The BMW M240i convertible is a great luxury drop-top for less the $60,000

These are not good times for high-performance sports sedans, much less sports coupés. People want crossovers and SUVs, and all the German carmakers have responded.

For BMW, this is something of a tough pill to swallow, because the Bavarians invented the sports coupé and brought it to America in the 1970s with the magnificent BMW 2002. Many iterations have followed, with convertibles and four-doors added to the pack.

These have always been fun to drive yet relatively practical. And give the BMW M-Sport the high-performance treatment, and the fun becomes excessive. So who cares if all people want are crossovers? That just means more cars like the BMW M240i for the rest of us.

BMW sells both proper M-cars and vehicles that live a notch lower on the price and performance ladder. So in the 2-Series realm, there's the M2 - a stonking machine - and the M240i, which replaces the wonderful M235i.

We got our hands on the M240i convertible recently and could see how it does the job of serving up open-air motoring fun during some spirited driving in suburban New Jersey.