PARIS MOTOR SHOW 2002. Even if we don't get the weather for it very often, there's something about a roadster that stirs the motoring hormones, and at this year's show there was a fine set of open-toppers to look at, at many levels of price and style.

And if at the bottom end of the price scale there's a little bit of going over the top, isn't that what fun is all about? God knows, it's not always easy to have fun in a car these days.

So we saw the Pluriel from Citroen, the Smart Roadster, the StreetKa a la Kylie Minogue, who came and stayed a few minutes to sign her name and flash at the photogs, as well as some more exotic machinery of the ragtop and folding steel roof variety.

Straight up, we see a battle developing between the Ford and Citroen's Pluriel, based on the C3 supermini. It'll all depend what you need in such a car.

The StreetKa is simply gorgeous in the Pininfarina execution of the original Ghia concept. There are edges and sculpts all over the place, and those little polished steel rollbars behind each occupant really steal the show from the back. As does the rear lights treatment that is only mesmirising.

The cabin is basically Ka, with where the rear seats might have been now holding the folding roof. With the roof up, it doesn't really look the part at all, though, so pray for rainless days if you really want to do the promenade in this one. Oddly enough, the boot is simply enormous as roadsters go, and you can pack enough luggage for a whole week away instead of the usual weekend with most of the genre.

The Citroen Pluriel, on the other hand, is a considerably more versatile creature. In opentop form it is a true hair-tugger, and like the StreetKa it takes on the best of the body elements of its roundy C3 sibling.

It is also a full four-seater, because the roof is not a folder, but something you have to think about, as it requires placing some substantial pieces of structure in place first. But you can also make it into a 2-seater sporty mini pickup.

We'll be very interested to see how easy it is to live with in Ireland's showery climate. Nice thing, though, is that when the roof is in place, it is a solid motor car and looks that part.

Nissan, while launching their new Micra, also showed us a concept Coupe Cabrio version (above) which we'd be very surprised if it didn't make it into production also. Another 4-seater and in the sweetheart car league.

We had seen pictures of the Smart Roadster before arrival, but the reality is something that might well have been a James Bond movie choice if it had been around when Pearse Brosnan was hamming it up in BMW Z-cars. We're not at all sure how those deeply-recessed headlights will give a spread of light, but they look really cool.

The engine is 698cc and 3-cylinders in configuration, and so promises to be as rackety as the little Smart city car. The Roadster has a six-speed transmission, and a soft top and a hardtop which can be used together or alternatively, and an electrically operated folding soft top is available as an option.

When Peugeot brought out their original 206CC, it became an instant hit with its lovely looks and clever folding hard-top, a feature which up to then had only been the preserve of very upmarket and larger cars. The real McCoy for the weatherman, and yet with a reasonable amount of luggage space with the roof stowed.

But as a 2-seater, it was for the young and fancy free rather than the young at heart with responsibilities and more people to carry. So enters the 307CC, the latest in a burgeoning range of vehicles based on the marque's midranger. Now a pair of couples can boulevard in full view as they drive to that trendy eating place. Well, they will when this so far concept-only car goes into production, as it surely will, and without any changes to what we saw here in Paris.

But there's a market for toys for the really big boys too, and while the girls went 'oooh!' and 'aaah!' over the StreetKa and the 307CC (and the young fellas did the same over Kylie), the guys with the platinum credit card numbers ready just wanted to mull around the BMW Z4, a successor to the Z3 which has much more going for it in a timeless but still very back to the future styling.

Other motor machinery of the roadster interest we spotted was this little Speedino (below) from one of those tiny car manufacturers like Ligier, in this case Chatenet. Complete with discs on front, and a 523cc engine that even Charlie McCreevy would find it hard to put much VRT on, and you can drive it away for E13,000. A basic saloon version runs at E11,000, and we wonder do they do well at all, because the pricing seems wuite high against mainstream models. But think of the motorcycle-like road tax!

Toyota has done a bit of tweaking with its MR2, including a retuned suspension and larger rear wheels and a freshened interior. It also now has a choice between a 6-speed manual and sequential automatic transmissions. In its detatchable hard-top guise it still looks great though, doesn't it?

And finally, from the other side of the great pond, here's the brilliant-looking cabrio version of the P T Cruiser (below) from Chrysler. Drool, and we'll not likely see one in Ireland, we're thinking.

And that's just a look at the roadster scene in Paris this year. No great detail, not everything, but a few flowers in a field of dreams. Because that's what a motor show is - a place to dream. And a place from where dreams can sometimes come true.