FALL FLING; We toss open some tops to catch autumn's slanting rays.(Product/service evaluation)

Byline: BOB GRITZINGER

Most people with a yen for open-top cruising imagine an idyllic drive along a sun-dappled scenic highway, a warm breeze blowing back the tresses and rippling the shirt-sleeve of an elbow crooked on the windowsill.

Reality, on the other hand, finds many a convertible owner hunkered down under a closed roof with the air conditioning blasting, or risking heatstroke, third-degree sunburn and permanent disfigurement from riding top down in a traffic jam with the midday summer sun blazing overhead. Not a pretty picture.

Convertible lovers know that warm midsummer evenings, nighttime drives and cooler fall and spring days are the best times for top-down running, whether taking a scenic color tour, enjoying a run to a picnic or cider mill, or parking for a pre-game tailgate party. And what would homecoming parades in towns big and small across America be without convertibles? Boring, that's what they'd be, without the proper mobile platforms for king, queen and court to offer up their beauty pageant waves.

With style in mind, we started with a 2007 Volkswagen New Beetle Turbo Convertible and a 2006 Chrysler PT Turbo Convertible. Between dodging the Midwest's inevitable cloudbursts and cool spells, there were ample opportunities to enjoy autumn's slanting rays. The car sampler expanded later to include one of the best of the new genre of folding hardtop four-seaters, the 2007 VW Eos, and then went way over the top to wrap up with seat time in the 2007 Bentley Continental GTC.

For classic good looks and affordability, it's hard to argue with the Beetle, which packs pep, smooth ride, steady handling, interior comfort and ease of rear-seat access in a package that makes everyone smile. Parked at a picnic, the top-down Beetle drew admirers like flies to an open ketchup bottle; waving them away was not an option.

The open-air PT Turbo, however, offered more usable interior and trunk space, thanks to packaging that saved most of the lower cargo hold from encroachment by the folded top. The PT is equally attractive with the top down, but suffers from an odd, squashed appearance whenever the roof is in place. Both cars have reasonable four-cylinder power, but the VW's engine, six-speed automatic and autostick trumps the PT's four-speed automatic. The PT wins when it comes to managing wind buffeting, but the Beetle has a stiffer chassis and better interior. Pick your poison.