Protect center console arm rest

Working on dog proofing my lovely new 2006 330xi. I'm most of the way through tailoring a cover for the rear seat so dog claws don't trash it and dirt is a bit easier to get out. The biggest concern now is the center console arm rest. Haven't been able to find any instructions or aftermarket items etc. to cover/protect it. Thinking of trying to make a sort of pillow case with a velcro back that can be slid over it and then closed at the back to hold it in place around the bracket arms, but it's a big project for a small thing so wondering if anyone else has any solutions.

For the record my dog is pretty small and doesn't chew things up or anything, just protecting against the daily dog grind.

Why don't you just restrict your dog to the backseat? If my dog got to the front, crashing the car would be the best scenario I could imagine.

She rides back there, she just likes to poke her nose between the seats from time to time. She refuses to ride in the front. Additionally unless I was to block off the back like a police car she would poke forward when I leave the car. I have so far been leaving the center console up to block her back there but when I get out she'll jump over it, and my junk in the center console is exposed etc. for a multitude of reasons the choices are put in a giant fence like the back of a station wagon to lock her in the back seat, making the back seat un-usable for anything else and being hideous, or just covering the center armrest with something.

Get a dog hammock. Easy to put in and take out, easy to clean. BMW used to sell one.

I was looking into that, the BMW one was about $350 when I tracked it down... there are some that look OK online but they're about $40-$60 for a halfway decent one and color choices are usually poor... tailored a blanket into a back seat cover for $10 with a pair of scissors and twine (to be replaced with a bungie once I get around to it) which you can't see. Easily removable, or just fold the back down to cover the dirt for short hauls, and it's machine washable (the seat base being removable so easily REALLY helps for that). I'm really impressed with how it all goes together so far. Everything just snaps into place, but it still fits perfectly so no rattles etc. love love love the car

On second searching, found the hammock pictured on sale for $18 in black and apparently it has side returns when in place for a little extra moisture collection which is always nice. We'll see if it does the trick or a center cover is still worth the time to make.

Originally Posted by ima747

Working on dog proofing my lovely new 2006 330xi. I'm most of the way through tailoring a cover for the rear seat so dog claws don't trash it and dirt is a bit easier to get out. The biggest concern now is the center console arm rest. Haven't been able to find any instructions or aftermarket items etc. to cover/protect it. Thinking of trying to make a sort of pillow case with a velcro back that can be slid over it and then closed at the back to hold it in place around the bracket arms, but it's a big project for a small thing so wondering if anyone else has any solutions.

For the record my dog is pretty small and doesn't chew things up or anything, just protecting against the daily dog grind.

My 80 year old dad (who never goes anywhere without his dog) made his out of a bathroom rug with the rubber side up and it works perfectly. It gives the dogs paws a good grip and the carpet side protects the leather.

Originally Posted by usaret

My 80 year old dad (who never goes anywhere without his dog) made his out of a bathroom rug with the rubber side up and it works perfectly. It gives the dogs paws a good grip and the carpet side protects the leather.

How does he keep the carpet side from sliding around? That's the rub with my more minimal designs

Originally Posted by ima747

How does he keep the carpet side from sliding around? That's the rub with my more minimal designs

His isn't really that minimalistic of a design. It's basically a hemmed in box that slides down over the armrest. He cuts it to size and sews the corners up with heavy waxed thread and a big needle. His dog stands with his back feet on the back seat and his fronts on the armrest. His claws were destroying the armrest and he was always slipping under hard braking.

Dog configuration is the same in my case. My dad did similar in his truck actually, but took advantage of the contours of his center console to mount the footing firmly and used some material that's sort of like a door mat. My plans are a little more human friendly (the arm rest is actually really comfy in the bimmer, don't want to give it all over to the dog...) and less visible. Hammock should arrive tomorrow, that will either pass or fail as a permanent solution (may be partial even if it doesn't fully solve the issue) and then I'll get cracking on something. Thanks for the feedback, always nice to know you're not *that* crazy... or at least that other people are too

A few other small accessories I'd recommend:

The ashtray area is perfect for parking a cell phone on top of so I got a little piece of black hobby foam, cut it to the shape of the frame of the ash tray/cigarette lighter and stuck it down with archival dots. It's invisible, the lid still closes, and you can put a cell phone across the top without scratching either the phone or the plastic. Can be pealed off with no residue if desired and doesn't block the lighter or ash tray (though I wouldn't put something smoldering near the foam...) so whatever junk one chooses to collect in there it's still accessible. Most phones will do navigation in landscape so it's a pretty decent spot for GPS.

Also just hooked up a griffin bluetrip in the center console which fits pretty darn snug (the power plug is almost flush) with minimal wire clutter (the phono cable just loops out of the power and into the aux, didn't even bother untying it though a 2" or 3" one would be better for less bulk) for A2DP. Highly recommend. Auto reconnects when the car starts and you can set your phone to use the bluetooth in the car for phone (ignoring the phone part of the bluetrip since it's in the console and won't hear you) and just use it for music/nav.