2015 Nissan Versa Note: Car Seat Check
Plentiful legroom is a hallmark of the five-seat Nissan Versa Note hatchback. With 38.3 inches of it in the backseat, this subcompact hatchback is anything but small on the inside. However, problems with Latch anchor access caused us to downgrade the 2015 Versa Note’s grades in this Car Seat Check. We tested the 2015 Versa Note SL with cloth seats.
How many car seats fit in the second row? Two
What We Like
- Once the floppy seat belt buckles were moved out of the way, it was easy to install our three child-safety seats — the forward-facing convertible and rear-facing infant and convertible.
- There’s lots of room for rear-facing car seats. We didn’t need to move the front passenger seat forward to accommodate the rear convertible or infant seat behind it.
- The high-back booster seat fit well and there was no need to remove the head restraints.
What We Don’t
- Access to the two sets of lower Latch anchors, which are found in the outboard seats, are blocked by seat belt buckles on floppy straps. Once they’re pushed out of the way, connecting to the anchors is easier.
- The three tether anchors are difficult to find. They’re buried in slits in the seatback upholstery. For many parents, tether anchors are often out of sight, out of mind.
- Floppy seat belt buckles are also a problem when installing the booster seat. They kept falling behind the booster seat, increasing frustration for a child trying to buckle up independently.
Grading Scale
A: Plenty of room for the car seat and the child; doesn’t impact driver or front-passenger legroom. Easy to find and connect to Latch and tether anchors. No fit issues involving head restraint or seat contouring. Easy access to the third row.
B: Plenty of room. One fit or connection issue. Some problems accessing third row when available.
C: Marginal room. Two fit or connection issues. Difficult to access third row when available.
D: Insufficient room. Two or more fit or connection issues.
F: Does not fit or is unsafe.
About Cars.com’s Car Seat Checks
Editors Jennifer Geiger and Jennifer Newman are certified child safety seat installation technicians.
For the Car Seat Check, we use a Graco SnugRide Classic Connect 30 infant-safety seat, a Britax Marathon convertible seat and Graco TurboBooster seat. The front seats are adjusted for a 6-foot driver and a 5-foot-8 passenger. The three child seats are installed in the second row. The booster seat sits behind the driver’s seat, and the infant and convertible seats are installed behind the front passenger seat.
We also install the forward-facing convertible in the second row’s middle seat with the booster and infant seat in the outboard seats to see if three car seats will fit; a child sitting in the booster seat must be able to reach the seat belt buckle. If there’s a third row, we install the booster seat and a forward-facing convertible. To learn more about how we conduct our Car Seat Checks, go here.
Parents should also remember that they can use the Latch system or a seat belt to install a car seat, and that Latch anchors have a weight limit of 65 pounds, including the weight of the child and the weight of the seat itself.
