Get the Best Child Car Seat Fit in Family Sedans

We compare ease of installation in 10 different cars

Published: May 2014

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You're shopping for a family sedan. You want it to be safe, good-looking, and fun to drive. But if you have kids, there's another important consideration: How well does the car accommodate a child safety seat?

Fact is, your love for your new wheels will quickly fade if securely installing a child safety seat turns out to be a struggle. So once you've browsed your family sedan options, read on to see how they stack up when it comes to car-seat fit.

To develop this report, engineers at the Consumer Reports Auto Test Center—who are also certified child passenger safety technicians—sized up the backseats of each vehicle to see how well car seats fit.

Our experts found that most family sedans accommodate child safety seats very well, even better than many SUVs, for example. But family sedans are not perfect—there are some common secure-fit problems. Before getting into assessments for specific cars, here's some information about how safety seats fit in family sedans in general:

Family sedans provide top-tether anchors for each rear seat on the rear parcel shelf. In most cases, the anchors are easy to access. Top tethers should be used for all forward-facing installations.
Most vehicles do not provide LATCH (Lower Anchors and Tethers for Children) anchor points in the center-rear seating position.
Although LATCH installation may be more secure than installation with safety belts, LATCH is not intended to accommodate children after they weigh between 40 and 48 pounds. (The vehicle and the safety seat each have weight limits set by their manufacturers. Follow the lower of the two limits.) Once children reach that weight, only a safety-belt installation is allowed.
Most new vehicle models have an occupant-sensing system in the front-passenger seat that is designed to protect kids and small adults from a deploying air bag. For overall safety, however, children under 13 should always ride in the rear seats.
Be aware that not all child safety seats and vehicle seats are compatible; there will be some combinations that just do not fit together very well. If you have difficulty securely installing a safety seat or are uncertain at any step of installation, use the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's child safety-seat inspection station locator to find a local child passenger safety technician who can help you secure your child safety seat. To find a child safety seat that's more likely to fit a new vehicle (a factor we take into consideration in our evaluations), check Consumer Reports' child car seat Ratings of infant, convertible, all-in-one, and booster seats (available to subscribers).

Child car seat fit, by vehicle

Here's an alphabetical list of the family sedans we tested, with a description of how well each accommodated child safety seats. All are based on model-year 2014 vehicles. Check the models pages for each vehicle to find out how well each performed in our road tests, reliability survey, and safety ratings.

Chevrolet Malibu

Both rear- and forward-facing child seats can be securely installed in the rear-passenger positions of the Malibu. Lower LATCH anchors on the rear seat allow for LATCH installation in any rear seating position including the center, which is the safest position. However, all three seats can't use LATCH at the same time because some of the anchors are shared. Also, lower LATCH anchors are positioned close to the surrounding cushions, which can make it difficult to attach and detach LATCH connectors.

The two rear outboard seats have comfort guides on the safety belts, which better position the shoulder portion of the belts for small adults or for kids who have outgrown their booster seat.

Ford Fusion

Most forward- and rear-facing child seats should prove secure using belts alone in the Fusion. However, LATCH anchors for the outboard seats are very difficult to access. The parcel shelf provides three top-tether anchors.

Honda Accord

Any type of safety seat can be tightly and securely installed in the Accord's backseat using the LATCH system. However, the LATCH anchors are recessed behind the seat cushion, making them tough to get to. Also, it may be difficult to achieve a tight fit with a rear-facing infant or convertible seat because the car's rear safety belts are anchored far forward of the seatback, preventing the safety seat from being pulled securely back.

Forward-facing seats installed using the safety belt were secure. However, with both LATCH and vehicle-belt installations, you may need to remove the car's head restraints to allow the safety seat to sit flush against the seatback.

Hyundai Sonata

Forward-facing seats can be securely installed in all rear-seat positions. However, it may be difficult to secure some rear-facing infant-seat bases in the outboard rear seats of the Sonata using the safety belts. That is because the belts are anchored far forward of the seatback, preventing the safety seat from being pulled securely back.

Rear-facing seats can be securely installed in the rear-center position using the car's safety belts. And though you can get a secure installation with the LATCH anchors on the rear outboard seats, those anchors can be tough to get to because they are recessed close to the very firm seatback.

Kia Optima

It's tough to securely install some rear-facing infant seats in the rear outboard seats using the Optima's safety belts. That is because the outboard anchors for the belt are anchored far forward of the seatback, preventing the child seat from being pulled securely back. LATCH installation provides an easy and more secure fit. Both forward- and rear-facing seats should be secure in the rear-center seat.

Mazda6

Forward- and rear-facing child restraints should prove secure in the Mazda6 when installed with safety belts. Outboard rear LATCH anchors are recessed and awkward to access. The Mazda6 does allow center LATCH installation using the inboard anchors from the outboard seats, provided the child restraint design also allows it. There are three top-tether anchors that are easily accessible on the parcel shelf under plastic covers.

Nissan Altima

Both rear- and forward-facing child seats should prove secure in the Altima, but LATCH installation can be difficult because the lower anchors are recessed and awkward to access. There are no LATCH anchors for the backseat's middle position. Child safety-seat installation with vehicle belts works well in all backseat locations.

The top-tether anchors on the rear parcel shelf are easy to access, but it may be difficult to fully tighten the tether strap because it must be routed over the integrated rear head restraints. (Some other cars have removable head restraints.)

Subaru Legacy

Although there are three top-tether anchors, the owner's manual for the Legacy cautions that installation of safety seats in the rear-center seat is not recommended due to the projection of the seat cushion.

Both rear-facing infant seats and forward-facing seats can be securely installed in the Legacy's rear outboard positions with either LATCH or the vehicle's safety belt. Head restraints may need to be removed for some safety seats to sit flush against the seatback. The lower LATCH anchors, found in pockets at the rear of the seat cushion, are easier to access in the Legacy than in many other family sedans.

Toyota Camry

Both rear- and forward-facing child safety seats can be securely installed in the Camry. There are lower LATCH anchors in the rear outboard seats. Lower LATCH anchors are recessed, but they are easy enough to access because the seatback is soft.

Volkswagen Passat

Both rear- and forward-facing child safety seats can be securely installed in the Passat's outboard rear-passenger seats. Rear-facing seats can be securely installed in the rear-center seat, but the head restraint in that position may prevent taller forward-facing seats from sitting flush against the seatback. Fortunately, the head restraint can be removed, although it requires a tool.