Boxador

My dog is strap with those seatbelts design for pets so is he station at one stop most of the time especially if I ever need to use the X5 with him. You are not really legal to put your dog in the trunk of a suv because a cop can pull you over for that. He's not roaming around in the back usually but with the leatherette, I don't care. But the initial jump is a must for the dog and when he jumps, he expects to land on something and those claws balance the dog out just like how we use our toes for balance . Those actions are usually worst than when I experience him scratching on the leatherette because I had to hard brake during a few times. Yes, I do put a linen around the seats when he goes out but once again, trim nails on big dogs are still pretty nasty.

P.S.: The dog NEVER gets the shotgun LOL . That's for my other female dog.

GT Premi

What?? What state are you in? I've never heard of such nonsense, not to mention I see that everywhere I've been. Heck, they even sell pet nets for the back to keep the dogs from jumping to the front. I even see people with their dogs roaming free in the back of open truck beds. You just pamper your animal too much.

Boxador

, how did this conversation become about my dog? Just because you've seen it done before does not mean it's legal. I live in NYC, and by NYS laws, you are not allowed to have a passenger in your trunk. My brother, who just happens to be a lawyer, also told me that technically a dog is consider a passenger. You can be pulled over and fined a ticket for that. And just because they sell a product out there, does not mean it's safe and legal in certain areas. No different from us using darker tints that's against the legal tint limits. Does the cop stop you all the time? No, but can they and will they; if they want. Do you even know how strict NYS laws are? You live in NC, which isn't far from NYC, I'm sure you know some ridiculous ones like tax the shit out of cigarettes which you can't even smoke at a bar anymore. Let's just keep this thread about leather and leatherette from this point.

GT Premi

Fair enough. Just want to make one clarification; the rear area of SUVs is not considered a trunk, not even in a legal sense. I believe your law would be translated to "any enclosed portion of the vehicle without proper ventilation and/or windows."

On topic, stop putting your dog on the leather! The Leatherette is probably a good 1/4" thick, so it should be able to take the abuse. Though, the leather is in little danger of actually ripping from his claws. It's just the surface will be scarred/marred.

Allen

I have leather in all my cars right now...but I had leatherette in my '95 525i. After 13 years, 250,000 miles and hauling everything from people to rocks (on top of blankets) in the back seats, the leatherette literally looked brand new. Granted, I am very meticulous about my cars and take exceptionally good care of them. Bottom line...if you take the same care with leather and leatherette...hands down, the leatherette will look better after 10 years.

Oh...and I can't help but wonder how concerned someone is about their seats/interior/leather/leatherette when they let a dog climb around inside their car...those claws can't be a good thing for any part of the car.

Boxador

, I believe I already said that I usually use the 3 series with my dog because it's made of leatherette which is another convenience in this case . I don't put my dog in the X5 unless I have to and that's not usually the case; and I stated that as well before. As to Allen's response, if you read through my post thoroughly, you'll know I did say my dog is usually at one position because he's strap to a seatbelt. He's not roaming around in the back. It's just not doable with a 85LB dog in a 3 series due to various reasons and that's mainly safety. He's strapped and buckle down for his safety as well as mines. The last thing I want is to have to hard brake because some jackass infront of me decides to just pull into my lane by cutting over and my dog flies into my windshield. I don't buy dog ramps or steps so my dog can get into the car because he simply does not travel that much. In order for him to get into the car, he makes an initial jump before I buckle him down. That's the part that causes scuff marks/paw prints at times and with leatherette, it's just a wipe away and it looks good again. I don't even have to put a blanket over the seat to cover that like I would do with the X5. With leather, I'm more protective of it because I know the results won't be the same. Also, note that I own the X5 but the 3 series is a lease.