Hitting the open road in a sports car in the summertime is pretty much every man's dream, right? Well, if it isn't, you should get your head checked because nailing the interstate and the back roads of our great country just isn't the same in anything other than a sports car. But that also means limited space for packing, limited passenger capacity and probably quite a bit of heavy-footedness. And contrary to popular belief, sports cars don't have to be cursed with cramped quarters and Marquis du Sade-like levels of discomfort.

There are a handful of truly great "grand touring" style sporty cars out there today that toe the line between street razor and long haul speedster. And that's a good thing because driving solo on a road trip in one of these means you can drive longer and farther without being totally worn out. These three cars actually are utter pleasures to drive for hours on end. 

Porsche 911 Targa

911 targa

Any Porsche 911 would be a great solo sports car for the open road thanks to its excellent driving dynamics, near-peerless performance, and then there's that flat-six wail that's positively entoxicating. But add the benefit of a retractable roof that's pretty much the coolest automotive mechanism that exists today, and you have the Porsche 911 Targa ($108,600 base MSRP), a recipe for pure pleasure. The retractable glass roof fits seamlessly between the seats and the rear engine, making it four seasons perfect, and the 370 hp from the flat-six boxer engine means you'll get full audio access to one of the best sounds on earth. 

Corvette Stingray Convertible

corvette stingray convertible

There's no better sports car bargain on earth than the Chevrolet Corvette Stingray Convertible ($60,395 base MSRP) because it not only provides long distance and backroads driving delights, it also happens to be one of the finest performance automobiles on earth with its potent 460 hp 6.2-liter V8 engine and the kind of steering and handling that supercars costing four times more would be jealous of. The new, more sophisticated cabin also lends to great drives thanks to excellent competition sport seats and the best interior layout of any Corvette that's ever laid patches on pavement. The beautiful ragtop can deploy in 21 seconds at speeds up to 30 mph. Now that's what we call showing off. 

Lexus RC 350 F Sport

Lexus RC 350 F Sport

Though we wouldn't call the Lexus RC a classic, the Japanese luxury brand is certainly on to something here. The RC 350 F Sport ($46,885 base MRSP) is quick, eye-catching but most importantly, it's ridiculously comfortable for seriously long drives. The sport bucket seats cradle your tukus in robust support and softness, while the thrum of the 306 hp, naturally-aspirated V6 equates to hours in the cockpit without tiring. Everything about this modern grand tourer screams quality, and it's one that has the reliability of an atomic clock.