We like to rag on the Nissan Murano CrossCabriolet a lot because it's expensive, not especially attractive, and its purpose is hard to discern. But vans trump SUVs in my book, and so this is the convertible Nissan I think you'll really want. Meet the Nissan Evalia C.


As you can probably tell from the photo, it's a roof-optional version of the Evalia, the van better known in most markets as the NV200.

According to Indian Autos Blog, the Evalia C is actually a new custom van done up by Italian coachbuilder Giovanni Vernagallo. It's used to shuttle tourists around the Italian city of Capri.


To give them a view of the lovely city, Giovanni Vernagallo replaced the metal roof with a removable fabric top. It comes in five- or seven-seat versions.

Now comes the good news! It's not just for tour companies. The Evalia C is being sold to private customers. It can be ordered at any of Nissan Italy’s showrooms or through Giovanni Vernagallo themselves. Expect to pay a steep price for one, though — Indian Autos Blog says it costs about 47,500 Euros, or about $62,000. Nearly $40,000 of that pays for the conversion alone.

Oh well. It's still cooler than the CrossCabriolet for a bunch of reasons, not the least of which is the fact that you can get this with a manual transmission.

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