dog friendly small SUV or light truck - Page 4

If you are looking for a vehicle where your dogs are inside with you, the Honda Element rocks as far as dog cars go!  if I didn't have dogs, I would chose somethign a bit more sporty and cute, but hey this car is the best for dogs!

I get about 22 miles or so to the gallon, and I have 130k miles in less than 4 years.  the nice thing is that since there isn't any cloth or carpet, the dog hair is super easy to clean out!  A leaf blower works great!  And you can scrub them out and rinse with a hose, from the front to the back if you have the version with the subwoofer in the front, it sits on the floor basically.

I have fit 3 crates in there comfortably, all were 400 crates, two side by side in the back, and one sideways behind the front seats, with the two in the back one was slighty raised on a set of 2x4s.  But I only have two dogs, so for now I have two medium sized wire crates in there - they are the 36" length crates, both sideways, Jager gets in from the back through the side door, and Sasha from the passenger side through the front door of the crate.

I also built a shelf that elevates the crates one foot off of the floor, the crate sit up high so the dogs can look around, and I have one foot of space underneath for my gear boxes!

I have the all wheel drive version, and I would think the 2 wheel drive might get better gas mileage, but I am not sure on that one. 

You can pick these up used in great condition - after all they are Honda and will run forever - for around $10k, new about $22k or so.

Good luck!

We drive a Dodge Dakota Quad Cab and get 3 400 crates in the back (we have a cab on it). Ever since my husband had to drive back from a show in PA a few years ago in a Ford Explorer and a dog in the back with diarrhea, he does not want them in the car anymore. I was not with him, since he just carpooled with a club member. But he told me about the third poor guy in the backseat who got splattered because the dog was in a wire crate.

Chris

 cross out Ford Explorers!

The Durango is not really that big, certainly not on par with an Excursion.  I had one when they first came out.  It handled well, was comfortable and got decent fuel milage.  It was also pretty quick with 5.9L (360).  A crate or two can easily be fit inside.

  For my money though, there is nothing better than a Chevy Suburban.  Roomy, comfortable, plenty of room and enough power to do whatever the average person needs.  I have a '94 with 150K miles on it and it is still runs great.  My father has a '97 with 275K miles on it, still runs great.  Of course the fuel economy is not the best, and with a 40 gallon tank it costs about $120 to fill-up.   

If you only need to haul one dog, the Honda Element is a good choice.  When I was shopping for my SUV a few months ago, I ran across an article on the most "dog friendly" cars and this one topped the list.  Now having seen it first  hand during a GSD rescue transport run, it really was a nice fit .  There are tie down straps in the back for the crate (which fit well) and I liked the fact that the rear seat went up sideways instead of needing to be remove.  The windows are quite high, too, if you just want to use a dog seatbelt.