“How do you fancy a convertible?” were the words of the Hertz agent when I arrived at Hertz’ Los Angeles airport facility to collect a car for my latest trip to the area. As this was a work trip, I had made a reservation in line with our corporate travel and expense policy, which goes no further up the list than a mid-sized sedan, so this was clearly going to be quite a nice upgrade. With visions of driving around, most probably, in an open-topped Mustang, I said that this would be “just fine, thank you”, and then he said that the car he had mind, which was indeed brand new, as they had received a whole load of them that very afternoon was in fact a Toyota Solara. Hmm, not quite what I had in mind, but still, it would be something different and that I would probably not quite so readily get the chance to drive again, so we went ahead with the paperwork and a brand new silver-coloured car was allocated to me.

I had actually driven a Solara before, in Coupe guise, so I knew more or less what I was getting, but as this is a car that is not sold in Europe, it merits a little further description. Toyota first added a coupe model to their big selling Camry range back in 1993, but this was little more than a two door version of the four door sedan, and it was only produced for a couple of years before being deleted, following disappointing sales. Undeterred, Toyota tried again, deciding that they need to make a car that looked and felt sportier than the car on which it was based, and the result was a car they called the Camry Solara, which first appeared in 1998. A convertible version was added to the range in 2000. Whilst sales of what was sometime known as the “personal coupe” have reduced steadily over the years, there is still a significant market for this type of car in the US, with domestic offerings including models such as the Chevrolet Monte Carlo and Pontiac Grand Prix and smaller G6, and Honda have long offered a coupe version of their Accord, the Camry’s biggest rival so it was not a surprise that when the Camry was revised in 2002, a new version of the Solara would follow a few months later. The second generation Solara was launched in 2003 and once again, came with its own body style which looks completely different to the Camry sedan whose underpinnings it uses. Production of a convertible model started a few months later, in February 2004. Toyota claimed that the convertible had been specifically designed with a different and more rigid structure, in an effort to overcome one of the problems of the first generation car. A mild update was made for the 2007 model year cars, with a new front end and grille design being the most visually obvious change, whilst inside Toyota added a number of technology items to the standard spec with the hope of increasing the appeal of a car whose sales figures had proved disappointing from the outset and which had shown a steady decline year on year. The convertible has fared better than the coupe, not least, perhaps because it has fewer rivals. Anyone who wants a genuine four seater convertible really only has this or a more expensive Audi, BMW, Mercedes or Volvo to choose from.

This being a convertible, and the time of my test being summer, I wanted to drive it with the roof down whenever possible. There is another reason for this, which is that rear over the shoulder visibility is truly terrible with a massive blind spot which made some road junctions quite a nervous experience. Once you undo the latches, the Solara convertible’s power cloth top raises and lowers in just 10 seconds. This is quick but doesn’t include the amount of time you’ll spend getting out of the car and attaching the fussy vinyl tonneau cover, if you decide to bother. Generally, I did not. When not in use, the cover takes up space in the convertible’s 11.7-cubic-foot boot.

Coupe models come with a standard 2.4 litre 4 cylinder engine, and the option of a 3.3 litre V6, but the convertible gets the more potent engine as standard. It develops 210 bhp and 220 lb/ft of torque and is coupled to a five speed automatic gearbox. This pairing wins prizes for smoothness and refinement, but not really for speed, though the reality is that acceleration is perfectly adequate to keep up with the flow of traffic and when I took the car up onto the canyon roads, it coped well with challenges of the long and moderately steep gradients. There is not a lot of low down torque but once the car is moving, then acceleration in-gear is strong enough. At cruising speed on the freeway, with the roof up, the car is quiet, but clearly with the roof down, which is perfectly viable provided you have the side windows erect, there is rather more in the way of wind noise to contend with.

The Solara is not at all sporting to drive, and makes no real pretence that it might be. The steering is light and has little in the way of feel, so whilst it makes the car easy to manoeuvre, you don’t have much of an idea as to where the steered wheels are precisely aimed at. The handling is on the safe side of predictable, with plenty of understeer if you should tackle the twisty canyon roads at any sort of speed, but there is plenty of grip. The Solara delivers a composed ride that’s still quite comfortable. The convertible is tuned more softly than the coupe, but its relatively stiff structure is mostly free of scuttle shake, a problem often endemic to cars without a fixed roof. Overall the 2008 Toyota Solara prioritizes ride comfort well above sporting pursuits. The brakes worked well, needing only modest pedal pressure for powerful stopping. There is a conventional pull-up handbrake between the seats. Apart from that terrible over the shoulder visibility with the roof erect, visibility is generally not bad with a good field of view from the mirrors. Clearly with the roof down, the view around the car is excellent.

Looking quite different from the Camry on which the car is based, the interior of the Solara is quite neatly finished. Plastics abound, but they are of decent quality and the fit and finish is good. There is a leather-wrapped steering wheel which is nice and a lot of plastic silver inlay which is perhaps less nice. The instrument binnacle comprises three dials, with a central speedometer flanked by the rev counter to the left and a combined gauge for fuel level and water temperature to the right. There are three more small dials set in the top centre of the dash. Beneath this is the audio system which produced good sound quality thanks to a six-speaker system and beneath that the three rotary dials for the air conditioning. The rest of the cockpit is simple and easy to use, with a pair of column stalks and buttons on the steering wheel boss for audio repeater and cruise control.

Unless you opt for a top of the range SLE, which has leather as standard, you get cloth upholstery in your Solara. The large front seats have plenty of (manual) adjustment and the steering wheel telescopes in/out as well as up/down, so there was no issue in getting comfortable. You do have to remember that the doors are really rather long and allow sufficient space – not generally a problem in the US where parking spaces are much more generous than they are in Europe.

Getting into the back can be a bit of a challenge, especially if the roof is in place, but once installed, there is plenty of room. Two adults could definitely sit here quite comfortably. They may feel a little claustrophobic because the side windows are quite small and there is a lot of cloth roof to their side, but as far as leg room goes, that is good, even with the front seats set well back. You sit a sufficient angle that headroom is not a problem with the roof in place. The seat is moulded to suit two and the centre console does come quite a way back, so best to think of this as a four seater rather than a car for five. There are cupholders moulded into the side trim and there are map pockets on the back of the front seats.

By the standards of a convertible, the boot is a reasonable size. It is slightly smaller than that of the coupe, with a little taken off the height to allow for the well into which the roof drops down, but the capacity is unaffected by whether the roof is up or down. The floor area is generous and there was enough height to get my suitcase in with ample clearance. The boot is quite long from front to back. Inside the cabin, there is a decently sized glovebox, small pockets on the doors, a useful lidded cubby in front of the gearlever and lidded cupholders and an armrest cubby in the centre console.

Toyota offer the Solara as either a coupe or a convertible, like the test car. Both coupe and convertible are offered in SE, Sport and SLE trim levels. The base SE is well-equipped with 16-inch wheels, full power accessories, keyless entry, cruise control and a six-disc CD/MP3 stereo with an auxiliary input jack. Convertibles also have a power-operated top. The Sport version adds a firmer suspension, 17-inch wheels, an exterior body kit, xenon HID headlights, graphite-style interior trim, a unique gauge cluster and a leather-wrapped steering wheel and shift knob. The top-of-the-line SLE adds automatic climate control, wood-grain trim, a power-adjustable driver seat, a moonroof (coupe only), a JBL premium audio system, Bluetooth connectivity and, on V6 models, leather seating. The SLE is also eligible for a navigation system. The test car was the entry level, SE, trim, but even that did not feel sparsely equipped.

The fact that a large number of these cars have just been put in the rental fleet could be because Toyota are struggling to sell them to retail customers. The Solara’s diminishing appeal may be due at least in part to its exterior styling, which although curvy and sophisticated, has never come across as trendy or youthful. This is particularly true when you look at the car from the back, as the rear deck appears to droop on both the coupe and the convertible. Another issue is the car’s lack of verve once you’re behind the wheel. The Solara coupe is fairly quick when equipped with the V6, but in the heavier convertible the engine’s modest low-end torque and the transmission’s slow responses noticeably detract from performance. And although handling is stable and predictable, the Camry Solara is not the sort of car you’ll revel in driving briskly, given its soft suspension and minimal steering feedback. That said, consumers less concerned about style or performance will undoubtedly see other merits to the Solara, particularly the convertible. Interior fit and finish is best-in-class, and the mix of metallic and satin finishes interspersed with high-quality plastics provides a distinctive, upscale appearance. Plus, the rear seat is quite spacious, making this one of the few four-seat convertibles (and coupes) that can comfortably accommodate a pair of adults in back. Compared to recently introduced hardtop entries like the Chrysler Sebring and Pontiac G6, the Solara convertible is better built and more refined overall. Convertibles like the Ford Mustang, Mitsubishi Eclipse Spyder and Volkswagen Eos offer more in the way of personality, but none are as family-friendly as Toyota’s drop top, and the VW gets fairly expensive when fully equipped. Due to its high level of refinement and strong reputation for quality and reliability, the convertible would seem to be quite a good choice. The case for the coupe version of the 2008 Toyota Camry Solara is less clear-cut, however. In addition to the usual alternatives like the Mustang and Eclipse, the new Nissan Altima coupe and redesigned Honda Accord coupe have raised the game among front-wheel-drive, midsize coupes. Not only are they as roomy and practical as the Solara, they’re entertaining to drive and stylish to boot. Toyota have released a new Camry saloon for the 2008 model year. It will be interesting to see whether there is a new Solara version of that, or whether this model will just slip away. The smart money is on the latter, reducing the choice of coupe and open-topped cars still further, which is something of a pity.