Acabrio coach orsemi-convertible is a type of car that has a retractabletextileroof, similar to aconvertible/cabriolet. The difference is that where a convertible often has theB-pillar,C-pillar and other bodywork removed, the cabrio coach retains all bodywork to the top of the door frames and just replaces the roof skin and rear window with a retractable fabric panel.
An advantage of the cabrio coach, particularly for unibody designs is that retaining more of the car's original structure means thatstructural rigidity is higher (or the vehicle weight is lower) than traditional cabriolets.[1]
If a vehicle's roof includes metal panels as well as the soft-top, it may be considered to be a canvas top design or a fixed-roof vehicle with asunroof, instead of being a cabrio-coach. These have the advantage that they may be more easily retrofitted to an existing car; it was a factory option (although listed as a separate model) for theVolkswagen Beetle up to 1963.[2]
This type of roof was popular in Germany in the 1930s, and was found on cars such as theCitroën 2CV,[3][4]Fiat 500, and others. The cabrio coach version of theNash Rambler was marketed as a "convertiblelandau".
Some more modern cars have also featured this roof style, for instanceNissan Figaro,Citroën Visa Décapotable,Fiat 500 (2007),[5][6] and theCitroën C3 Pluriel.
