The i3 is not only a blast to drive, I think it gives the Chevy a run for its money. First, it has 114 mile electric range, and an additional 70 mile gas range (in the range extender version) by firing up a small 2 cylinder generator. So, you essentially have an infinite range as long as you're within 70 miles of a gas station.
Also, it's a BMW, and drives like a premium car. Expect great handling, and great performance. It's BMW's fastest production car from 0-42 mph, beating out even all of the M cars, so that tells you a little bit about how zippy it is.
Even though the engine in the i3 REx and the Volt don't get used as much as the engine in a Prius, it still adds a lot of failure points and a lot of additional maintenance that pure EVs don't have.
Tire sizes: Front: P155/70R19, rear: P175/60R19
It's very fast off the line a well - it is BMW's fastest production vehicle from 0-42 mph, beating even the M class cars, so that tells you how "snappy" it is.
I would test drive one; you'll be impressed.
And you're complaining about damage from dogs? How do you think cloth seats are going to fare with dogs? Most people who have nice cars and dogs end up getting some kind of fancy seat covers or other dog-specific solution, as far as I can tell, so their seats don't get ruined.
Cloth holds up much better to having drinks spilled on it than leather. The leather could potentially be permanently damaged if you don't clean it up quickly. Most cloth seats will just need paper towels. If you really don't clean it up for a long time you can steam clean cloth seats, which you cannot do with leather.
I'm wondering if maybe you've never had real leather seats and are mistaking pleather or vinyl for leather? Vinyl seats will hold up pretty well to abuse, but they are awful to sit in.
My cloth seats hold up fine to my dogs. Typically cloth seats nowadays are a lot more resistant to scratching and tearing than leather seats are.
So in answer to your question the fire hazard of both is identical and many MANY vehicles with non-leather seats have seat warmers (including mine).