If looking good is as important as a car that drives well then the Audi A4 cabriolet could be the motor for you as JOANNE MOORE found to her delight.

To make the most of going topless you have to have the right figure and there is no doubt that the Audi Cabriolet has the shape to carry off the look.

All of its curves are in the right places and there is no fuss about stripping down for action.

But despite its brazen approach to looking good this is a car that will appeal to men and women alike and have everyone who drives it coming back for more.

Fortunately for me I chose to test drive the car on one of the warmest weekends of the summer and so the car was able to charm me with its most obvious asset from the moment I clapped eyes on it in the Audi showroom in Bath.

My first task was to manoeuvre it through the tightly packed showroom car park watched by a number of staff and with my always critical teenage son in the passenger seat.

He gave me the benefit of his almost 17 years of life, and still two months to go until he can take to the open road, as I tried to remember the last time I had driven an automatic car.

Luckily for me and the rest of the road users on that Friday evening between Bath and Devizes the Audi was sweet to handle and within a couple of minutes I had relaxed into the drive while my son got to grips with the CD player.

Soon we were on the open road with the wind in our hair and Oasis going full blast. This was definitely the life and judging by the envious looks coming from other motorists and pedestrians one that many would emulate.

Back on home territory the car was put to its first practical test when I had to collect my daughter from a school trip to Barcelona.

The car attracted the right sort of glances from her classmates but the boot was not up to taking a medium sized suitcase. There was plenty of depth but not enough height. But as the roof was down there was little problem hoisting the case onto the back seat.

The following day we made the most of the still good weather and took the car for a spin to Clevedon - on the coast just down the M5 from Bristol.

The car was comfortable cruising on the motorway and showed an excellent turn of speed when asked to accelerate.

Even with the top down and making the most of the motorway speed limits there was little noise and the only drawback was my hair being whipped rather painfully against my face. I understand now why women in open top cars always wear headscarves.

The following day the car was put into service to carry half a six-a-side football team to their match and coped admirably with the load showing it really does have plenty of space for four.

The final test was a weekly supermarket shop and where the boot had failed with the luggage it easily coped with numerous plastic carrier bags.

There is no fuss about putting the roof up and down as one switch does both and only takes a few seconds.

Audi A4 cabriolets start at a touch above £25,000.

Fact file The A4 and S4 Cabriolet have a lot in common. High levels of standard equipment, including a fully automotive climate control system, electric windows and a triple-layer roof that opens and closes with the touch of a button. And full four-seat accommodation.

The A4 Cabriolet is available with a choice of engines and transmissions, including the revolutionary multitronic, offering acceleration with economy levels akin to those of a manual.

With the S4 Cabriolet, you still get to chose between a six-speed decoupled manual transmission and tiptronic. The S4 has a compact 4.2 litre V8 engine which feeds its power through all four wheels thanks to quattro all-wheel-drive and Torsen centre differential.