Which car -- fold flat seating edition

Seeking out the collective for some assistance here. Missus orphancars has a 2011 VW JSW-tdi that just might get turned in for the full value if she can find something comparable. The main thing she is looking for is a new vehicle that has a fold-flat rear floor in the back. Vehicle can be a wagon or some sort of SUV type thing.....no minivan.

Again -- no to the minivan

And the floor has to fold flat. Been to look at a few things so far (like the Golf sportwagen) and flat means flat, like zero degrees of angle when the back seat is folded down. Not 10 degrees, not 5, zero. This is apparently a concept that is difficult for a sales-dude to understand, but I don't wanna open up that can of worms here. Need the flatness because she uses the car for transporting anywhere from 1-4 of our dogs on trips. The angle makes them roll around a bit

Also has to be a new vehicle.

aaaaaaand go!

I can check the flatness of our 2014 Grand Cherokee. It's close to flat but can't call it really flat without checking... It's gotta be close...

thanks Ross -- actually that's on my short list of things to look at -- haven't seen one up close yet and the jeep website isn't helping much.

Apparantly the dogs aren't used to standing on anything other than flat terrain? also the car apparently never moves while the dogs are in it?

Time to go hit the local CarMax and check some stuff out.

Have I mentioned that I bought a new Tacoma enough yet?

Stefan (Not Bruce) wrote: Apparantly the dogs aren't used to standing on anything other than flat terrain? also the car apparently never moves while the dogs are in it? Time to go hit the local CarMax and check some stuff out.

Actually dogs like to lay on a flat surface. They are usually close to the front of the vehicle rather than the rear. Starts and stops as well as turns with them on an incline causes them to unintentionally roam about the cabin.

and -1 on the CarMax for now -- don't want to deal with pesky sales staff at this point in the game. Would rather consult the hive mind here that is usually pretty helpful and can respond to questions with direct experience and knowledge. Don't need someone telling me what I really need -- just answer what I'm putting out there.

Huckleberry wrote: Have I mentioned that I bought a new Tacoma enough yet?

I'm not sure..................

I did forget to add in my OP -- missus orphancars doesn't want a P/U.

Have you checked a minivan? I can fit a 4x8 flat.

OK ok, many can. I think the PT Cruiser can.

Carmax is the right place for this, just try and see. I am not even sure there is a metric for that anywhere.

Scoop up a deal on a leftover Panamera? (A price cap would be nice.)

As far as sales staff go, the Carmax folks are the best by far. No pressure, not even all that much in the way of followup. One call, maybe two.

Back to the question - IIRC the Honda Fit should do what you need, as long as the total area is big enough.

In reply to szeis4cookie:

Beat me to saying Honda Fit. A completely flat floor and a low entry height makes it perfect for dogs.

thanks for the advice on the Fit

And price cap of under $50k. New, not used.

Sorry, but this post is reading something like this:
I need a vehicle where one very specific feature needs to meet my very specific criteria. I understand that there are two types of vehicle out there that meet my very specific need, but I am biased against them and will not consider them. Nor will I visit a vehicle lot that will allow me to view hundreds of different vehicles so that I can see if any other vehicles meet my criteria. I would rather you all give me ideas so that I may disqualify them one at a time.
I won't even mention that I've never known a dog that cares about this, or that the g-forces that result from braking, accelerating, and cornering are much more than the slight incline from a folded back seat. And those forces vary constantly during the drive.

So, dogs lick their own butts, readily eat cat E36 M3, drink from dirty puddles and live in the wild but yours can't deal with a 3 degree inclined surface?

Btw, my dog rides on the passenger seat, the two rear seats and even the third row. None even close to being flat. The only place she doesn't like is the perfectly flat cargo section (Yukon XL).

In reply to ebonyandivory:

He said 1-4 dogs fit in the JSW, maybe they're chihuahuas or some other small breed that don't really stay planted in the back of a vehicle on an incline?

DrBoost wrote: Sorry, but this post is reading something like this: I need a vehicle where one very specific feature needs to meet my very specific criteria. I understand that there are two types of vehicle out there that meet my very specific need, but I am biased against them and will not consider them. Nor will I visit a vehicle lot that will allow me to view hundreds of different vehicles so that I can see if any other vehicles meet my criteria. I would rather you all give me ideas so that I may disqualify them one at a time. I won't even mention that I've never known a dog that cares about this, or that the g-forces that result from braking, accelerating, and cornering are much more than the slight incline from a folded back seat. And those forces vary constantly during the drive.

Yeah -- you got it and I'm not sorry in the least!!!

The simple fact is this: original post I put out there was pretty upfront in what I was looking for: wagon or SUV type thing that has seats that fold flat. If you know of something great, I'd love to hear if I'd overlooked anything. The signal to noise ratio at this point is poor -- I got two good suggestions (Honda Fit and Jeep Cherokee, thanks, BTW) and some noise telling me how I'm doing it wrong(tm).

In reply to G_Body_Man:

There's dozens of vehicles with seats that fold "flat". Dozens. But the OP is basing his decision of what vehicle he's going to spend up to $50,000 on, that he or his wife has to drive for thousands of miles on a few degrees of incline on a folding seat?

Ok.

ebonyandivory wrote: In reply to G_Body_Man: There's dozens of vehicles with seats that fold "flat". Dozens. But the OP is basing his decision of what vehicle he's going to spend up to $50,000 on, that he or his wife has to drive for thousands of miles on a few degrees of incline on a folding seat? Ok.

Yeah -- that's about it -- tell me why that's such a problem for you......why do you care so much about what I buy and what my criteria are????

I'll add the Scion xB to my list of suggestions. I think Jerry posted photographic proof of a flat cargo area in another thread somewhere around here, not sure about the second generation xB.

orphancars wrote:

ebonyandivory wrote: In reply to G_Body_Man: There's dozens of vehicles with seats that fold "flat". Dozens. But the OP is basing his decision of what vehicle he's going to spend up to $50,000 on, that he or his wife has to drive for thousands of miles on a few degrees of incline on a folding seat? Ok.

Yeah -- that's about it -- tell me why that's such a problem for you......why do you care so much about what I buy and what my criteria are????

I guess I was just bored and had nothing to do for a few minutes.

After all, it's your $50,000. Too bad dogs can't talk, you could just ask him what he thinks then shoot down all his answers.

I'm just having fun but I'll leave you alone. I gotta ask my cat what color tile she wants in the kitchen.

ebonyandivory wrote:

orphancars wrote:

ebonyandivory wrote: In reply to G_Body_Man: There's dozens of vehicles with seats that fold "flat". Dozens. But the OP is basing his decision of what vehicle he's going to spend up to $50,000 on, that he or his wife has to drive for thousands of miles on a few degrees of incline on a folding seat? Ok.

Yeah -- that's about it -- tell me why that's such a problem for you......why do you care so much about what I buy and what my criteria are????

I guess I was just bored and had nothing to do for a few minutes. After all, it's your $50,000. Too bad dogs can't talk, you could just ask him what he thinks then shoot down all his answers. I'm just having fun but I'll leave you alone. I gotta ask my cat what color tile she wants in the kitchen.

So admittedly you're bored and have nothing better to do and the best you can do is just pop into a thread and E36 M3 in it? No value to provide and you're not even providing humor? GTFO.

The two best options have been eliminated from the get go, minivan and truck with a cap. Cargo Van maybe, so it can haul all kinds of stuff and be customized to your/her/their liking?

My 99 Forester folded flat enough to sleep on. I'm not sure what the new ones are like, but could that be an option. Heck, in the tone of ScoobieDoos, what are the seats like in WRX wagons? Could be a nice compromise between fun and function.

In reply to orphancars:

My son laughed at the cat picking out our tile. That's good enough for me!

Talk soon!

In reply to RevRico:

Now that's the type of help I was looking for Had totally forgot about the Forester -- will put them on the list and do a little research!

orphancars wrote: Don't need someone telling me what I really need -- just answer what I'm putting out there.

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