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Is there a frugal, muddyboot and doghair proof car that isn't a 4x4, and has nice comfy seating for 4 older/elderly folks (incl drive)plus small dog. Say a combination of the hardwearing non-static seat trim of my old Accord with a hose-down floor? Budget say 6-12k (the overnight parking is vulnerable and we don't want to fall in love with the car, just to have something practical that the dog's hairs won't cling too). It's for 12-15k a year motorway plus v.local. One problem is wanting to avoid dark inside colours as claustrophobic, but fortunately beige/grey inside works well with mud and white hairs. Does such a car exist?
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Buy a custom fit plastic boot or estate hatch liner
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You'll be going for French stuff, here!!
Either lower spec Berlingo or Kango should suit.If they don't come with a rubber covered floor, you can always buy the factory part number, mat from the van version.
As for a lighter & brighter interior, you'll have no problem, here, either.Nice & square, plenty of glass area.Plus some have HUGE sun-roofs, too.
Be worth investing in some heavy duty seat covers, like they have for off roaders, 'cos pretty coloured trim, as you say, not too dog friendly!!
Note HJ's coments last week about Motability vehicles at auction, these models now proving popular in these sales, so you're in with a good chance!!
VB
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I'm told that the ex-motability cars sounds like a good idea for a dog-friendly vehicle.
My dog says that he would find the hand controls very useful when driving his pet human around ...
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I have a plastic boot liner in my estate which makes cleaning it very easy. The boot looks as new after 4 years of a muddy German Shepherd.
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I have a high lipped boot liner in my Legacy estate.Removes very easily, hoses down, and Benjy (the Lakeland terrier) thinks the car is ok as well. i think its better than ok but I'm biased.
In wet weather, I fix his lead to the towbar and drive very slowly around the local fields to exercise him.(only joking)
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Many thanks for responses. My point is, is there a dog friendly vehicle with human friendly seating?
We looked at a motability astra, but the trim didn?t look as if it would last long and the ride seemed a bit firm for rear passenger comfort. I suppose you would get used to it.
We drive a small van and the old Accord.
The trouble is the dog is not the only muddy culprit. The van sweeps out and wipes down fine but, despite decent mats, all the grot clings to the carpet and flock surfaces of a car floor. (Though it doesn?t cling at all to the nice plush Accord seat trim).
Yes the dog is pampered and should go in the back ? but it shouldn?t be necessary unless it was really muddy, if only we had a van type floor! (and non-static trim ? all her hairs seemed instantly sucked out onto every surface of a Honda HRV!)
We can see the advantages of an estate, but we do use the boot a lot as an out-of-sight and dog-free zone.
Do the Kangoo/Doblo types have good comfort and safety for motorways rather than local use?
I just can?t understand why cars are designed as indoor rather than a conservatory-type rooms. You get sticky drink holders and trim that isnt suitable for family wear. At home we?ve all moved to easy clean laminate flooring, but a car is still designed as a lounge from home, and not a room that?s going to be an adjunct to a woodland walk, or a beach hut. People seem classified as ?I never step outdoors? or ?I climb mountains and need a 4x4?.
The adverts show folded seats with a Brand New mountain bike in the back.
We all then spend hours covering up and trying to clean a car not designed for the purpose to retain some kind of value in it for the next owner. We don?t cover all our carpets and chairs at home, why isn?t the inside of a car fit for purpose?
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>Do the Kangoo/Doblo types have good comfort and safety for motorways rather than local use?
Are you kidding? Especially with the modern diesels (HDI for the Berlingo/Partner and JTD for the Doblo) these things are excellent for long distances. We regularly carry elderly parents and grandparents in our Partner Combi and they love it. We even had them argue over who was going in it when there were four people and only three available seats. Besides the seats themselves the ride quality is typically French (i.e.excellent) and the height makes it easy to get in and out--it's a delivery van so that's what its original target users have to do all day.
Incidentally, I climb mountains and I see a lot of these things in Lake District/Scottish/Welsh carparks. 4x4 is just too ostentatious for many outdoor types, and largely unnecessary anyway.
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I just can?t understand why cars are designed as indoor rather than a conservatory-type rooms. You get sticky drink holders and trim that isnt suitable for family wear. At home we?ve all moved to easy clean laminate flooring, but a car is still designed as a lounge from home, and not a room that?s going to be an adjunct to a woodland walk, or a beach hut. People seem classified as ?I never step outdoors? or ?I climb mountains and need a 4x4?.
cobwebs, I'm glad somebody looks at this problem the same way!
I've often thought that car design is led astary by the most powreful section of the market, the company car driver who wants the car as either a status symbol or as a tool for work.
HJ's review of the Peugeot 407 at www.honestjohn.co.uk/road_tests/index.htm?id=127 includes an excellent description of the rep's needs, which drives the design of that section of the market. In that case it has led to a car which is nominally a 4-seat saloon, but is actually intended as a one-seat mobile office. Little wonder that other users find these cars less than satisfactory!
That may be partly why small MPVs have been such a hit -- they were the first cars in that category to be designed primarily for families rather than for the sales reps who form the bulk of the new market.
About eight years ago, Terence Conran wrote a fascinating article in the Daily Telegraph motoring section about designing a car for the real world. His sketches showed a vehicle with bare aluminium panels which could be dashed and dented without ill-effect and wouldn't rust, with removeable washable flooring and -- joy-of-joys -- a drain hole in the floor so you could wash the interior.
Unfortunately, nobody sells anything close to it. The MPV-type vehicles still have carpeted floors, fragile and expensive-to-replace bumpers, and glossy paint which looks lovely in the showroom but is a nightmare to maintain.
I'm sure that a significant proportion of car users would much prefer such a car ... but it's so far removed from all the same-old same-old glossy carpeted painted boxes of electronic gadgets that it might be hard for any maker to overcome the initial shock factor.
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In wet weather, I fix his lead to the towbar and drive very slowly around the local fields to exercise him.(only joking)
Glad to hear you're joking as this is not funny. Driving very slowly wouldn't give the dog enough exercise. :-)
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With such specific requirements you may have to do a bit of modifying to suit your needs...the same way you modified the flooring in your house to suit your needs.
Get leather or vinyl uphosltery, mud wipes off and dog hairs will not stick to it. Whichever car you get, remove the carpeting and lay rubber matting down.
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Is that possible? to remove the carpeting?
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Sure it is, simple too. Unbolt and remove the seats,center console and door sills, then lift the carpet out.
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Taking care not to disturb the cabling underneath, especially the airbag/seat belt feedback loop.
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We have an estate with a dog cage in the back (2 labradors).
The dogs love it and the mud & hairs are mainly confined to the cage, certainly nothing in the passenger area.
No loose dogs in car and 100% safe in an accident.
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Having watched the fifth gear filming about loose items in the cabin in the event of an accident, I'd be reluctant to have a loose dog in the cabin.
I haven't gone for the dog cage, but do have a pretty substantial dog guard in place.
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The dog is well tied down when travelling, but has been free when parked as it is a saloon and it has worked OK except for the nylon floor and flock parcel shelf!
Its just a shame to lose the secrecy of a boot to get the advantages of an estate.
Ive just been given a brochure by someone praising and bemoaning his Picasso ? that it grew from a practical Citroen French all-purpose sack-of-potatoes-in-the back farming stock and is denying its heritage with velour trim! (He also still begrudges his contribution to the artists estate).
In general it seems you have to be cautious with seatcovers due to airbags and modifications may affect warranties?
But all roads seem to lead to France?
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sorry, apart from the Legacy...
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Berlingo/Partner/Doblo/Kangoo are the real inheritors of the sack of spuds mobile, not the Picasso (too much velour as you say). They won't be everything you want (how could they be?) but I think they are the nearest to what you're after short of a fifteen year-old Volvo 240 estate.
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All roads roam to Leeds.
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I have found the Berlingo surprisingly comfortable for long journeys (for me anyway, 500 miles to Normandy in a day is a long journey)and the HDi engine is a good 'un, responsive, economical and easily capable of exceeding the 70 mph limit all day!
Loads of room in the back for a large dog and hosable rubber mat in there - no lip either. Incredible capacity when seats (or split seat) folded down (but then it is a van!!) Seats look as if they will withstand hard wear and be easy to clean and (as age creeps on!!) I find the higher style easier to get in and out of. Front doors are also large and the sliding rear doors useful. Plenty of mod cons/extras if you want them - pas, a/c, modutop for storage, electric pass mirror, windows, full length sunroof etc. Steering wheel is height (but not reach) adjustable, driving position rather too upright for you sporty types but I find it good. OK, it might lean a bit in corners but it isn't too noticeable unless you really fling it about and you wouldn't want the dog flying about in the back anyway
It's a very practical car and pretty good value.
Oh, and by the way - you should see the amount of wine and beer that fits in the back on a booze cruise - reckon it was designed with that in mind! It's possible to put down a layer of 8 boxes of wine, 2 boxes of beer and put 4 peoples luggage on top of that and still put the cover over the lot!
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"4 peoples luggage"
Blast, missing apostrophe before the s - don't want to get pulled up for that.
And Cobwebs - £12k would get you the top of the range with every extra and a fair bit of change
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Seriously, I get the impression you prefer your canine companion to travel in the cabin, rather than isolated in the rear load area, so highly recommend a Hicraft dog car harness, or similar. There are five sizes available, and attach to a seat belt so that in the event of an accident, Muttley does not become a dangerous projectile, and lives to chase more rabbits.
I have sold this, and similar products, from my pet stores for several years, and consider them an invaluable safety essential extra. Combined with a large waterproof pet sheet, with velcro tabs, you should have change out of £20!
Whatever vehicle you purchase, I wish you happy and safe travelling for all the occupants. My Legacy upholstery copes well with a Lakeland, Westie , Lurcher and Beagle, whom, when left unsupervised for a short period, refuse to stay on the pet sheet!
Unless you need 40+mpg, you can pick up an excellent 4 year old Legacy estate for well under £6k.However, the HDI diesels previously mentioned are an excellent alternative. It just depends on budget and priorities, mine being reliability not ultimate mpg (and my purchase budget is very limited).
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