It was with some reluctance that I was getting out of bed at 5.30am in the morning to test three cars with a combined horsepower of less than 600. But that's what happens when you let photographers dictate the way a feature is devised. Inspired by the fact that the Eos was the Greek god of dawn, Jurgen thought it crucial that the VW met its folding-hardtop rivals as the sun came up over the pristine waters of the Arabian Gulf. By the look on their faces, my road testers were as unconvinced as I was. But regardless, here we all were...

While the three cars in front of us didn't necessarily scream evoness, in a country like the UAE, where it is hot more often than its not, these coupe-cabriolets are viable daily drive alternatives; one that you can loan to the other half at the weekend when you peel the covers off your Ferarri.

At 250bhp, the V6-engined Eos outstripped its rivals, the Megane Coupe-Cabriolet (165bhp) and Peugeot 307 CC (140), in terms of horsepower and was priced accordingly - the VW coming in a tidy $ 12,000 more expensive than its French counterparts. But was it worth the extra cash?.

The early morning sun still rising, the cars were lined up and readied for the first round of photographs. Now that all three of them were together, it was immediately obvious that they all suffered the same fate of having to accommodate that huge metal roof in the boot of the car. There was something slightly odd about them, especially around the back end. The Megane, with only the bonnet, front grille and headlamps carried over from its hatch sibling, had been compromised the most. It had lost that sexy, wide rear of the hatchback and been replaced by an anorexic alternative more in keeping with the sedan.

If all three cars looked off-kilter with their roofs up, then they certainly all benefited from going topless - the Megane, at 22sec, three seconds quicker than the Eos or 307 CC in transforming from ugly duckling to brazen beauty at the touch of a button.

In keeping with the latest batch of Meganes, the Coupe-Cabriolet felt better built than some previous generations with good quality leather interior and soft-touch surfaces in the cabin at least reminiscent of the Volkswagen approach if not as refined and well equipped. The Peugeot, too, was a comfortable enough place to reside, with deep, cosseted seats and leather-trim steering wheel - it was certainly the only true four-seater of the bunch. Only grown adults with little recognition for comfort and the ability to stave off cramp would be happy sat in the back of the Megane or the Eos on a journey longer than half an hour.

I had been driving the VW with its roof up for the last few days and become used to its ESP traction handling, torquey engine and pleasant exhaust note, but, photography now wrapped up and the weather back to its warm self, this was my first opportunity to rid the car of its metal hood. Breaking free of the traffic-infested marina, I head for the back roads and am immediately surprised by how calm the top-down environment is. Erect the detachable windscreen behind the front seats and it becomes almost serene. There is very little wind noise and the body feels tight, which is testament to the excellent job VW has done of creating a stiff new frame. This certainly isn't like my 1973 MGB Roadster. Body roll is kept to a minimum on twisty corners and, despite the 70kg hardtop residing in the boot, there doesn't seem to be any major handling eccentricities.

Roof up or roof down, this car really is a lot of fun. The engine is never found wanting, the DSG transmission holds its gears perfectly and, ESP switched off combined with a touch of left foot braking, the Eos will wag its ugly-looking tail end nicely. My only gripe was with the brakes, which similar to those in the GTI, never really grab and are therefore not the most confidence-inspiring in a car with an engine of this size under its bonnet. The cream leather and walnut trim is the only other aspect of the car I can grumble about, but then that's just down to personal preference.

Heading back to our photography location down near the boat jetty would allow me to hop in and out of the Megane and Peugeot to see if they could compete with the relatively high benchmark set by the Eos. Both our test cars were of the four-speed automatic variety, which, from past experience, tends to leave me a little cold, but the high volume of traffic in the UAE makes automatic 'boxes a much more popular choice with the punters.

Gearbox prejudices aside, I first opt to jump in the 307 CC. The Peugeot probably does the best job of disguising the fact it has had to hide a folding-hardtop in its boot, the rear certainly less effected than either the Eos and Megane and much more elegant than the 206 CC with its awkward rear deck.

The interior airs on the side of minimalist and certainly doesn't boast gadgets in abundance like the Eos. With the roof up, the 307 CC's cabin doesn't feel as light and airy as that of the VW or Megane because it doesn't benefit from having a glass hardtop, but there's more actual headroom as the seats are set lower (40mm lower than those of the 307 hatchback).

I turn the key of the 2.0 litre, 140bhp engine and prepare to hit the road while its still quiet otherwise I might just find myself with the roof down, topping up my tan in traffic. The exhaust note of the 307 CC has a nice tone, if a little more whiny than that of the Eos, but navigating the roads to get out of the city, I am immediately disappointed. There is no liveliness to the engine. The torque which was so prevalent in the VW is non-existent in the 307 CC, the car having to be taken to the red line to develop any punch at all. Unfortunately, the Ôheadline' 180bhp model isn't available in the Middle East, but even if it was, I still doubt whether the car would have the low-rev shunt needed to move a car of this mass smartly away from standstill.

The gearbox too is slow on the uptake in both fully automatic and sequential modes. Even when you try to take control, the car won't hold its gear, changing up or down as and when it decides. Try to push the car hard and this becomes increasingly frustrating, the car constantly clunking to find the right gear.

Now out of the city, the difference between this car and the Eos is becoming increasingly more evident. The 307 CC is a plodder. This car doesn't attack corners, it meanders through them You are all too aware of its hefty weight, the engine seemingly massively underpowered for a car of this size. Peugeot is realistic in describing the car as a GT rather than GTi, but we were hoping for something a little sharper than this. On the upside, the steering is well weighted and communicates that well back to the driver. The brakes are strong and progressive, but I am miffed as to why a car with so little power has the need for traction control. And traction control that isn't switchable at that.

After such a positive experience in the Eos, I feel a little disappointed. Myself and my fellow testers are left slightly disgruntled and want to return to base to jump in the Megane. But, in the interests of fairness, we persevere and decide to see if having our hair yanked out by the roots adds any excitement to this so far dull drive.

Top down and again we're deflated. The overreaching windscreen taking away from that whole open-air experience of driving a convertible. And with all four windows up, it's almost as quiet as when the roof was over us.

On the plus side, time spent driving this car with the roof down has left me impressed by the excellent job those guys at Peugeot have done in stiffening up the car's chassis; even on Dubai's consistently uneven roads, there is little trace of any shakes or rattles. The ride is smooth without being wallowy and there's no sign of that body roll that's so evident in the 307 hatchback.

So, Germany 1, France 0. Could the Megane Coupe-Cabriolet save Gallic car manufacturers from an embarrassing defeat? We were about to find out. As with its successful siblings, the Megane has a very intuitive control layout. Finding the best driving position is straightforward because the seat is height adjustable and, unlike in the 307 CC, the steering wheel adjusts for rake and reach.

Comfortable, I head for the same back roads on which I drove both the Eos and Peugeot. While not as torquey as the VW, the Renault definitely has more poke than the Peugeot and shifted across to semi-automatic, certainly holds its gear when looking to overtake or attack a corner. But, don't make the mistake of thinking this Coupe-Cabriolet is a sports car. The extra weight from the roof mechanism has somewhat blunted the performance of the Megane. Its conversion to a convertible has also slightly taken the edge off its steering, leaving it with an imprecise feel. A shame because the handling of the hatchback is one of the aspects I like most about the car. Here, the soft suspension setup has done no favours for the Megane; through tight, fast corners, it feels floaty and disconnected. The car is more relaxed sedan than hot hatch and again no challenge for the all-round drivability of the Eos. The Megane was last month's hatchback group test winner, pipping the Golf GTI at the post, so this is perhaps more of a disappointment than being let down by Peugeot.

Like the 307 CC and Eos before it, the Megane scores well with roof down. Not only is it more appealing visually, but in the most important measures of convertible comfort - body shake and wind buffeting - the Renault is more than a match for the other two cars. You'll get a bit of shudder over the worst bumps, but the car is commendably rigid over most types of road surface. Shame then that handling was such a disappointment because for a short while it looked as if we might have a respectable Eos challenger on our hands... sadly, it wasn't to be.

THE VERDICT
While it would be easy to point to the fact the Eos is $ 12,000 more expensive than its rivals and a lot more powerful, we always knew that was the case going into this test. But it's still hard to deny that the Renault Megane Coupe-Cabriolet and Peugeot 307 CC fall anything other than a long way short of the mark. The distance between the German folding hardtop and its French rivals is huge - a lot more than the price tag would suggest. Quite frankly, if you don't want to spend that much more, then opt for the 2.0L turbo charged option Eos, which lifts its engine straight out of the excellent Golf GTI, and is $ 4,000 cheaper than the V6.

The Volkswagen is a fun and feisty daily runner, with all the driving performance and creature comforts you would expect of the German marque.

Given that we're such big fans of the Ford Focus hatchback, it would have nice to pitch it against their recently launched coupe-cabriolet as well, but unfortunately it is not yet available in the Middle East. Who knows, perhaps that would have give the Eos a run for its money.

Specification

	VW Eos	Megane CC	Peugeot 307 CC
Engine	6-cyl, V6	4-cyl, 16 Valve	4-cyl 16 Valve
Location	Front, transverse	Front, transverse	Front, transverse
Displacement	3189cc	1998cc	1997cc
Max power	250bhp @ 6300rpm	165bhp @ 5500rpm	140bhp @ 7000rpm
Max torque	320lb ft @ 3300rpm	191 lb ft @ 3750rpm	202lb ft @ 4750rpm
Transmission	Six-speed DSG automatic, front-wheel drive	Four-speed automatic,front-wheel drive	Four-speed automatic,front-wheel drive
Weight (kerb)	2090kg	1865kg	1588kg
Folding roof	25sec	22sec	25sec
Wheels	7.5 x 17in alloy	7 x 17in alloy	7 x 17in alloy
0-100kmh	7.3sec	11.5sec	9.4sec
Top speed	247kmh	200kmh	225kmh
Price (as tested)	$ 38,600	$ 26,400	$ 26,700
evo Rating	3 & a half Star	2& a half Star	2 Star