2010 BMW 750i xDrive

The combination of a rich, luxurious interior; a smooth, powerful engine; and truly refined road manners make it hard to top a BMW 7-series when it's time to embark on a road trip, so I was more than happy to sign out the 750i xDrive for my journey to Michigan's west coast for the weekend. Because the occasion was a high-school reunion, I plugged in my iPod and chose a classic rock playlist so that I could aurally transport myself to the late 1970s. Turns out, though, that was the only thing that reminded me of the '70s, because the 7-series is a true twenty-first-century car packed full of state-of-the-art technology. Thirty years ago, it would have been hard to fathom a car like the modern 7-series. Of course, thirty years ago paying $100,000 for luxury BMW sedan would have been hard to fathom, too. Amy Skogstrom