For many dog owners, making sure Fido fits in the car is one of the key considerations when making a vehicle purchase.

Yet many car shoppers don't bring Fido along to the dealership for a test drive. To help with that, car shopping site Autotrader released its ninth annual list of the Best Cars for Dog Lovers on Tuesday, just in time for National Dog Day on Friday. Two of the Detroit Three automakers made the list.

"Some owners bring dogs to dealerships and some don’t. They should be doing that," said Brian Moody, executive editor for Autotrader. "They’re not doing you a favor by selling you a $40,000 thing. It’s your decision to make, so you should take your stuff down there, whether it’s a child safety seat or a dog. Make sure it works for you.”

According to the American Veterinary Medical Association, 38% of U.S. households include at least one dog. The Association puts the number of pet dogs in the U.S. at about 77 million.

A recent Autotrader survey found that more than 85% of dog owners think about driving places with their dog when they are buying a car and two-thirds of dog owners take their dog on a car trip at least once a week. The survey, conducted earlier this summer, quizzed 600 dog owners, Moody said.

Autotrader's 2022 Best Cars for Dog Lovers takes into account the dog-friendly factors that give dog owners the best vehicle options.

“All the vehicles on this list have some form of pet-friendly accessory available," Moody told the Free Press. "We also looked at cars that are just good cars. Every car on it gets a 3.5 or higher score on our five point scale for vehicles."

Here are Autotrader's 2022 Best Cars for Dog Lovers in alphabetical order:

• 2022 Chrysler Pacifica

• 2022 Ford Bronco Sport

• 2022 Hyundai Santa Fe

• 2022 Jeep Wrangler

• 2022 Kia Soul

• 2022 Ram ProMaster City Wagon

• 2022 Subaru Outback

• 2022 Tesla Model 3

• 2022 Toyota Sienna

• 2022 Volvo XC60

To select the top cars for dog owners, Autotrader experts started with vehicles that offer an abundance of pet-friendly features and accessories, Moody said. For example, they looked for a low floor for easy entrance, rear heating and air conditioning vents to keep the animal comfortable and accessories such as soft crates and harnesses to keep the dogs safe.

"Pretty much every year there’s a Volvo and Subaru on the list because they have amazing pet-friendly accessories from water bowls, built-in crates, seat covers for the backseat, there is a clip and harness system that fits into the seat belt system of the car," Moody said.

But Subaru goes beyond just having full accessories, he said.

“It’s part of their company culture that even their dealerships are associated with local shelters to help with adoption," Moody said.

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Some of the brands on the list might not offer all of those products, but they are sporty so they fit the lifestyle of most dog owners. The Jeep Wrangler and Ford Bronco Sport, for example, do not have low-entry for dogs, but they do offer soft crates for the rear area and other aftermarket accessories to take Rover off-roading, Moody said.

Autotrader also looked at price so the list would include a wide range of affordability. The Bronco Sport, for example, is one of the more affordable options starting at $28,815. Kia Soul made the list because it offers a low cargo floor and starts at $19,790.

The Tesla Model 3, which starts at $46,990, has "dog mode," which is a climate control feature. A driver can leave their pet in the car and the cabin remains cool or warm depending on the appropriate setting. The center console screen displays a message alerting bystanders that the owner knows the pet is in the car and the environment is temperature controlled.

No General Motors cars made the list and Moody said there was no specific reason why other than, "in doing research, a lot of these particular companies have gone above and beyond in manufacturer accessories and aftermarket accessories for pets.”

Also not on the list are any pickups. Moody said people ask him about it because they envision a dog riding in the bed of a pickup in the country.

"Well, that’s not really the safest for dogs. Dogs can be thrown from the bed of the truck," Moody said. "Also jumping up and down to get in and out of the pickup bed is hard on their joints and hips.”

He said in the past readers were also surprised to learn that you should harness your dog in the car. Most harnesses, which can be bought at pet stores, cost $30 to $40 and attach to the seat belts.

For more information from Autotrader on the 2022 Best Cars for Dog Lovers list, including details on which dog-friendly features helped each model secure a spot on this year's list, and to enter for a chance to win a limited-edition matching BFF charm set, go to Dogtrader.com.

Contact Jamie L. LaReau: jlareau@freepress.com. Follow her on Twitter @jlareauan. Read more on General Motors and sign up for our autos newsletter. Become a subscriber.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Best cars for dog lovers 2022: Autotrader Detroit 3 vehicles