Elastic tufted fabric including nonwoven fibrous substrate

In a tufted pile nonwoven fabric having a nonwoven fibrous substrate, yarns tufted through the substrate and an elastomeric backing adhered to the substrate, the substrate having a top face, a back face, a longitudinal direction, and a transverse direction, the yarns forming pile tufts that protrude from the top face of the substrate and tufted yarn bases that penetrate and re-enter the back face of the substrate, wherein the improvement comprises:

• the nonwoven fibrous substrate comprising substantially nonbonded staple fibers or nonbonded continuous filaments of about decitex 1 to 22 and the tufted-and-backed pile fabric having an elastic stretch of at least 10% in the longitudinal and/or transverse direction of the fabric and a grab strength in the longitudinal and transverse directions of at least 134 Newtons.