With Britain engulfed in precipitation of Biblical proportions, whoever chose the south of France as the venue deserves a pat on the back, for to stand any chance of making sense of cars like this you need sunshine - and lots of it.

Cut through the inevitable, painfully groovy MINI marketing hype, survive the embarrassingly contrived pre-presentation choreography and avert your gaze from the gyrating, generously proportioned dancers, and you're left with a refreshingly honest stab at a fun, light-hearted convertible.

Outwardly there's nothing particularly clever about it. There's no rakish StreetKa-esque transformation, just a steel-mimicking soft-top and a pair of roll hoops. What you see is what you get. The electrically-operated roof is nothing short of a marvel. A blur of extending arms, mildly scary-looking hooks and slickly unfurling canvas, the Cooper's top can be dropped or raised in the time you're waiting for the traffic lights to change. Unfortunately, rearward visibility is pretty awful with the hood up, but the car looks chic and tidy.

Press the header rail-mounted switch and the roof whirrs into life, retracting the canvas immediately above your head like a sunroof, then unhooking the side rails before hoisting the whole caboodle skywards before it folds behind the absurdly prominent rear roll hoops. Less pram-like than the Beetle Cabrio, nevertheless the MINI still manages to look like a cross between a bobsleigh and a shopping trolley. For al fresco sleekness the StreetKa has it licked.

Rumour has it the MINI's original designer, Frank Stephenson, penned the Convertible as a similarly selfish, sporty two-seater, only to be over-ruled by BMW bigwigs who demanded it had four seats on the premise that buyers would want somewhere to stow their dog. While I sympathise with those with canine transport issues, it's hard not to imagine the MINI sans rear seats and roll hoops and conclude Stephenson's vision was preferable.

Inside there have been few changes, meaning it's familiarly over-styled business as usual. In the back there's an inch or two less legroom (presumably no problem for dachshunds but a bit of a squeeze for Alsatians), thanks to additional underfloor strengthening. While the usability of the rear seats is questionable, there's no doubting the quality ambience of the interior.

But there's no denying it shivers like a jelly over washboard corrugations. Across one particularly nasty stretch of rural French tarmac the Convertible's structure shook like Oliver Reed confronted with a fridge-full of Evian. But despite this it's impossible not to enjoy driving the canvas-roofed Cooper.

This is mainly because the lack of structural integrity only really manifests itself at low speed. Out of town, on some admittedly smooth but still challenging sweeps and swoops, the little Cooper remains an accomplished hustler, turning in keenly and gripping resolutely. When you do encounter bumps and drain-covers they send more of a jolt through the Convertible than they would the hatchback, but it recovers its composure quickly and is rarely deflected from the chosen line. Reassuringly, when it comes to accomplished A and B-road ability there have been minimal losses in the translation from hatch to Convertible.

Just as well, for you'll want to carry as much corner speed as possible. With an extra 100kg to haul about, thanks to the inevitable structural bracing required, the Cooper's already modest 115bhp is somewhat overwhelmed. It cruises comfortably at 80 or 90mph, but get baulked by slower traffic and overtaking can be a long-winded affair.

The new ZF five-speed manual does its best to assist with a brisk, oily shift- action, but there's no denying the car feels pretty tardy. Still, the forthcoming 170bhp Cooper S version will address such straight-line gripes. Whether the chassis can stand the pace is something we'll discover in a few months' time.

Does it really matter whether the Convertible is quick or slow, taut or sloppy? From an evo perspective, yes, for good though it is, in dynamic terms it is unquestionably compromised. Put bluntly, you and I know there are far more rewarding drivers' cars out there for the best part of ΂£15K. However, remove your carbonfibre and titanium evo blinkers for a moment and there's no doubt that for the market it's pitched at (i.e girls), the Convertible is spot-on.