With the hardtop and the snow tires (and heated seats), the Z3 is an awesome winter car. Actually I felt I had two cars -- a small coupe in the winter that still performed great (the hard top makes the driving much quieter, with incredible rigidity (the ultimate strong strut, if you will), such that it's really a different car with the h.t.), and a great convertible in the summer. Late winter, I looked forward to removing the top, and late summer, I looked forward to putting it back on.