A cabrio coach or semi-convertible is a type of car that has a retractable textile

Textile

A textile or cloth is a flexible woven material consisting of a network of natural or artificial fibres often referred to as thread or yarn. Yarn is produced by spinning raw fibres of wool, flax, cotton, or other material to produce long strands...

 roof

Roof

A roof is the covering on the uppermost part of a building. A roof protects the building and its contents from the effects of weather. Structures that require roofs range from a letter box to a cathedral or stadium, dwellings being the most numerous....

, and derives from Cabriolet. It is an inexpensive alternative to a full convertible

Convertible

A convertible is a type of automobile in which the roof can retract and fold away having windows which wind-down inside the doors, converting it from an enclosed to an open-air vehicle...

, especially on cars with unibody designs since little or no redesign of the body is necessary.

This type of roof was perhaps most popular in Germany in the 1930s, and is often called a "Webasto" since a German company of that name has been the main supplier for both factory built, and aftermarket, cloth car roofs since that time.

This roof was used on many older cars such as the Mercedes-Benz Ponton

Mercedes-Benz Ponton

The Ponton was Daimler-Benz's first totally new Mercedes-Benz series of passenger vehicles produced after World War II. In July 1953, the cars replaced the pre-war-designed Type 170 series and were the bulk of the automaker's production through 1959, though some models lasted through 1962.The...

, Saab 92

Saab 92

Saab 92 is an automobile from Saab. The design was very aerodynamic for its time, and the cW value was 0.30 . The entire body was stamped out of one piece of sheet metal and then cut to accommodate doors and windows. Full-scale production started December 12, 1949, based on the prototype Saab 92001...

, Citroën 2CV

Citroën 2CV

The Citroën 2CV |tax horsepower]]”) was an economy car produced by the French automaker Citroën between 1948 and 1990. It was technologically advanced and innovative, but with uncompromisingly utilitarian unconventional looks, and deceptively simple Bauhaus inspired bodywork, that belied the sheer...

, Fiat 500

Fiat 500

The Fiat 500 is a car produced by the Fiat company of Italy between 1957 and 1975, with limited production of the Fiat 500 K estate continuing until 1977. The car was designed by Dante Giacosa....

, GAZ-M20 Pobeda

GAZ-M20 Pobeda

The GAZ-M20 "Pobeda" was a passenger car produced in the Soviet Union by GAZ from 1946 until 1958. It was also licensed to Polish Fabryka Samochodów Osobowych.The first Pobeda was developed in the Soviet Union under chief engineer Andrei A. Liphart...

 and the Fuldamobil

Fuldamobil

Fuldamobil is the name of a series of small cars produced by Elektromaschinenbau Fulda GmbH of Fulda, Germany, and Nordwestdeutscher Fahrzeugbau of Wilhelmshaven between 1950 and 1969. Though numbers produced were relatively small, the cars attracted sufficient attention to see licensed...

. Nash Rambler

Nash Rambler

The Nash Rambler was a North American automobile produced by the Nash Motors division of Nash-Kelvinator Corporation from 1950–55.The Nash Rambler established a new segment in the automobile market and is widely acknowledged to be the first successful modern American compact...

 was available as a cabrio coach, but they called it "convertible landau

Landau (car)

Landau, when used in referencing an automobile, generally means a simulated convertible.It is originally a coachbuilding term for a type of carriage; see Landau . Many coachbuilding terms transferred over to automobile usage, since coachbuilders began making motor car bodies instead, and because...

".

A variant in which the original sedan's fixed rear glass window was retained first appeared in the 1930s

1930s

File:1930s decade montage.png|From left, clockwise: Dorothea Lange's photo of the homeless Florence Thompson show the effects of the Great Depression; Due to the economic collapse, the farms become dry and the Dust Bowl spreads through America; The Battle of Wuhan during the Second Sino-Japanese...

, and had the advantage that it could be more easily retrofitted to an existing car; it was a factory option (although listed as a separate model) for the Volkswagen Beetle

Volkswagen Beetle

The Volkswagen Type 1, widely known as the Volkswagen Beetle or Volkswagen Bug, is an economy car produced by the German auto maker Volkswagen from 1938 until 2003...

 up to 1963. Some more modern cars also feature this roof style, for instance BMW 318ti

BMW Compact

The BMW Compact is a compact car / small family car, basically a truncated liftback version of the BMW 3 Series, produced by the German automaker BMW between 1993 and 2004. From 1994, it was based on the BMW E36 platform, switching to the BMW E46 platform in 2001...

, Volkswagen Polo

Volkswagen Polo

The Volkswagen Polo is a supermini car manufactured by Volkswagen. It is sold in Europe and other markets worldwide in hatchback, saloon, coupé and estate variants....

, Nissan Figaro

Nissan Figaro

The Nissan Figaro is a small retro car manufactured by Nissan. The car was originally sold only in Japan. Despite this, the Nissan Figaro has become popular with owners in the UK and Ireland, given the popularity of second-hand Japanese import cars...

, Isuzu Amigo, Jeep Liberty

Jeep Liberty

Inspired by styling from the Dakar and Jeepster concept cars, the Liberty was intended as a replacement for the discontinued Jeep Cherokee . Three trim levels were initially offered; the top end Limited, a more rugged looking Renegade and the base Sport. All were made available with either 2WD or 4WD...

 and Suzuki Vitara.