Of all the aftermarket modifications you'll see besmirching the new

Range Rover

surely few will top this one.

Parking sensors useful with that rear window!

California-based Newport Convertible Engineering has made its name angle-grinding the roof of a variety of innocent machines (see

its website

for such beauties as the Chrysler 300 and Toyota FJ) and this is its latest.

In an email, NCE told us it has taken them four months to create this car, although subsequent customer cars will be finished in around six weeks.

We've seen Range Rover preview an Evoque convertible that's still at concept stage at the moment. That did look reasonably attractive as a drop-top, but the NCE L405 soft-top resembles a Top Gear challenge car to be honest.

In beige the hood is more sun hat than roof, with the rear section draped almost like a neck protector. That pathetically small rear window won't help visibility much either.

Elegant storage solution for the roof...

The situation doesn't improve much with the roof down. Though it retracts electrically, the storage compartment looks rather rudimentary and ungainly, especially with so much of the normal car in place.

According to NCE, demand for a Range convertible has gone 'through the roof' (ho, ho) but said it faced a few challenges when dealing with the aluminium structure. Fortunately though, all the 'satellite navigation, over-head console, sun visors and audio' remain. Phew.