Volvo XC70

When this all-wheel drive version of the Volvo station wagon first came on the market it had "Cross Country" stenciled on the rear bumper and it is the ideal car for a cross-country road trip. Sitting high off the ground on big balloon tires, it is very comfortable for long trips thanks to the great engineering and the super-padded seats.

I leased it in 2008 and we have taken it on two long road trips -- to Santa Fe in 2008 and Wichita in 2010. The AWD was handy on some of the gravel roads to our friends' house in Tesuque as well as on some unpaved stretches of the historic Route 66 that we followed on the way back. The cargo area makes a comfortable traveling cabin for Ziggy, with room for all her paraphernalia (travel crate, food, toys, dishes). The station wagon is actually longer than most SUVs, stretching out the cargo area for Ziggy's riding pleasure. Our luggage and the cooler take up the back seat. Given the great original purchase price and the low interest on the lease, the buy option was very attractive once the lease expired, so it was a no-brainer to stick with it.

When I lived in Berlin, two American friends of mine, John Tagliabue and David Marwell, both had black Volvo station wagons. This struck me as odd because the car seemed stodgy and clunky and neither of them were. Once when I drove a Volvo of that period it seemed to handle like a tank, safe but stiff. In the meantime, I have changed, and so has Volvo. It has spiffier styling and better handling while retaining the strength and endurance it is famous for. When I was test-driving cars, the Volvo was far and away superior in every respect to the two other leading candidates -- a Passat station wagon and a Subaru Outback or Forester. By the time Martens made me a price, it was not even prohibitively more expensive.

I had a BMW 325i in Berlin, when I was looking down on my Volvo driver friends, and it was a great car. It took me on a six-week super-road trip through northern Europe when I was researching my book The New Superregions of Europe. I went by ferry from Travemunde across the Baltic to Helsinki, drove around southern Finland, then took another ferry from western Finland to Stockholm, drove around southern Sweden and then drove to Norway, embarking in Bergen for a ferry across the North Sea to explore Britain and Ireland, and a final ferry from England to Hamburg. The BMW managed very well, even on the wrong side of the road, and was always fun to drive.

But the Volvo is great for traveling with the dog. It doesn't have GPS but it does have the outlet to plug our iPhones into the stereo system. The moon roof opens up for scenic driving in good weather. Mileage? Well, it's not a Prius, but we'll spend a good deal less on gas than we would on air fare to Europe.