Convertible vs Coupe in CSR2: Is the Roof Slower?
CSR2 MODS · November 10, 2026
In real life a convertible usually carries extra weight to make up for the missing roof, so the coupe is the quicker car. Does CSR2 work the same way? We checked every open-top car on our world records sheet that has a matching coupe.
The answer: no consistent difference
| Result | Pairs |
|---|---|
| Open-top car faster | 18 |
| Open-top car slower | 18 |
| Exactly the same record | 8 |
| Total pairs | 44 |
Half of the pairs (22 of 44) were within one hundredth of a second of each other, and the median gap was zero. There’s no sign in the records of a built-in roof penalty. If you’ve been skipping Spiders and Roadsters because you assumed they were slower, the data says you don’t need to.
How we compared them
Each pair is the same car in two body styles: a Spider, Spyder, Roadster, Volante, Aperta, Speedster or Convertible, against its coupe. Both had to be in the same tier, at the same star level and the same star colour, since purple and gold stars change the result. We compared the best record of each. Cars with no matching coupe on the sheet, like the Porsche 918 Spyder, were left out.
One caution: a world record is the best time anyone has recorded for that car, so a gap can reflect how hard each car has been pushed as well as the car itself. Small gaps especially shouldn’t be overread.
Where the open-top car is clearly faster
| Open-top car | Coupe | Gap | Ranks (Tier 5) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ferrari SF90 Spider (gold star) | SF90 Stradale | 0.222s faster | 285th vs 410th |
| Bentley Batur Convertible | Batur | 0.211s faster | 451st vs 577th |
| Alfa Romeo 8C Spider | 8C Competizione | 0.153s faster | 111th vs 134th (Tier 4) |
| Aston Martin 2025 Vanquish Volante | 2025 Vanquish | 0.145s faster | 143rd vs 263rd |
| Lamborghini Huracán Performante Spyder (gold star) | Huracán Performante | 0.139s faster | 744th vs 782nd |
| Pagani Huayra Codalunga Speedster | Huayra Codalunga | 0.109s faster | 267th vs 326th |
Purple-star records unless marked. The gold-star Batur Convertible is 0.202s ahead of its coupe too.
The 2025 Vanquish Volante is the standout: the open car is more than a hundred places higher than the coupe. It’s one of the best Aston Martins in Tier 5, which our McLaren and Aston Martin ranking covers in full.
Where the coupe is clearly faster
| Open-top car | Coupe | Gap | Ranks (Tier 5) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aston Martin DB12 Volante | DB12 | 0.397s slower | 445th vs 236th |
| Ferrari 12 Cilindri Spider (gold star) | 12 Cilindri | 0.153s slower | 494th vs 422nd |
| Ferrari 12 Cilindri Spider | 12 Cilindri | 0.144s slower | 467th vs 406th |
| Ferrari 488 Pista Spider (four-star) | 488 Pista | 0.144s slower | 692nd vs 624th |
The DB12 is the one pair where the roof clearly matters: the coupe is more than two hundred places higher. If you want a DB12 to race, choose the coupe.
Pairs with exactly the same record
Eight open-top cars match their coupe to the thousandth of a second: the purple-star Pagani Zonda Cinque Roadster, Aston Martin V12 Vantage Roadster, Spyker C8 Preliator Spyder, Ferrari SF90 XX Spider and McLaren SLR 722 S Roadster, and the gold-star McLaren 765LT Spider, McLaren Artura Spider and Lamborghini Huracán Evo Spyder. For these cars, the body style is purely a matter of taste. Many of them are full twins, matching on dyno time and tune as well, which our twin cars list covers.
Many others are close enough not to matter. The Pagani Utopia Roadster is one thousandth faster than the coupe, the McLaren 720S Spider five thousandths slower, and the BMW M8 Competition Convertible three thousandths faster.
Brand by brand
- McLaren: the roof barely matters. All seven McLaren pairs (the 720S, Artura, 765LT and 600LT Spiders, and the SLR 722 S Roadster) are within 0.041 seconds of their coupes, and three are identical.
- Ferrari: the coupe usually wins. Of ten Ferrari pairs, the open car is slower in six, faster in three and identical in one. The exception is the gold-star SF90 Spider, the biggest gain in the whole study.
- Lamborghini: an even split: four Spyders and Roadsters faster, four slower, one identical. The Aventador SVJ Roadster beats the SVJ coupe as both a purple and a gold star.
- Aston Martin: the extremes. The Vanquish Volante is far quicker than its coupe, the DB12 Volante far slower, and the V12 Vantage Roadster identical.
For the full brand rankings, see our Ferrari vs Porsche and best Lamborghini comparisons.
What this means when you choose a car
- Don’t rule out a Spider or Roadster. On the records, it’s as likely to be faster as slower.
- Check the specific car. The big gaps are real, and they go both ways: the Vanquish Volante and Batur Convertible are better picks than their coupes, the DB12 Volante is a worse one.
- Compare at the same star level. Star level moves a car far more than its roof does. Our PP guide explains why two cars with the same PP can still be far apart.
Every car linked above is in our car collection, deliverable stock or fully maxed.
Frequently asked questions
Are convertibles slower in CSR2?
Not as a rule. Across 44 like-for-like pairs on our records sheet, the open-top car was faster 18 times, slower 18 times and identical 8 times. The median gap was zero.
Which convertible is much faster than its coupe in CSR2?
The biggest gains on our sheet: the gold-star Ferrari SF90 Spider (0.222s faster than the gold-star Stradale), the Bentley Batur Convertible (about 0.21s faster), and the Aston Martin 2025 Vanquish Volante (0.145s faster).
Which convertible is much slower than its coupe in CSR2?
The Aston Martin DB12 Volante, 0.397s slower than the DB12 coupe: 445th in Tier 5 against 236th. The Ferrari 12 Cilindri Spider and 488 Pista Spider are each about 0.14s behind their coupes.
Should I buy the Spider or the coupe in CSR2?
Check the records for that exact car. In half the pairs we compared, the two versions were within a hundredth of a second, so pick the one you like. Where there is a big gap, it can go either way.
How did you compare convertibles and coupes?
We paired each open-top record with the same car's coupe in the same tier, at the same star level and star colour, and compared the best record of each. Cars without a matching coupe were left out.
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