Driving Land Rover novelty act.

Labels are important in the car world, even when the vehicle in question defies all rational attempts at categorization. The 2016 Range Rover Evoque Convertible is best described as a sport-utility with a sunny side, of sorts, thanks to its retractable roof — which, if Land Rover’s measurements are to be believed, is the largest folding soft top since the Volkswagen Thing.

Answering a question that few car companies have been bold enough to ask, the Evoque Convertible seeks to blur the line between a SUV’s typically rugged image and the top-down playfulness associated with your average cabriolet.

Variety is the spice of life, but does this strange mechanical recipe satisfy the hunger of potential clientele seeking a convertible at, shall we say, something of a higher altitude?

From behind the wheel at least, the Evoque Convertible isn’t nearly as controversial as its marketing message. Despite its highly extroverted exterior, the Convertible's on-road behaviour is utterly benign. That’s largely because under the sheet metal this is basically the Evoque Coupe. Like all Land Rovers, it comes with standard all-wheel drive. Depending on the market, buyers can opt for diesel and petrol power; our test car featured Land Rover's familiar 2-litre turbocharged 4-cylinder engine, matched to a 9-speed automatic transmission. The engine delivers 240 horsepower and 250 pound-feet of torque.

Straight-line performance is spry, if not quite sparkling. The Evoque, particularly in Convertible format, has all the sleek design and detailing of a sports machine, though in reality, the driving dynamics fall more in line with a typical compact crossover. Comfort levels are still what you’d expect from a vehicle sporting the Range Rover badge, though the convertible top does extract a toll on utility by eating into available cargo room. The rear hatch found on the regular 2- and 4-door Evoque is replaced with a tailgate that, when opened, reveals a modest 8.9 cubic feet of space.

No surprise, the level of standard equipment is impressively high, even if your Louis Vuitton luggage might yearn for more commodious accommodations. Leather seating, 21-inch alloy wheels, a rear back-up camera, hill descent control, lane departure warning with braking assist, and a Meridian audio system are just a few of the comfort and safety features fitted as standard. Again, if you can live with the strangeness of the SUV-meets-convertible concept, the Evoque remains a tempting entry into Range Rover ownership.

To be fair, we can’t fault the Evoque when it comes to all-wheel-drive grip, especially when the hardware kept us from careening off a mountain top. Set high atop the French Alps, the ski resort of Courchevel ranks amongst the world’s best and most opulent places to hit the slopes — or simply to strike a pose alongside a most unusual Range Rover.

Considering that the Evoque Convertible is the equivalent of having ice cream for supper, the outlandish scene for our test drive was fittingly decadent. Land Rover even created a wintry test track near the summit of the mountain to allow for some tail-out, snow-throwing driving antics. The only caveat: Go too crazy and you’re going straight down for approximately 1,850 metres.

An obstacle course — at a far safer altitude — also proved that even small and flashy Range Rovers have the all-terrain mettle that made the brand famous in the first place. (Though it’s fair to say that the most challenging drives likely to be encountered in this SUV will be trying to score street parking in Soho (of either the London or New York varieties).

The question remains as to whether or not SUV buyers glean onto the idea of sacrificing load-lugging space for unlimited headroom, or if the convertible crowd can be convinced to enter a Range Rover showroom for the first time.

Viewed from a driving standpoint, the Evoque Convertible is very much business as usual. Yet when seen from a distance, this Range Rover represents a bold push into a market niche that very few auto manufacturers have dared to tread.