Roomy, quiet, comfortable family car

I recently completed a similar search with the purchase of a VW Toureg TDI. It's a bit out of your stated price target but along the way I drove several less expensive vehicles. I was greatly impressed with the Nissan Murano... if you can warm up to their styling, it is a great vehicle in spite of the CVT transmission. Very quiet, very comfortable and very advanced safety features at the top trim levels which are well within your price target. The Ford Edge Sport was also at the top of the list; the Sport trim includes the 2.7 liter Ecoboost V6 and is the only engine that moves the Edge to my liking but it needs premium fuel to produce the rated power. Again quiet, with advanced safety features. Both these vehicles are re-engineered for 2015 so they represent the best technology these manufacturers have. PS: I'm 6'3", 190# and these both fit me.

Try the 2016 Honda Pilot,maybe out of your price range depending on your trade in.

Just about anything aside from a Jeep Wrangler rides better than the 4Runner.

The first response offers some good suggestions. I recently wrote a comparison review of the Murano and Edge. You'll find a link to it in the "more about" under the Murano. But both are in their first year, so long-term reliability is unknown. And both manufacturers have struggled with new model reliability lately.

The Accord is an excellent all-around car, but probably won't offer the quietness or comfortable ride you're looking for. The related Acura TLX is smoother and quieter, but has a much less roomy back seat.

Among sedans, it's a shame you ruled out Hyundai, as the new Genesis is very impressive, and owners have been reporting very few problems.

So, what to get? Cars in general have become much more reliable in the last decade. This said, whenever someone tells me they want a car to be reliable for ten years this tends to narrow it down to a Toyota or Honda product. And if you want a quiet ride, then just a Toyota product (unless the 2016 Honda Pilot reaching dealers soon has much less road noise than its predecessor).

So, how about a Toyota Highlander?

Lexus offers the related RX, but I'm not a fan. It is being redesigned for 2016, though, and the new one (arriving in the fall, I think) could be more impressive.

Moving back to sedans, I didn't like the ride in the roomy Toyota Avalon, and wasn't overly impressed with the Lexus ES, either. You might like it more, though.