Companion animals are often more than just your best friend who speaks a language you can’t understand. Your favorite animal is a member of your family, and you might even treat them with greater care than you would some people. This might even extend to your car. You need to bring your baby somewhere; what car are you putting them in?
This question is relevant to me right now because next week, I will be assisting many other auto writers in rescuing what will probably be more than two dozen abandoned beagles. We’ll be using large crossovers and SUVs for the job. Don’t worry, you’ll read about this in full later this week!
The easy answer to this question could be a pickup truck. Look, I have cornfields less than a mile from my apartment and fully rural America not far from there. I’ve seen old trucks running down the road with dogs in their beds, either in crates or loose. Alternatively, you can put your furry friend into the back of a giant SUV, work van, or minivan. But to me, I like finding the smallest vehicle that can still safely transport my adorable friends.
My wife, Sheryl, and I used to have an adorable little rescue chihuahua named Malort. We got him when he was near the end of his life – he had gray fur! – but we made sure those final days were a total blast. Malort got to ride in everything from a Chevy HHR and a Dodge Grand Caravan to my Nova Bus RTS-06 transit bus and my Volkswagen Touareg V10 TDI.
I think his favorite vehicle was the bus. He deeply enjoyed the bus because he was able to walk the entire length of the unit, sniff everything, and then pee into the rear door. It made me laugh that he basically took himself for walks while I drove.
Second to the bus was probably the Touareg V10 TDI. When Malort wasn’t running around, he loved eating, relaxing, and sleeping. Malort definitely loved the cushy seats and soft ride of the Treg. He spent most of the drive home in his doggie bed, watching the world go by.
After Malort’s passing, Sheryl and I had one pet remaining, a green-cheeked conure named Kathryn Janeway. She was later joined by a second conure named Tuvok. Janeway’s first-ever car ride was in Sheryl’s 2010 Toyota Prius; Janeway’s travel cage was a somewhat tight fit in the backseat, but the car worked just fine to carry her. She didn’t seem to care too much about the hybrid ‘Yota.
Later, Janeway and Tuvok got to ride in Wanda, the 2001 BMW E39 wagon that we got from our daydreaming designer, The Bishop. I was surprised to find that the birds loved this car. Janeway loved playing in the leather, and on a sufficiently long trip, she’d sleep rather quietly, which was something she never did in the loud-ish Prius.
Our next pet car was a 2012 Scion iQ, and it was a struggle. Getting the birds into the iQ requires turning their cage 90 degrees, shoving them through the tailgate, and then turning the cage upright again. It was rough and messy, but it worked. The birds hated the iQ the most. Often, they bumped their heads into each other as the car hit potholes. This caused little birdy shouting matches.
The Autopian’s Nissan Murano CrossCabriolet, however, turned out to be a surprisingly good bird carrier. I cannot load the birds inside when the roof is up, but the solution to that is easy. All I have to do is open the roof slightly, slide the birds in, then close the roof. Genius!
I think my answer to this question would be a transit bus, a motorhome, or a wagon. What about you? What’s your perfect pet car?
Top graphic image: Mercedes Streeter
For fun, my pit-lab mix loves my S5 Cabriolet with the top down. For practicality, the LR4 I used to have, or–better yet—the Flex that I almost once bought.
Minivans are usually great for transporting multiple pets. Done a few cat rescue transport runs in such vehicles. Cats usually prefer a vehicle that’s relatively quiet inside, also playing something mellow on the stereo can help. Maybe try cuing up something mellow in the classical or jazz line for the beagles?
At one point my mum had a lot of Irish setters and a W124 wagon. Open the tailgate and let the chaos commence.
Also compared to a modern SUV (or truck I guess) the low entry was useful for the slightly older and more arthritic dogs.
As an aside they would jump and move around in the back a lot, somewhat unsettling the car, until we passed the park. The next stop was the vets, so they’d all lie down, all sense of joy gone. Passing the vets they knew the next stop was grandma’s, so up they’d get again.
the animal’s comfort is pretty important. my dog hates riding in my new car, and hates when I just take it period, but loves and is excited when I go in my old car. it’s weird lol
crew cab pickup with the rear seats folded flat
My schnauzers vote for any Volvo with a tailgate- they have experienced the 740 850 V70 V50 XC60 V90 and soon a V60
My dog likes the XC90 because I have the air suspension set to squat when it’s turned off…which makes it easier to get back in without jumping too high.
Minivan is the answer. We had one briefly about 20 years ago, and I have had two as my daily drivers for the last 5 years. We do animal rescue work plus have 2 medium dogs (pit mix and hound mix) and our cat, and we used to have a 100lbs German Shepard. Stow and go gives you great flexibility and a lot of ways to handle pets. I have hauled 4 cats in their own carriers as well as the German Shepherd lounging comfortably with one of the 2nd row captains chairs folded in the floor.
definitely this, same as with carrying people and their junk, it can carry your animals and their junk just as easy if you have a larger pet or multiple animals.
Fold Flat rear seating – Chrysler/Dodge Minivans are the correct answer. Just like kids, the flexible utility of these is worth talking about. though if you want a mini in wolfs clothing the 3 row Durango SRT is probably my choice, simply because of the space between the 2nd row buckets fits a dog pretty well.
My dad just bought a truck and the first thing he did was confirm that the rear seats fold flat. His #1 choice was the Colorado, but it was immediately ruled out when they don’t even fold flat even though the previous generation did.
I carry two very large, 50kg foxhounds around on the back seat of my wife’s 2016 VW Passat (the European version). It’s fine, but not ideal. My old Volvo V70, on the other hand, was, as it enabled the dogs to have plenty of room and comfort, and I could still carry passengers, and there was a built in cargo net to separate the boot from the passenger compartment which reduced interference from the boys in the back. It was the best solution all round.
Yes a Wagon like the V70 ( I had one for a while) is the next best thing after a van.
That first photo is everything I love about this site in a singe image.
I love seeing convertibles with dogs in the back seats, noses up and sniffing, eyes closed, ears flapping. I am working on finding one for my pup, she would love it.
Go to dog sports events or dog shows and the parking lots are a sea of minivans and sprinters.
My pittie loves my Crosstrek. He really liked my 1st gen xB with the low entry and tall rear area. He was not as big a fan of my ’01 Subaru 2.5RS with the passenger seat folded back all the way.
Famously, you can get two horses in a Citroen 2CV.
You can also get two whales in a Mini, by driving up the M4. (Perhaps a tad obscure to an American audience, but every child in the UK knows this one.)
In terms of more exotic pet carriers, there’s the Fiat Panda, Ford Cougar and Puma, Triumph Stag, any Jaguar. Dodge Viper, if you’re brave.
One option most people wouldn’t think to consider is any saloon – sedan, to you lot – with a big boot (or trunk, if you insist). I mean, I also wouldn’t have thought of it, but when I was buying a boot liner for my 5 Series saloon, all the eBay listings insisted they were good for people who want to carry dogs in the back.
My dog loves her crate. Makes here feel safe and comfy. And so she loves riding in the back cabin area of my Ridgeline. The seats fold up and out of the way and combined with the high belt line of the doors create a crate-like space for her. Rides from MA to VT for her are cozy and comfy. We trained her to respond to the command “truck”! and she b-lines her way to it!
Cats love the parcel shelf on a Miata.
Back when I had four cats my pet transport of choice was a mk1 MR2. I never had more than two cats in that car at once, because putting them in the car meant a trip to the vet, and I can’t afford to have a vet look at more than two animals at the same time. No one can. Numbers don’t go big enough.
They had to go in two cat boxes, one in the passenger footwell, one on the passenger seat, with a chance at a view through a window.
I remember my brother’s cat once explosively evacuated itself one the way back from the vet, while it was raining, so windows up. That was a tiny cockpit to be shut in with that much stench.
Imagine the mess of a panicky cat shut in a box full of liquid poo. It was horrific.
Worth it though for the extreme indifference you get in return.
I hear that horses love Lamborghinis https://www.tiktok.com/@therussianonig/video/6987422457116331270
I always thought the element was perfect for most people and animals. The people moving lots of animals around some kind of van based vehicle becomes better. Refer van or old airport or church bus probably preferred. Though mini vans are so cheap many people like to use those but if you really need to move a lot they max out quickly. Same with SUVs. Extended cab pickups work well too for most people with animals not in crates. You have a bit more control getting them in and out of they are crazy.
Minivan is peak. trucks with bench seats are a close second.
’91 Previa was the favorite of our Westi. That year had a flat topped glove box, so the Westi would sit on it. Sometimes looking forward with head against the windshield, sometimes looking out the side window. If the link works, here ya go!!
https://photos.google.com/search/CgAiCBIGCgRyAgoAKM6hxLPoMw%3D%3D/photo/AF1QipPwiv8_hcjhL0bySsvt_Y9JPMzMyihQEvnU8uPL
Rolling with an ’18 Crosstrek, now, but my favorite were a couple of 1970 camper vans (back in the ’90s) where the camping stuff had been removed and replaced with a large, flat, carpeted, raised floor with a dog-sized “cave” below. The jalousie windows maximized ventilation, while avoiding escapes, along with a divider wall behind the front seat with a sliding pickup window (that was also a futile attempt at getting better heat up front, in Colorado).
Honda Fit with the “magic seat”. Fold the seat bottoms up and you have a very low floor for a dog to step up into and a big space that’s down low so the dog isn’t standing on the seat cushion and has a little lower center of gravity.
My dog loved my old pickup, or at least he did before I modified it and made it too loud. He is overly clingy so the regular cab and bench seat meant he sat right next to me the whole time and could rest his head in my lap. The vinyl bench and vinyl floors also meant any incidents were easily cleaned even though there never was any.