Callaway Cars C16 Cabrio

One sweet 16.

Indeed, the C16 cabrio may be Callaway designer Paul Deutschman’s best design in his 20 years of working for Connecticut-based Callaway Cars. Sleeker front and rear masks, as well as deep side vents and a sculpted hood with a massive bulge dominate every C16’s design. Being a convertible, however, alleviates the C16 cabrio of the clunky rear buttresses that chop up the C16 coupe’s rear view, and thus, the C16 cabrio arguably becomes the sweeter of the 16s.

As with the coupe, the C16 cabrio features major powertrain, brake, and suspension enhancements. Six-speed manual or paddle-shift automatic transmissions are available with both of the Callaway-supercharged 6.0-liter engines, the least powerful of which produces 560 horsepower at 6200 rpm and 529 pound-feet of torque at 4750 rpm. The upgraded version generates a massive 616 horsepower and 582 pound-feet of torque and is said to be capable of propelling the paddle-shifted cabrio from 0 to 60 in 3.5 seconds, with quarter-mile times in the low-11-second range on the way to a top speed of “just over 200 mph.” Also interesting is that all the added performance is achieved without draining—literally—fuel economy, which stays near that of the standard Corvette at 18 mpg city and 28 highway. Even better, Callaway’s warranty covers both models for five years or 100,000 miles.

“With this car, we’ve maintained the C16’s class-leading performance while creating a gorgeous cabrio version, based on one of the best sports-car platforms available anywhere,” says company founder Reeves Callaway. “In true Callaway tradition, it incorporates our race-proven technologies, painstaking testing and validation efforts, and expert craftsmanship in an arresting and appealing style.”