Paris - The mass-market convertible car emits its last gasp this week at a Geneva motor show bristling with sport utility vehicles and low-cost models - more evidence of the pragmatism of European consumers marked by years of austerity.
Mainstream brands from Peugeot to Volkswagen are quietly axing cabriolets, as customers with cash to spend increasingly plump for a crossover, or choose to buy a low-cost car and keep the change.
That's just fine with most carmakers, who would rather sell an offroad-styled city car or budget model, either of which typically brings lower production costs and fatter profits.