VAUXHALL is about to join the Coupe-Cabriolet club with a sporty newcomer to rival similar offerings from Renault, Peugeot and Nissan.
Rekindling the name of Tigra, which was previously available only in coupe form, the new model has a retractable steel roof.
This enables it to transform itself from roadster to coupe and back again, within seconds.
The car will make its debut at the Geneva Motor Show in March and goes on sale in late summer.
The electro-hydraulic roof opens and closes automatically at the touch of a button, folding almost vertically into a shaft between the cabin and the boot.
It will be available with a choice of 1.4 litre 90bhp and 1.8 litre 125bhp engines, with a five-speed manual gearshift as standard.
Vauxhall boss Kevin Wale says that the Tigra heralds the start of a new direction for Vauxhall, with a fifth of all its forthcoming production soon consisting of niche models.
It will initially be competing against the Nissan Micra CC, Peugeot 206 and 307 CC, and the stylish Renault Megane CC models, although a host of others are also hurriedly being readied for production too.
The previous Tigra coupe attracted about 37,000 buyers in the UK.