The French are always on the cutting edge of style – even when it comes to cutting an entire roof from a car.

It was Peugeot actually started the currently-booming folding hard-top trend, way back in the 1930s, so the French marque is arguably the most experienced in the art of origami metal. And the newest member of the genre, Peugeot’s 308 CC (Coupe Convertible), further solidifies the French carmaker’s stake in the folding-top fold.

The 308 CC is built on the solid base of its predecessor, the 307, which turned the fortunes of the sometimes-struggling brand around in the past decade. The 308 hatch and wagon had sold 307,000 units since its launch last year by the time the CC version was released this July, and believe it or not, diesel models claim 60 percent of those sales.

Hence the first appearance of a diesel variant in Peugeot’s convertible line. It has taken some time for the buying public, particularly in countries outside of Europe, to get used to the idea of diesels as anything but black-smoke belchers. Using it in a car that spends half of its life in the open air is a sign of how far the alternative oil has come.

The diesel automatic is also the top-shelf CC, while manual and automatic versions of the Peugeot/Citroen/BMW alliance 1.6-litre turbo petrol engine sit underneath its umbrella.

The refined 2.0-litre turbo diesel and six-speed auto with sports shift is a lovely combination: quiet, torquey and surprisingly sophisticated. Though the car weighs in at a rather hefty 1695kg, around the weight of a Pontiac sedan, the torque twists up the driven front wheels with enthusiasm, particularly in ‘manual’ mode.

The lower ride height is in part the result of a firmer sports suspension tune, which carries the folded roof-s weight amiably, and reduces unsprung porpoising under brakes with the roof up. It is longer, wider and lower than the 307 it replaces, with a stiffer spine to reduce the body flex so common in cars without the rigidity of a roof. The split roof can be opened on the roll (though at a meagre 12km/h max) and folds away into the boot in 20 seconds.

The rear axle is still a torsion beam rather than an independent setup, but this antiquated axle offers much more room in the rear and boot – a necessary evil, when the roof reduces boot space from 465L to 266L, and the car boasts four genuine seats.

This sacrifice for room (and style) produces some rather un-sportsmanlike behaviour when the road tightens up, with the back end chattering and protesting at speed on tighter bends. However, the CC is ultimately a drop-top cruiser with some sporty punch, not a hard-edged performance coupe that keeps you on the edge of its leather seats (though the French predisposition to high pedal placement and low under-thigh support certainly attempts to do just that).

Peugeot claims a few new ‘world firsts’ on the technology front, with headrest-mounted front-side head airbags, and a built-in ‘Airwave’ system which blows warm air onto your neck on those chilly autumn Sundays.

The Airwave is standard in the top-spec S models, but part of a $7K options pack for the base car along with leather trim and seat heaters, a wind diffuser, and bi-Xenon headlights.

And that’s about the only bit of hot air this commendable CC blows.