Driving a convertible makes you happier says convertible maker

You’ll be as shocked as us to find out that driving a convertible makes you happier, according to a leading seller of convertibles. But wait, Fiat used some Actual Science to come to these findings and Top Gear was there.

The firm partnered with Dr Lisa Dorn, associate professor of driver behaviour at Cranfield University, to come up with a rigorous test (driving for a bit with the roof up and then down) to see whether convertibles really do make you happier.

There were 23 participants who took part in the test, and they wore chest band ECGs to measure their heart rates before, during and after their drives. They also had to fill in mood questionnaires, with scientific questions that would ascertain measures such as alertness, happiness, stress and anger.

The cars for the test were the £34,195 Fiat 500C – a 7/10 on TopGear.com, which does raise the question as to whether participants would have been happier in a 9/10 Bentley Continental GT Convertible. Admittedly slightly pricier at around £160,000.

Still, the study found that all drivers were at least six per cent happier with the roof down, the most aggressive drivers up to 20 per cent chirpier. The numbers also showed that heart rate variability – a strong indicator of stress – dropped by a third, suggesting that a soft-top could improve your wellbeing.

Anger dropped by 20 per cent with the roof down, but that could be down to the fact that participants had worked out how to use the buttons that have replaced the interior door handles.

Dr Lisa Dorn said: “Mood when driving will clearly fluctuate depending on a variety of factors impacting the driver, vehicle, and road conditions. However, this study showed a significant effect that suggests, with repeated exposure, motorists could see health-related benefits of driving a convertible over time.”

Was Top Gear happier with the roof down?

My heart rate variability dropped by eight per cent and the tension measurement dropped by 10 per cent (versus the 19 per cent overall) – so driving in the convertible did make me more relaxed according to the scientists.

But happier? Interestingly my figure stayed the same across the start, middle and end of the test, but I was 16 per cent happier than the average anyway. It was just nice to be out of the office, to be honest.

Likewise, anger and frustration levels stayed exactly the same through the run, but was significantly lower than average anyway.