969 Datsun 240Z. Sadly, this example is an automatic, but the context matters — the 370Z Roadster in any guise is an adequate sports car, increasingly hard to find. The naturally aspirated 332 hp, 3.7-liter V6 revs to 7,500 rpm, sounds genuinely good, and pulls a very strong 5.1-second 0-60. Touring trim means Bose audio, leather, and navigation. Red on black. 19k miles. An almost future collectible at a practical-car price.
The 2018 Nissan 370Z sold for over $40,000 new and is now a reasonable $29k. Ultra low miles. It’s a two-owner car from the south that’s now here up in Albany, New York. The 370Z has not gotten much love from car enthusiasts, but it’s for the Z purist who wants an analog sports car at an analog price.
Stock No. 28000973 VIN JN1AZ4FH4JM520035
Here’s a 2017 BMW 650i Convertible. Grand Tourer. The 2017 is the last model year of the F13 6 Series — BMW discontinued the body before the 8 Series replaced it. One of the newest examples you’ll find, 27,000 miles, original sticker close to $96,000. The twin-turbo 4.4-liter V8 makes 445 horsepower and covers 60 mph in 4.5 seconds. Massaging heated and cooled seats. Bang & Olufsen audio, Apple CarPlay. A heads-up display. White over black is clean, fast-looking, and anonymous — nobody knows it was a near-six-figure car until you accelerate. Careful when turning – it’s a big one, though.
This is my second-favorite unicorn from a value/depreciation perspective. It’s selling for almost a third of its MSRP. Perhaps some reliability issues can be addressed with Maxcare. The BMW also gets around – five owners up and down the East Coast, but no accidents. It’s here at the moment in Columbus Sawmill, Ohio.
Stock No. 28795814 VIN WBA6F5C58HD996808
Now going with a red, white, and blue theme? No apologies on this one. A legit driver’s car. 2017 BMW M240i. “The M240i is the best-driving BMW you can buy for the money — perhaps the best-driving BMW, full stop.”— Car and Driver. A turbocharged inline-six convertible, 6-speed manual, 10,000 miles, in blue over red — which is to say, the only color combination with any conviction — at $35,998. The M240i was the spiritual successor to the beloved M235i: smaller, lighter, more analog than the M4, with almost as much performance and considerably more soul. BMW discontinued the 2 Series convertible after 2021. This configuration — manual gearbox, soft top, barely driven — is a bit rare.
When new, the 2017 BMW M240i sold for perhaps $51,000. It’s held its value at $36k, and the ultra-low miles mean you can drive it another 115,000 miles under MaxCare. It’s a two-owner California car available here in Pleasant Hill, California, between Oakland and Sacramento.
Stock No. 28586314 VIN WBA2L1C33HV668771
And now my favorite from a depreciation point of view, a 2017 Jaguar F-Type R AWD – $108,000 new. A supercharged 5.0-liter V8, 550 horsepower, all-wheel drive, a 186 mph top speed — for $40,998. The F-Type R was Jaguar’s attempt to prove it could build a streetable supercar; it succeeded. White over red is a dramatic pairing that suits a dramatic car. The AWD variant is the rare configuration — most F-Types were rear-drive — and provides genuine all-weather usability that the rear-drive R doesn’t. The exhaust note at startup is legitimately startling. A $108,000 car for the price of a loaded Accord. MaxCare is not optional. Budget for tires.
The 2017 Jaguar F-Type R rips to 60 mph in 3.9 seconds. “Not a sports car that compromises. Simply the most exciting Jaguar since the E-Type.”— Car and Driver on the F-Type R. Unlike the Jaguar XK, which had a pseudo-rear seat that allowed me to recline the driver’s seatback and generate a little more hip room, the F-Type is a true two-seater – meaning I don’t fit. (And I haven’t seen an XK on the CarMax page in months – wonder if they’re no longer carrying them?) This is a two-owner, accident-free car that spent its time in Virginia and Florida, and is now here in Albuquerque, New Mexico.
Stock No. 28753705 VIN SAJWJ6HL0HMK38378
Having just driven the Mother Road, I thought I should end with an American V8. The C7 Stingray is a complete sports car argument in one package: 460 naturally aspirated horses, 3.8-second 0–60, magnetic ride control that reads the road 1,000 times per second, and a Bose audio system audible at speeds no one should admit to. Black on black is the Corvette’s most serious look. At 20,000 miles and $43,998, this hits the unicorn threshold nearly to the dollar and mile. The soft top power-folds behind the seats in seconds. This is the American sports car at a practical price.Â
This 20,000-mile, 2015 Corvette Stingray got its start in Muscle Shoals, Alabama, no less, and had four owners in the Midwest before returning home for sale here in Louisville, Kentucky, not far from where every Corvette has been built for the last 45 years. It sold new for perhaps $60,000 and has retained its value quite well.
Stock No. 28268814 VIN 1G1YF3D75F5120892
Ten convertibles, ten completely different answers to the same question: what does open-air driving mean to you? The JCW says it means a clutch pedal and a grin. The Cascada says it means a Tuesday afternoon with nowhere to be. The Wrangler says remove the doors entirely. The F-Type R says 550 horsepower and an exhaust note that sets off car alarms. None of them are wrong. The unicorn threshold isn’t just about price and mileage — it’s about finding the car that fits the specific kind of freedom you’re after. Probably one of these ten does exactly that for a car and CarMax enthusiast?