I guess the thing with dogs is that they are sometimes/often a lot bigger than cats so cannot ride in a carrier. Also, people assume dogs are trainable so they will just sit there whereas cats are unpredictable... not saying i agree but that is the assumption.
Not entirely sure what the law is on dogs in cars in the UK but i do know most responsible dog owners have special crates in the boot for their dogs. Or their dogs are well trained to sit nicely on the backseat. It is actually not great for them to hang their heads out of car windows due to getting stuff in their eyes.
I guess with Safari he has never had to go in the carrier so he is not used to it. He has conditioned you to believe he is tormented in the carrier
so he got his own way, mommy wrapped around his little paw
Mine have behaved like that at some point and i just ignored it. Max cried all the way home when we collected him. That was 2 hours of Bengal tears... but i was determined and he doesn't do it now. I just pop the carrier on the floor and he climbs in. The only cat i have slight problems getting into a carrier is Lily but she is fine once in.
I would never advise people start out like this with a kitten because it will become more difficult to go back to using a carrier to transport them anywhere. Like you now with Safari.... my kittens do not leave here unless they have a carrier and i advise all the owners to ignore them if the cry, do not take them out. It doesn't really hurt them, they just make out it does so they get their own way....
Look into the harness, even for little trips as it is much safer. You wouldn't let an infant just sit in the car anywhere and not in a car seat (illegal in the UK for them not to be restrained at all). Even if he still sat on your lap but had his harness on and was attached to your seat belt. This should work:
http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.j ... Id=3951212 They have some funny booster seats for dogs! If you take Safari out on your own your could use one of these, like:
http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.j ... d=15821616