Mid size sedan or perhaps a two door coupe.
Lots of toys - GPS, satellite radio etc.
Comfortable on long (eight hour) drives
Quiet
So far I’ve driven a Mercedes E350 and an Audi A6. They were both lovely to drive. Tha Audi has a weird feeling active steering system which would take some getting used to. The Mercedes was maybe a little too comfortable - it felt like I was driving a bed.
What other cars should I be looking at? What kind of things should I be looking for?
Honestly I would consider a loaded high-end Volvo model like the S80. They’re extremely comfortable, safe, luxurious, they drive smooth and quiet, and they’re also, in my opinion, the only new cars that actually look good. All the Mercedes, BMW and Audi models now have the big, fat jellybean shape that is unfortunately the current trend in automotive styling. But the Volvos still retain a classy look.
We have a 2007 A6 and we love it. We test drove a ton of stuff, but the cars we seriously considered as alternatives were the BMW 5 Series and the Infiniti M. We really liked both of them. The Audi mostly won because we liked the look better, my wife liked driving it better than the 5 (I liked driving the 5 a bit better, but not dramatically so) and the sales guy was great. If you’re really into the gadgets and electronics, you’ll probably find the Japanese cars better than the German cars. IMHO the German cars are nicer to drive, though.
This is all very personal, of course. We thought the Mercedes E Class seemed smaller and significantly more expensive than the competition without any advantages to make up for it. Also, they seemed to have worse reliability (though it may have changed in the last year or two – I haven’t been watching closely). The Lexus GS was nice, but felt like “an old man car” to me. Soft, luxurious, not very sporty (similar to how you describe the Mercedes, but multiply it by 10). The sportier Lexuses were smaller than what we were looking for, but might work for you. The Acura TL was nice, but felt a bit small and not quite as luxurious/refined as the others.
Pretty much everything else we drove was included just for completeness and was never seriously in the running (Volvo, VW Passat, BMW 3 Series, Acura MDX, etc.). They each had their charms, but none really surprised us in a way that made us want to seriously consider them.
Just to be clear, all of the cars I mentioned are very nice – they just didn’t fit our (very specific) needs/wishlist/tastes. I encourage you to take a look at all of them and decide for yourself.
Also, some of my friends have recently been raving about the Cadillac CTS. I didn’t test drive one (and I’m not sure I could ever own a Cadillac), but I trust these guys’ opinions (they mostly own Audis and BMWs – I don’t think any of them currently own an American car, so they’re not just being Detroit cheerleaders) and they all think the CTS is great.
Have you tried the Chrysler 300 series? I don’t know anything about them but I think they are supposed to be luxury cars and I like they way they look.
I wouldn’t exactly call it a luxury car, but I love my 2008 Nissan Altima. It’s low slung and feels like a race car to me. But I’ve never driven any of the above cars. I’m kinda a low-brow girl.
This may not fit your criteria, but I love my father-in-law’s Buick Lucerne. You can deck it out with all of the amenities you want, it’s pretty big without being unwieldy, it’s super-quiet in the cabin, and 70 MPH feels like 35 MPH.
Try a Subaru Legacy GT Spec B - it is the highest of the line with all the electronic goodies available, sun roof, leather, upgraded suspension. Gas mileage isn’t great (and it takes premium), but it is very safe and very reliable as well. Did I mention the turbo? Lots of nice low-end power, plus the all-wheel drive of you have any use for that sort of thing.
It is probably lower on the price scale than what you’ve been looking at, and (according to WinkieHubby), will feel more “raw” than the Mercedes or Audi. Also, it only comes in a 6-speed manual - for an automatic, you will want to look at the GT model with all of the electronics options.
I have just the plain old GT (the Spec B package is out of my price range), and it is very comfy, quiet, handles great and is darn fast. I seriously love this car more than anyone should love an inanimate object. It feels like a luxury car to me, and I don’t know how I’ll ever pry myself out of it.
Never, ever, ever base an evaluation on a rental. You’re talking about a clapped-out, dressed down, fleet sale stripper that’s been flogged by everyone it came in contact with. The 300 was meant to have a Hemi in it, not that weak-sauce 170HP 2.7L V6. . If you’re looking for a V8 sedan, there aren’t too many other options in the price range.
I’d give the Caddy CTS a good look. It’s an excellent car. Also check out the Lexus GS.
Also check out the Infiniti G37 coupe. I have the G35 and it pretty much meets all the criteria that you mentioned except the quiet part. Infact, the engine noise is one of the things that I like about the car.
