Is it just me, or do there seem to be more convertibles on the road? Certainly on my road. Perhaps it's all down to global warming, but it's been heaving with topless cars of late, like some automotive equivalent of a Page 3 convention. Which is not an inappropriate simile because, when it comes down to it, that's what most convertibles are designed for: to flaunt their shape and revel in their exposure.
Not so the Volkswagen Eos. It doesn't come on like a convertible at all. If it's not the last word in discretion, then it must be in the final sentence. You could easily see it and think, oh, that's a rather nifty looking VW coupe. Indeed, you could even get in it and still be persuaded of the same notion. In fact, you could probably drive around for a while, perhaps a year or two, and comfortably labour under the misapprehension that the roof above you was as fixed as a South Korean boxing match.
After all, there's a sunroof, if it's light you're after. But if you fully engage the sunroof lever, the Eos's secret is revealed. Yes, in reality it's a five-section folding CSC roof system. A what? Come on, think about it, the answer's obvious: a coupe sunroof cabriolet.
Fold-away hard roofs are hardly a rarity, but they're normally a three-section manoeuvre. This 25-second, five-stage rigmarole is a far more impressive metamorphosis, like a machine out of RoboCop. It doesn't just change the fact of the roof covering, but the very nature of the car. It's like having two separate cars in the same body, a multiple personality with precision engineering. In any case, it'll impress friends, neighbours and small children, and may prove a conversational ice-breaker at dull dinner parties.
As for the part of the car that's not the roof, it's what you'd expect from VW. Well designed, easy to handle, with an excellent diesel engine. It's also sensibly attractive – the dipping nose and slightly psychedelic front lights work like one of Jon Snow's ties, adding a dash of wit to the otherwise circumspect demeanour.
There's a hint of the Golf GTi in the drive, but the Eos is not a high-performance vehicle. The reason for that, of course, is the roof. The weight of the mechanics takes the edge off the acceleration.
On this occasion, though, more style for less speed is a compromise well worth making. And while we're in the business of compromise, practicality has to take a back seat, too. If it can fit in there. Yes, it's a squeeze in the rear, and when it's holding the roof, the boot isn't overflowing with space, either. But then, it's not a people carrier. It's a topless model that's got bottom. And you don't see many of those.