Did you know that there is a whole class of cars whose back seat is significantly nicer than the front seat? Some go so far as to completely remove the passenger seat so the righthand backseat passenger can sprawl out all the way. So nice are these, that we need a whole paragraph to tell you what's included as a minimum for your top-of-the-line back row mansion.
Common features on all of the best back seats, as a baseline, are the following: fully automatic adjustable seats, second-row climate control, automatic windows, USB chargers, heated seats, and almost all offer an optional partition. While they range from V6's with surprising power to perfectly-balanced V12s, the insides remain extravagant. Short of flying in your own private jet, these coaches engulf you in the best commuting experience in the entire world. In order of "worst" to best, these 10 cars will make you scoff at the extraneous pleasure that's permitted us in this temporal world.
10 Audi A8 L
Starting off with an amazing back seat, and yet the least luxurious of any on this list is the Audi A8 L (for "Luxury"). Normally Audi leaves its best experiences for its sister company Porsche, but the option of a more low-key car with these features is a great way to corner the market of people wishing to lay low as well as recline in genuine leather.
Not all luxury back seats have footrests, but the Audi A8 L does. Dimmable reading lights, 35-degree reclining seats (25 is a lot for a back seat, 30 a lot for a first-class airplane seat), and large TVs for each passenger. A built-in middle armrest means more storage, touchscreen climate controls, and two adult-sized seats that don't compromise for that extra grandchild.
9 Porsche Panamera Executive LWB
The Panamera is the only one on this list capable of 200 miles per hour with little modification and yet, the back seats of the Executive package spare no expense! Don't be deceived by the built-in headrests that stand apart from the cushy pillows and adjustable headrests that are standard in the world. The Panamera was made for a more disguised, sporty luxury with many features being hidden away.
The lap trays fold out and fold in half to be stored next to you under the armrest. Like its cousin, the A8 L, it has footrests that are hidden. What looks like cupholders are actually pop-up climate control dials, one for each side of the rear. It also comes with soft-close doors, built-in internet for streaming movies, and even a giant TV capable of showing the dashboard dials.
8 BMW 7 Series Alpina B7
The BMW 7 Series, like a lot of the luxury versions of large sports sedans, has a longer wheelbase to fit more comfort when you get the Alpina B7. While a lot of these cars will come with a panoramic sunroof, the 7-Series offers a separate sunroof so you don't blind your butler if you need a little natural light.
Automatic and adjustable mood lights make it feel a lot more like a limo, and seat position memory means all your spoiled relatives can use the car without messing up your settings. A touchscreen in the middle and free-floating remote control media and climate, and the passenger seat can fold all the way up to allow you to stretch your legs straight out. It also has one of the largest and longest-reaching picnic tables in the business.
7 Bentley Flying Spur
The Flying Spur is Bentleys Cheapest Sedan but not their cheapest car. It falls just shy of the SUV Bently below on the list, but it still holds its own in the world of class. For one, it comes with a V12, not something the other Bentleys can say. While it might be slightly more of a driver's car than a passenger car, the features remain.
True to Bently form it has removable climate and seat control, fold-down desks, and automatic shades. The sound-deadening is supreme, and to set it apart in the back seat world, this is the only one on the list that has a foot massage option! A standard four-beverage fridge helps this arrangement score right in the middle.
6 Bentley Bentayga
From the diamond-stitched leather on every surface, you know right away that this Uber Black will cost you a second mortgage to ride in. From the widest panoramic sunroof on this list to the most headroom, this is one back seat you can almost get lost in. In fact, you can take out every screen you see just so you don't have to walk back and forth too often!
Yes, that includes the 10.2" touchscreen tablet. Netflix and streaming, temperature, navigation, lighting, lumbar, and yes, the massage seats, can all be controlled from the Android tablet. The destination can be updated and media controlled from it, so more "mom the movie's not working" or "Alfred, I changed my mind. Veal sounds better than caviar." While you can leave the partition up, getting rid of it means more legroom. Either way, each passenger has their own climate.
5 Rolls Royce Cullinan
The luxury brand's step into modern SUVs has been effective. With the $330,000 Cullinan you get all the features to justify spending the price of a small house. Many features are shared with the Phantom (bellow) but this V12 offers you more clearance, headroom, and feelings of superiority.
Automatic shades are a no-brainer, including for the back window. A wine cooler and panoramic sunroof will make you think you're on vacation in the Bahamas while you drive through a snowstorm. If putting down your tray table is too hard, don't worry! There's a button that lowers it for you. If we count it as the back seat experience: there's a "Recreation" option that allows for these cute pop-up back seats as well as every piece of eatware a dignitary would expect, packed in a tray in the back.
4 Rolls Royce Phantom
The Rolls Royce Phantom and Cullinan are similar, but the Phantom is a "sedan" if you can call a car that weighs as much as an African Forest Elephant a sedan. As long as the 600 horsepower V12 beast is, you know it's got to have something going on in the back seat. The Rolls Royce trademarks like the in-door umbrella and automatically closing suicide doors are just the start.
Unlike the Cullinan, the Phantom costs $100,000 more and has the features to back it up, including the continued use of an industry first: star lights in the ceiling. Messaging seats are a no-brainer, and the usual TV, lap tray, and wine storage are all there for you. To top it off, the Phantom has the very best sound-deadening in the entire industry, so you can go your way in perfect peace. If that's not enough, DJ Khaled has given it his stamp of approval.
3 Bentley Mulsanne
Why does the Mulsanne cost almost double the Bentayga ($310k)? Is it because it's an opulent 18 feet long, has a real wood finish, and comes with an always-on lit-up wine cooler? Partially, but let's look closer at the prime points to explain the $150,000 extra in spending.
For one, there is a convertible option available which literally opens up a world of first-class living. Automatic shades, seat memory, center storage space, and hide-away screens are also bonuses. Again we can have the quad-zone climate control: one for each passenger. Our very favorite part, and probably the cheapest, are the included stow-away cups that can clip into hidden slots- no cupholder necessary!
2 Volvo S90 Excellence
This gets a spot on this list, if nothing else, for its safety rating. The Volvo S90 is the one we would drive if we were a potential target or in Florida traffic. And yet, it is one of the most back-seat-conscious setups we've seen! So much so that the passenger seat is permanently deleted to make way for one VIP to be able to reach their legs up to 50" in front of them (somehow).
The shoe storage locker is the butler kindly asking that you remove your shoes before entering, and the ambient dimmable lights cater to various moods and needs without cheap color-changing tactics. Two long, adjustable arms hold up a touchscreen display and a uniquely adjustable tray table also includes a notch for your Scotch. The inclusion of glasses and a hidden realistic sky-night-light projector make it seem like a million-dollar luxury car when in reality... it's under $150,000 fully loaded with these features.
1 Mercedes Maybach Pullman
The Maybach S600s seem to be an industry favorite for celebrities and the 1%, and it's not hard to see why. It's got all the bells and whistles you could ever want inside a car: pillows, automatic shades, three TVs, a partition, footrest, lap table, rear panoramic sunroof control, and automatic reclining seats. All that fit in the land-yacht-sized space of its 23 feet length, 3 feet longer than a Ford F-150 with the Super Cab with the 8-foot long bed!
The extra length means that either an NBA player can stretch out their legs, or that you and your friend's manservants can join you in the fold-out rear-facing seats. Shades are automatic, of course, and a large TV screen pops up over the partition. The luxury is topped off with hidden music controls, lap desks, and even unattached diamond-stitched leather pillows.