New car- Leather seats?

ZinjaZinja
edited July 2013 in Products & DIY
Not sure which section this should go, but I put it in products anyway.

I have plans to purchase a new car in the near future. Should I have leather seats or cloth seats? I would imagine leather seats can get torn from claws, but they may be easier to clean. Should I stick with cloth seats or is it worth the extra $1k-ish for the leather seats? I also live in Florida so the heat may crack the leather too...

Comments

  • oddballoddball
    I have leather seats and as long as you take care of them they are fine with the dogs. i just throw a quilt or heavy blanket over the seat before they get in. As far as heat damage goes, get a bottle of "Leather Only" , or other leather care product, and rub a little into the seats every couple of weeks (every month or so is fine during colder months). UV tinting the windows goes a long way too but check your local laws. I have mine tinted to 25% light transmission and it keeps the car about 15-20 degrees cooler in direct light than before.

    p.s I like "leather only because it is ph nuetral and I have gotten better results from it.
  • ZinjaZinja
    Now, with my current cloth seats, they're full of dog hair... Does the hair get collected at the bottom?
  • oddballoddball
    I get some hair on the floor now and then, but like i said i put a blanket over the seats and just wash or vacuum the blanket later. If you dont put some sort of cover over the seats their nails will scratch the leather.
  • rikumomrikumom
    We're in Northern California and have leather seats in our wagons and agree the tinted windows really help protect the leather. Like @oddball, we use a blanket/towel/dog pad on the seats though sometimes the pad will slide around with the puppy on it during a turn, so she tends to migrate over to the leather side to stay cool. Another reason I like leather seats is that the older shiba gets car sick easily and used to throw up in the car. Leather is just easier to clean up.

    Regardless of seating surface, dog hair tends to collect at the foot well and trims... we use lint rollers, vacuum or a wet wipe to clean it up periodically.
  • shibamistressshibamistress
    Leather seats! It's my goal for my next car! I have cloth seats in my Subaru, and I will NEVER get the dog hair out. It's woven in there now! But leather seats are much easier to clean.

    I have a leather sofa and love it. So much easier to clean up!
  • rikumomrikumom
    Btw, just ordered a Kurgo bench cover.
    http://www.kurgostore.com/dog-travel/kurgo-bench-seat-cover/

    They gave me a 30% off refer a friend link:
    http://kurgostore.refr.cc/CDCP4JG
  • LosechLosech
    Eww I hate leather seats! i dunno why, I just can't stand them. I love leather everything else though, so it really confuses me.
    I use seat covers and cruddy old blankets to make the dog hair manageable. I shake/beat it when it gets furry enough, then rinse it with the hose, dry, and put back in the Jeep. Works fine for me, but I'm not real picky about the hair.
  • Myabee09Myabee09
    I have cloth with seat covers, but if I had the money I would go with leather.
  • PoetikDragonPoetikDragon
    edited July 2013
    I hate leather, and I know why. I don't like having my ass, thighs, legs, back, arms, etc glued to burning hot cow-flesh with my own sweat. Also it makes the car stink.
  • rafatturirafatturi
    I have leather seats in my mazda 3 and while it looks nice keep in mind that if you don't already have the windows tinted you will want to. The sun beating in on your seats will cause them to crack and fade faster even when you moisturize the seats plus they get really hot when they have been sitting in the sun ( to poeticdragon's point.) If you keep your dogs nails trimmed then I wouldn't worry to much about them scratching them up but I would put a blanket down for them just incase you take a corner to fast and the dog(s) nails decide to try to grip on your new leather seats lol.
  • LosechLosech
    LOL @poeticdragon I believe that might be my issue with it as well!
  • Myabee09Myabee09
    Lol, I understand! My husband has leather in his truck, but the seats are cooled as well as heated so I had forgotten about the leather getting so hot it melts your skin off!
  • *JackBurton**JackBurton*
    Yup vented seats make leather awesome. We have cloth in our work trucks. I'm scared to sit on them because if how dirty they are.

  • cdenneycdenney
    i have leather seats. worth it. Easy to wipe hair and dog vomit off of, you cant get that off of upholstery.
  • shibamistressshibamistress
    edited July 2013
    Huh. I dunno. I live in NM. It's hot in the summer. I haven't noticed, though, that my friend's car (leather seats) is hotter than mine. When it's hot, it's hot. :) In NM in the summer, any car seats are going to be hot!
  • HeidiHeidi
    edited July 2013
    My sister has leather seats in her car, and no dog, but two kids who are way rougher on them than any dog would be and she doesn't take care of the seats at all. Like, seriously, it's totally trashed in there. But then, she cleans it and it's like nothing ever happened.

    I have issues with sitting on hot leather, but the ease of cleaning is awfully tempting. My cloth car seats require heavy duty vacuuming and shampooing to be even passable.

    However, my decision with my next car is to fit it top to bottom with seat covers. Front, back, floors, console, and everything. Waterproof, machine-washable covers. Cabela's has a cover for every part of the interior of your car, either in a generic on-size-fits-all, or custom fit for certain models. Hunters have dirty boots and dirty dogs and love their trucks, after all!
  • WrylyBrindleWrylyBrindle
    I have the Cabela's covers on the front seats in my car- so I second Heidi on that- and I just throw blankets in the back. I used to have a hammock I really liked, but by the time it broke down they didnt make it anymore and I stopped driving dogs around as much, I didnt replace it. Its not hot enough here often enough for me to complain about hot seats.
  • _Ryan__Ryan_
    I hate leather, and I know why. I don't like having my ass, thighs, legs, back, arms, etc glued to burning hot cow-flesh with my own sweat. Also it makes the car stink.
    Get better aircon and leather care products. I have driven a black car with leather, daily, in 43-45deg C heat.

    Leather is great, just watch out for scratches if their nails get a bit rough.(or in my case, you can't cut them :/ )

    Baby wipes get most of the crap off, treat the leather every 3months. easy.
  • jellyfishjellyfish
    I live in Texas. Its hot a fuck, to put it bluntly. My leather does fine. The leather is easy to clean. I keep Toki's claws trimmed.

    So, i recommend leather :)


    You can always get a seat cover! But they can be a pain if you don't have a garage and people wanna sit in your backseat.

  • HeidiHeidi
    You can always get a seat cover! But they can be a pain if you don't have a garage and people wanna sit in your backseat.

    What does having a garage or people wanting to sit in the backseat have to do with it? Just curious.
  • Myabee09Myabee09
    It gets HOT!!!!! The sun will beam down on the back seats and any exposed skin will be removed...
  • HeidiHeidi
    edited July 2013
    Yeah, but seat covers are cloth (most of them). Leather is what people don't want to sit on in the heat, so seat covers would make it better, not be a pain.

    Actually, leather + seat covers would pretty much be the best of both worlds. Sit on cloth, and your seats are still wipe-down, easy to clean. The seat covers can be thrown in the washer or, worst case scenario, replaced (cheaper than replacing seats or even having your car detailed). Oh yeah, I bet they would keep the dog's nails from scratching the leather, too.
  • ZinjaZinja
    This is a little gross, but what are your experiences with think about butt sweat? I'm in Florida and sometimes it can get quite toasty with the leather.

    @rafatturi, what are your thoughts with the Mazda 3? Was it the MazdaSpeed? I narrowed my choices down to a few Hot Hatches.

    @_Ryan_, why can't you cut the nails? If your pup is finicky with getting their nails cut, just have someone tap their head while someone else cuts the nails. Dogs can't concentrate in more than one thing at a time. They will be focused on the head taps.

    @shibamistress, you probably tried this, but have you had any success with a Dyson? I have tons of hair and floating hair in my current cloth car :(
  • rafatturirafatturi
    edited July 2013
    @ Zinja I don't currently own a speed 3 but I would stay way from the 04 to 06 years of the mazda since they tend to rust out quickly. My 05 mazda 3 hatch has lots of rust on the rockers, doors and fenders. Depending on what side of Florida you are on it could be a problem for you. Make sure you google rust issues if you decide to go with mazda. I'm told that the rust issue was just on those years but check for yourself since bodywork is expansive. As for cutting Akuma's nails I cut his nails all the time I was just saying that if you don't then the dogs will leave marks in the leather. BTW like any car if you are not running the ac you will get swamp ass all the time in the heat. Get the windows tinted and run the AC and you will be fine.
  • rikumomrikumom
    edited July 2013
    @zinja, I have a Dyson handheld, it barely pulls the hair out of the trunk and foot well upholstery. Lint roller works better.
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