Shannon &amp; I have been working on lifestyle improvement / stress reduction lately. One possibility we're considering is replacing my S2000, so that we both have cars that can have car seats, and thus can switch who picks up Tovar from day care / takes him places with less advanced planning.


I'll be a little sad to lose my lil cutie, as I had great fun with it, but I've had it for 7 years, and as long as I have a convertible that goes zoom and is safe, that's good enough for me. The internet tells me I should get about $14K trade-in value for my S2K, so that will help defray the cost a bit.


So - looking for recommendations for a car that:


* Is a convertible
* Is safe (ie has roll bars like the S2000)
* Is zoomy
* Is not too expensive (ideally &lt; $30K, definitely &lt; $50K). This means that Bimmers are still in contention, but they need to justify their cost.


Here are the 4-seat convertibles I've found so far that I don't hate:


* Mini Cooper - This was my first thought. It's so cute! And I saw one with 2 matching car seats in the back (matching each other and the car) - and they were so cute! "Handling is very agile, with quick, precise steering and little body lean, making it truly fun to drive. The ride is still a bit choppy, but less so in the redesign. The base engines are now more refined and the turbocharged one in the Cooper S is very punchy" - punch, choppy, agile, precise - sounds perfect! And it's really cheap ($18K-$25K new). But 7.2sec 0-60 - I'm used to ~6 sec.
* Toyota Camry Solara - Cheap, well-rated - a good mental comparison car to ask "Is this more expensive car really that much better?". 7.5s 0-60.
* Audi TT - Cute, mid-price ($40K new), CR didn't test.
* BMW 3 series - Mmm...If I decide to spend the money ($30K-$50K new), this will be a strong contender. #1 on CR's owner satisfaction survey ("Would you buy that car again?). Not as zippy as my S2000, though, 7.4s 0-60.
* Volvo C70 - Mid-price ($40K new), good crash-test results, worth investigating.


Any strong thoughts? The BMW and the Mini both seem more attractive based on specs than the others, and CR agrees (they are recommended, the others are not, except maybe the Solara).