The soft-top MINI isn’t particularly cheap as a new buy, but it’s competitively priced alongside other small convertibles. It has reasonable running costs with the Cooper averaging 50mpg while insurance is group nine. MINI also offers an unbeatable servicing package called tlc. For a one off payment of just £185, owners are covered for five years (or 50,000 miles) of servicing.

This can be extended at any time for a further three years (for an extra £370) by opting for the tlc XL package. Best of all, it’s transferrable to subsequent owners, so gives great peace of mind if you’re buying second hand.

As part of BMW, MINI uses the same Efficient Dynamics technology to save fuel and lower emissions. It’s rebranded as MINIMALISM, but is basically the same with features such as an auto start/stop function – which cuts the engine in stationary traffic and automatically restarts it when needed – and a system that uses the energy from braking to charge the battery.

As a result the Cooper averages 50mpg and emits 137g/km of CO2. Meanwhile the Cooper S is capable of 44mpg and has a CO2 output of 153g/km – very impressive considering it offers 175bhp.

The MINI has proved a very reliable model – as is the case with all cars produced by BMW. The Convertible features the same engines that have been proven in the hatchback and Clubman models, so there should be no issues with durability.