Guest guest Posted March 30, 2010 Report Share Posted March 30, 2010 We need to buy a new car, and the problem is that almost everything that we like has leather seats or at least a leather wrapped steering wheel. I'm not talking high-end luxury cars either. We are interested in hybrids, and my husband has been doing the preliminary research. I'm not sure of all the alternatives - some might be ok if you don't want to add anything, but my husband wants some of those added things, like satellite radio. Any upgrade involves leather in some way, and every dealer says there is no way to special order it without. We walked away from the Toyota hybrid last night (Camry, Corrolla?) because the dealer said they can only get the cars Toyota ships to the Atlantic region, and they all have leather steering wheels. You can ask for something else, but in his experience you won't get it. (The Prius would work, but I'm very short and even with my seat up all the way I had trouble seeing over all the stuff on the dash). Why this need to have leather in everything. I guess what is really bothering me here is that once again I have to be the person in the family who is no fun. I'm vegan, but the rest of the family is vegetarian. Even when I was vegetarian, however, I would not have wanted leather seats or steering wheel. My husband, however, does not care about that. His vegetarianism begins and ends with food, so he has no problems with leather shoes, belts, furniture, etc. He understands my position, but I know he finds it irritating and says things like, " if it weren't for the leather, we'd have so many more options. " Last night he asked whether I could overlook a leather wrapped steering wheel and just make a big donation to an animal rights charity. Karen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 30, 2010 Report Share Posted March 30, 2010 Karen, What a bummer! I hope you find something that suits you all soon. Last year we bought a Ford Escape and it does not have leather on it (at least that I'm aware of). But when it comes to veganism, it's about making a vegan choice when you have an option. For me, I would certainly not get leather seats, but if the only cars we liked had a leather wrapped stearing wheel I would probably still get it (providing that I couldn't find an alternative). Cars are not vegan, even if they do not have leather. There is animal fat used in the vulcanization process in creating the tires. At one time they used animals to crash-test the vehicles. Animal products are used in the glue that is holding many pieces of the interior together. The cement roads have animal products in them and were laid by men wearing leather boots and gloves. Cars kill animals on the roads every time we drive (large ones we see and small insect ones we don't always see). The exhaust from the car is damaging the planet, including other animals. etc., etc. I would still look around to see what you can find that has no leather. But if the only one thing you have to compromise on is a stearing wheel then you may have to do it, just because there are no other options. Or you can look at different cars. Here's an interesting article on this topic: http://www.pressaction.com/news/weblog/full_article/mickeyz08262004/ Best of luck! Jacqueline Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 31, 2010 Report Share Posted March 31, 2010 When you drive a new car off the lot, it immediately loses 15% (or so) of its value. Buying a 2 year old car every three years can save you $150,000, depending on the car; buying used is also more environmentally friendly. ________________________________ Karen Detling <kdetling Tue, March 30, 2010 9:59:11 AM Car frustration  We need to buy a new car, and the problem is that almost everything that we like has leather seats or at least a leather wrapped steering wheel. I'm not talking high-end luxury cars either. We are interested in hybrids, and my husband has been doing the preliminary research. I'm not sure of all the alternatives - some might be ok if you don't want to add anything, but my husband wants some of those added things, like satellite radio. Any upgrade involves leather in some way, and every dealer says there is no way to special order it without. We walked away from the Toyota hybrid last night (Camry, Corrolla?) because the dealer said they can only get the cars Toyota ships to the Atlantic region, and they all have leather steering wheels. You can ask for something else, but in his experience you won't get it. (The Prius would work, but I'm very short and even with my seat up all the way I had trouble seeing over all the stuff on the dash). Why this need to have leather in everything. I guess what is really bothering me here is that once again I have to be the person in the family who is no fun. I'm vegan, but the rest of the family is vegetarian. Even when I was vegetarian, however, I would not have wanted leather seats or steering wheel. My husband, however, does not care about that. His vegetarianism begins and ends with food, so he has no problems with leather shoes, belts, furniture, etc. He understands my position, but I know he finds it irritating and says things like, " if it weren't for the leather, we'd have so many more options. " Last night he asked whether I could overlook a leather wrapped steering wheel and just make a big donation to an animal rights charity. Karen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 31, 2010 Report Share Posted March 31, 2010 Hi Karen, I bought a new car from Vauxhall a few years ago and came across the same problem. The model that I wanted came with a leather steering wheel, even without any upgrades. My conversation with the salesman went something like this: Me: Can I order this model without the leather steering wheel? Salesman: No, they all come with it. Why don't you want leather? Me: Because I don't want to stroke a dead cow every time I get in my car. SM: Oh. (Silence while he tried to work out if I was serious) Me: I'm only interested in this model, if I can't get a new one then do you have a secondhand one with no leather? SM: Is that the only thing that would stop you from buying a new one? Me: Yes. SM: Let me speak to my manager..... He came back 5 minutes later to say that they would be happy to swap the steering wheel with a non-leather one from a different model. I got the feeling that he wasn't going to miss out on a £12,000 sale just because the customer was a bit crazy :-) Try as many dealers as you can, if you're spending a lot of money on a new car you should be happy with it. I'm sure you can find someone who really wants to make a sale and will do their best to find a suitable car for you. Good luck! Helen. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 31, 2010 Report Share Posted March 31, 2010 You may be right, but that is not what my husband wants to do. Plus, this replaces the car we have been driving since 1992, so we certainly get our use out of them. He called a different Ford dealer and found one that says they can, in fact, switch steering wheels. We'll see if that actually works out, and I have to drive the car. - " robin koloms " <rkoloms Tuesday, March 30, 2010 10:12:30 PM GMT -05:00 US/Canada Eastern Re: Car frustration  When you drive a new car off the lot, it immediately loses 15% (or so) of its value. Buying a 2 year old car every three years can save you $150,000, depending on the car; buying used is also more environmentally friendly. ________________________________ Karen Detling < kdetling > Tue, March 30, 2010 9:59:11 AM Car frustration  We need to buy a new car, and the problem is that almost everything that we like has leather seats or at least a leather wrapped steering wheel. I'm not talking high-end luxury cars either. We are interested in hybrids, and my husband has been doing the preliminary research. I'm not sure of all the alternatives - some might be ok if you don't want to add anything, but my husband wants some of those added things, like satellite radio. Any upgrade involves leather in some way, and every dealer says there is no way to special order it without. We walked away from the Toyota hybrid last night (Camry, Corrolla?) because the dealer said they can only get the cars Toyota ships to the Atlantic region, and they all have leather steering wheels. You can ask for something else, but in his experience you won't get it. (The Prius would work, but I'm very short and even with my seat up all the way I had trouble seeing over all the stuff on the dash). Why this need to have leather in everything. I guess what is really bothering me here is that once again I have to be the person in the family who is no fun. I'm vegan, but the rest of the family is vegetarian. Even when I was vegetarian, however, I would not have wanted leather seats or steering wheel. My husband, however, does not care about that. His vegetarianism begins and ends with food, so he has no problems with leather shoes, belts, furniture, etc. He understands my position, but I know he finds it irritating and says things like, " if it weren't for the leather, we'd have so many more options. " Last night he asked whether I could overlook a leather wrapped steering wheel and just make a big donation to an animal rights charity. Karen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 31, 2010 Report Share Posted March 31, 2010 I confronted the leather-wrapped steering issue in buying our Hybrid Mariner last year. We wanted certain upgrades and the package included a leather-wrapped steering wheel. Ford didn't make it practical to opt out of the leather part, ande frankly I was a little concerned that if we did skip the leather it would affect resale. I guess you have to pick your battles. I emailed a complaint to the car company but went ahead and got the package with the leather steering wheel. I am having the same problem buying furniture that contains down and feathers. There are some companies that allow you to special order without the animal feathers, but it's a time-consuming process and you can't return the piece if you don't like the results. I think it's a good idea to register your concerns with the company involved. I would be interested if anyone has better ideas on handling corporate inflexibility. Mary Chris , " Jacqueline Bodnar " <jb wrote: > > > Karen, > > What a bummer! I hope you find something that suits you all soon. > > Last year we bought a Ford Escape and it does not have leather on it (at > least that I'm aware of). But when it comes to veganism, it's about > making a vegan choice when you have an option. For me, I would certainly > not get leather seats, but if the only cars we liked had a leather > wrapped stearing wheel I would probably still get it (providing that I > couldn't find an alternative). > > Cars are not vegan, even if they do not have leather. There is animal > fat used in the vulcanization process in creating the tires. At one time > they used animals to crash-test the vehicles. Animal products are used > in the glue that is holding many pieces of the interior together. The > cement roads have animal products in them and were laid by men wearing > leather boots and gloves. Cars kill animals on the roads every time we > drive (large ones we see and small insect ones we don't always see). The > exhaust from the car is damaging the planet, including other animals. > etc., etc. > > I would still look around to see what you can find that has no leather. > But if the only one thing you have to compromise on is a stearing wheel > then you may have to do it, just because there are no other options. Or > you can look at different cars. > > Here's an interesting article on this topic: > http://www.pressaction.com/news/weblog/full_article/mickeyz08262004/ > > Best of luck! > Jacqueline > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 31, 2010 Report Share Posted March 31, 2010 I have the same issue with down in furniture. Although the ethics of it is a big concern, I also have a huge bird phobia, and sitting on a cushion of feathers just creeps me out. It's the first thing I check in a hotel - what's in the pillows. A couple of years ago we ordered a sofa and loveseat from Arhaus and stipulated no down. We got a confirmation about that. They arrived a couple of months later and we were loving them. Then, I started to find feathers. I had to take one of the slipcovers off to wash it, and there were more feathers. I looked and could clearly see feathers between the cushion covers and the cushions. I could not sit on that furniture, plus I was really angry that they had not complied with our request. My husband called them and they replaced all the cushions. He, however, prefers the down for comfort, so the loveseat has down and the sofa does not so I have some place to sit. Same thing with some other furniture we ordered several years ago. Two chairs and an ottoman. We orderd them with no down, and what do I see recently sticking out of the ottoman?? A feather! The chairs seem ok. That company is out of business, so we have no recourse. Karen - " Mary Chris " <mcjrunner Wednesday, March 31, 2010 10:05:29 AM GMT -05:00 US/Canada Eastern Re: Car frustration  I confronted the leather-wrapped steering issue in buying our Hybrid Mariner last year. We wanted certain upgrades and the package included a leather-wrapped steering wheel. Ford didn't make it practical to opt out of the leather part, ande frankly I was a little concerned that if we did skip the leather it would affect resale. I guess you have to pick your battles. I emailed a complaint to the car company but went ahead and got the package with the leather steering wheel. I am having the same problem buying furniture that contains down and feathers. There are some companies that allow you to special order without the animal feathers, but it's a time-consuming process and you can't return the piece if you don't like the results. I think it's a good idea to register your concerns with the company involved. I would be interested if anyone has better ideas on handling corporate inflexibility. Mary Chris , " Jacqueline Bodnar " <jb wrote: > > > Karen, > > What a bummer! I hope you find something that suits you all soon. > > Last year we bought a Ford Escape and it does not have leather on it (at > least that I'm aware of). But when it comes to veganism, it's about > making a vegan choice when you have an option. For me, I would certainly > not get leather seats, but if the only cars we liked had a leather > wrapped stearing wheel I would probably still get it (providing that I > couldn't find an alternative). > > Cars are not vegan, even if they do not have leather. There is animal > fat used in the vulcanization process in creating the tires. At one time > they used animals to crash-test the vehicles. Animal products are used > in the glue that is holding many pieces of the interior together. The > cement roads have animal products in them and were laid by men wearing > leather boots and gloves. Cars kill animals on the roads every time we > drive (large ones we see and small insect ones we don't always see). The > exhaust from the car is damaging the planet, including other animals. > etc., etc. > > I would still look around to see what you can find that has no leather. > But if the only one thing you have to compromise on is a stearing wheel > then you may have to do it, just because there are no other options. Or > you can look at different cars. > > Here's an interesting article on this topic: > http://www.pressaction.com/news/weblog/full_article/mickeyz08262004/ > > Best of luck! > Jacqueline > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 31, 2010 Report Share Posted March 31, 2010 Hi Karen, We've had cars sent from other states that had no leather seats/steering cover . it meant we waited longer, but we were able to order it and get it. I don't know why that isn't possible . you'd think they'd want to make the sale, and if you can customize other things, why not this? We had a problem when we bought our Prius that to get the upgraded GPS and everything, it always came with leather seats - until we ordered it from a couple states away. You could try using a car broker - that is soooooo convenient! You don't pay them anything, the dealer pays them for the business, and they shop around for you and find all the specs you want - color, custom things, whatever. Good luck! Lorraine On Behalf Of Karen Detling Tuesday, March 30, 2010 7:59 AM Car frustration We need to buy a new car, and the problem is that almost everything that we like has leather seats or at least a leather wrapped steering wheel. I'm not talking high-end luxury cars either. We are interested in hybrids, and my husband has been doing the preliminary research. I'm not sure of all the alternatives - some might be ok if you don't want to add anything, but my husband wants some of those added things, like satellite radio. Any upgrade involves leather in some way, and every dealer says there is no way to special order it without. We walked away from the Toyota hybrid last night (Camry, Corrolla?) because the dealer said they can only get the cars Toyota ships to the Atlantic region, and they all have leather steering wheels. You can ask for something else, but in his experience you won't get it. (The Prius would work, but I'm very short and even with my seat up all the way I had trouble seeing over all the stuff on the dash). Why this need to have leather in everything. I guess what is really bothering me here is that once again I have to be the person in the family who is no fun. I'm vegan, but the rest of the family is vegetarian. Even when I was vegetarian, however, I would not have wanted leather seats or steering wheel. My husband, however, does not care about that. His vegetarianism begins and ends with food, so he has no problems with leather shoes, belts, furniture, etc. He understands my position, but I know he finds it irritating and says things like, " if it weren't for the leather, we'd have so many more options. " Last night he asked whether I could overlook a leather wrapped steering wheel and just make a big donation to an animal rights charity. Karen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 31, 2010 Report Share Posted March 31, 2010 I understand your stand against the leather in the car, but unfortuately our society so numb to the use of animals in produts that it is hard to have much of a choice in anything. You may have to compromise in the steering wheel department for now. After you purchase the car, take it in and have a new, leather free steering wheel put on. You can find them all over the internet and I am sure in automotive parts stores. You can then either sell the offending steering wheel, throw it away, or donate it. That way, you get rid of it. I do understand not wanting to buy it all, but as you stated, the choices are not out there. Good luck and I hope this helps some. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 31, 2010 Report Share Posted March 31, 2010 I had no idea about down in furniture. Explains why my allergies bug me more in some places than other places. This is one reason I always try to bring my own pillow when I travel since I can't breathe in the morning when I have forgotten or couldn't bring my own pillow and the only option was a down pillow. I would think the leather option was more of an upgrade in cars. It doesn't solve it, but you can get other steering wheel covers so you don't have to look at or touch it if you can't get away from it. We will likely be facing the same as we are in need of a new-to-us car (new isn't an option for us). This is why I love this list. Missie On Mar 31, 2010 11:23 AM, <kdetling wrote: I have the same issue with down in furniture. Although the ethics of it is a big concern, I also have a huge bird phobia, and sitting on a cushion of feathers just creeps me out. It's the first thing I check in a hotel - what's in the pillows. A couple of years ago we ordered a sofa and loveseat from Arhaus and stipulated no down. We got a confirmation about that. They arrived a couple of months later and we were loving them. Then, I started to find feathers. I had to take one of the slipcovers off to wash it, and there were more feathers. I looked and could clearly see feathers between the cushion covers and the cushions. I could not sit on that furniture, plus I was really angry that they had not complied with our request. My husband called them and they replaced all the cushions. He, however, prefers the down for comfort, so the loveseat has down and the sofa does not so I have some place to sit. Same thing with some other furniture we ordered several years ago. Two chairs and an ottoman. We orderd them with no down, and what do I see recently sticking out of the ottoman?? A feather! The chairs seem ok. That company is out of business, so we have no recourse. Karen - " Mary Chris " <mcjrunner To: (AT) (DOT) ... Wednesday, March 31, 2010 10:05:29 AM GMT -05:00 US/Canada Eastern Re: ... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 31, 2010 Report Share Posted March 31, 2010 Thanks. We have found a dealer who thinks they can switch them for us. We'll have to see if that really happens. One problem with buying another steering wheel can be that electronic controls are built in. At least that is what we were told and why many dealers said they could not just swtich them. - " itshotinjt04 " <itshotinjt04 Wednesday, March 31, 2010 12:30:15 PM GMT -05:00 US/Canada Eastern Re: Car frustration  I understand your stand against the leather in the car, but unfortuately our society so numb to the use of animals in produts that it is hard to have much of a choice in anything. You may have to compromise in the steering wheel department for now. After you purchase the car, take it in and have a new, leather free steering wheel put on. You can find them all over the internet and I am sure in automotive parts stores. You can then either sell the offending steering wheel, throw it away, or donate it. That way, you get rid of it. I do understand not wanting to buy it all, but as you stated, the choices are not out there. Good luck and I hope this helps some. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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