Maserati GranCabrio convertible (2009-2020)

It's one of the most luxurious convertible GTs on the road, but owning one doesn't come cheap. Starting from £98,000, the Maserati GranCabrio has a price to match is size. Running costs are high, too, but for the money you do get one of the most stylish and desirable convertibles on the road.

Powered by a Ferrari-sourced 4.7-litre V8, the GranCabrio takes only 5.4 seconds to do 0-62mph and the noise from the engine is incredible. A roomy cabin and the storage space needed for the roof mean that boot space is almost non-existent, but the GranCabrio is all about style and its strong image should help it hold its value better than most other cars in this class.

As with the majority of supercars, owning a GranCabrio isn't cheap. Economy is under 20mpg at best and insurance and road tax rates are as high as they get.

The GranCabrio is a heavy car, weighing in at 1,980kg, but despite this performance is still impressive. The 0-62mph sprint takes only 5.4 seconds and the 434bhp 4.7-litre V8 engine sounds simply incredible. The steering is nicely weighted, with lots of feedback, while the car feels balanced through corners and resists body lean.

 The car's six-speed semi-automatic gearbox gives you the choice of either fully automatic mode (if you're looking for an effortless drive) or manual shifts (if you want a more engaging experience).

The GranCabrio is supremely refined and its generous cabin space means there are few better sports cars to travel long distances in. Sound insulation is excellent whether the is roof up or down, while Maserati has ensured that even with the roof lowered, the car's aerodynamics do a great job of deflecting as much wind noise away from the cabin as possible.

At almost five metres long, the Maserati GranCabrio can feel uncomfortably large around town and isn't the easiest car to park either. But what it lacks in exterior practicality it makes up for inside. Even with the roof in place, there's more than enough space for four large passengers. Yet all that room, plus the space needed to store the roof, means that the GranCabrio is left with a lowly 173-litre boot capacity – barely enough for a few overnight bags.

Reliability has never been a strength of Italian manufacturers, but this is beginning to change and recent Maseratis have been borne this out. The GranCabrio is another big leap in the right direction and is one of the most reliable cars the manufacturer has ever produced. A lot of the interior materials do feel and look cheap, though – especially compared to what you'll find in German rivals.

The GranCabrio is expensive, starting at just under £100,000, but that isn't far off its closest rivals. For this, you get lots of space, huge amounts of power and unrivalled desirability. The GranCabrio's exclusivity also means that its residual values are relatively good.