People who purchase posh convertibles don’t necessarily buy them for their straight-line acceleration as these types of vehicles are more about cruising on a warm summer day with the top down. Of course, a big engine with plenty of power and performance is the icing on the cake, hence why luxury automakers have plenty of spicy derivatives for their pricey cabriolets.
Case in point, three German high-end cars with a folding roof went up against a British model of a similar nature. With electrically retractable hardtops being largely gone, all four have fabric tops that take up less space in the trunk and are also much lighter than a metal panel. Speaking of weight, this BMW M850i is the heaviest of the four, tipping the scales at 2,125 kilograms (4,685 pounds).
The M Performance version of Bavaria’s largest convertible went up against the latest entry in the segment, the AMG-developed SL roadster weighing in at a less porky 1,950 kg (4,300 lbs). The other two contenders were a Jaguar F-Type R and a Porsche 911 GTS, both of which are carrying around substantially less weight, at 1,790 kg (3,946 lbs) and 1,615 kg (3,560 lbs), respectively.
Because all drag races between convertibles should be done with the top down, Carwow dropped their roofs despite the cold weather. As expected, the 911 was the slowest off the line due to being only RWD but it made up for that later in the drag race courtesy of its lightweight construction. It had to settle for second place, right behind the F-Type, with the M850i third, and the AMG SL dead last.
The outcome was roughly the same in the subsequent drag race, while the third battle ended with the Porsche taking an easy win after a better start. Once again, the BMW and AMG were third and fourth, respectively.
The last test was an emergency brake from 100 mph (161 km/h) to see which car comes to a full stop first. Surprisingly, the lightest car of the lot didn’t win that one as the F-Type R came to a halt the quickest. Unfortunately for BMW fans, the M850i Convertible needed the most road to get back down to 0.
Source: Carwow / YouTube
