Driving Tyrol - Bolzano & Bressanone area. Suggestions?

You don't say where you are staying, but rather than stay in a car, you could drive to Ortisei/St. Ulrich, one hour from Bolzano and 30 minutes from Bressanone/Brixen, and take two different lifts, one on each side of the valley. You'll see a lot more than driving and trying to see from the car. One lift takes you to the Alpe di Suisi, while the funicular goes up the other side for even more spectacular views across to the Alpe di Suisi and beyond in all directions.

Thank you. We are staying east of there about 20 minutes. Your suggestions is well taken. I have a single major dilemma....my wife is scared of heights and will not ride a tram at all. LOL. The funicular is a great suggestion and option.

If she is scared of heights then this region might be challenging, especially if you want to get up to where the real views are! There are a number of roads that go over high mountain passes, which would avoid a gondola ride, but the roads are steep with many hairpin turns and steep drop-offs. We have driven them many times without a problem but they do tend to turn your knuckles white as you grip the steering wheel!
Head to the Val Gardena and the Seiser Alm areas where the views are magnificent. If you want, there are trails that you can hike to take advantage of the views but it takes hours and hours to get a view that you could have in 10 or 15 minutes of riding in a gondola. Many of the roads in the area though do have views that are still spectacular. If you head out north then east from Bressanone towards Brunico and then go south on the SP244 through the Val Badie and then back west through Ortisei to the E45 north, that's a nice loop with great views. If you pass Brunico heading east and then go towards the Tre Cime and Cortina there are views of some of the more magnificent mountain groups as well.

In the car she closes her eyes...lol. We are staying in Ortisei valley area near SS242 & SS243 so we will get our views. Thank you.

If there is anything in particular you would recommend, please share.

If you like to walk or hike, then the trail that goes around the Tre Cime is beautiful! We hiked it in about 1/2 a day and it is relatively flat. Last time we went, a few years ago, there was still a farmer selling cheese out of a small stone hut on the back side along the trail. We also love the hike around the Langkoffel/Platkoffel group of mountains. On some of the alpine meadows there we have seen shepherd boys with whips cracking them to move their sheep along...like something from another century! The Seiser Alm is an amazing place to walk and see the vistas. There are still many traditional farmers up there working the grass fields by hand and raising their cows.
There are many traditional woodcarvers still plying their trade in Val Gardena. We have brought home several pieces that we watched being made and we treasure them. You'll see their shops throughout the area, especially in the town of Toblach if I remember correctly.
One of my favorite things about the area is the fact that when you open a menu the fare is frequently both Italian and Austrian/German...heaven!

Amazing area. I just took your names and visited google maps. Amazing what you can see now from the other side of the world.