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Stewart-

The place to start is by knowing the difference between the various types of 356 convertibles. Look at the windshield frame-- it will tell you if it's a speedster, a roadster, or a cabriolet (there are some things I'm leaving out-- but it is good for generalizing).

The cars with the low windshields with rounded chrome or polished aluminum frames are speedsters. They are all 356 "A" bodied cars, built through 1958. Originally, they did not come with windup glass side windows-- they came with "side curtains" which plugged into the top of the doors, and sealed about like you'd expect. Most replica speedsters use replica side curtains-- Intermeccanica Speedsters built since about 2000 or so use glass side windows.

The cars with slightly higher chrome windshield frames with more square edges are "Convertible Ds" or "Roadsters". The 1959 version of this car was still in the 356 "A" body style, and was called a "Convertible D", the 356 "B" version of this car was called a "Roadster". Both these cars had wind-up side windows and sealed very well. Intermeccanica has been building "Convertible D" replicas (which they sometimes call "Roadsters" since the late they moved to Vancouver in the 1980s. CMC also built a few "D" replicas as they were headed down the tubes.

The cars with painted metal windshield frames are "Cabriolets". They are also a slightly different shape than the Speedster or Roadster behind the rear window. They all had wind-up side glass. Envemo from Brazil built some beautiful 356 "B" or "C" Cabriolet replicas in the late 70s and early 80s. SAW in Tennessee builds a replica Cabriolet in a water-cooled, mid engined configuration.

The hardtops are "Coupes" (obviously). They all had side windows. Envemo made a replica "B" or "C" coupe during the same time period they made the Cabriolets. JPS Motorsports just started building an "A" bodied coupe this year.

The price of ALL original 356s has gone out of sight over the past several years. Until now, "A" bodied cars (through 1959) have traditionally brought more than "B" or "C" bodied cars. Speedsters have brought more than Roadsters, which have brought more than Cabriolets, which have brought more than Coupes. None of this matters as much as you might think- a nice "A" coupe is probably worth more than a ratty "C" Cabriolet, but not if the "C" car is a Carerra 2 (which is a whole different topic). A good source for determining value is "Excellence" magazine's market survey (they run one every month on different cars-- last month was 356s).

Good luck.
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