2016 Jaguar XJL: Car Seat Check
CARS.COM — Jaguar’s flagship sedan returns for 2016 with a larger grille, revised bumper, and full-LED headlights and daytime running lights. Inside the XJ also gets revised multimedia controls, a new instrument cluster and more driver-assist features such as semi-automatic parking. It’s just too bad those newfangled features didn’t include fully automatic car-seat installation as the long-wheelbase Supercharged version of this high-luxury five-seater — which starts around $93,000 with a destination charge — treats child seats like a luxury it can barely afford.
How many car seats fit in the second row? Two
What We Like
- Both the infant seat and rear-facing convertible had ample room; we did not need to move the front passenger seat forward to accommodate it.
- Our booster seat fit well on the wide seat bottom cushion. The outboard seat belt buckles are on stable bases so it should be easy enough for kids to strap themselves in.
What We Don’t Like
- The two sets of lower Latch anchors sit about an inch into the seat bight behind stiff leather cushions. We were unable to connect to the anchor with the convertible’s rigid connectors. Instead, we installed the convertible seat, in both the rear- and forward-facing positions, with the seat belt. However, the tether strap connected easily to the top tether anchor (of which there are three on the rear shelf, just behind the head restraints) in forward-facing mode.
- Although we were able to connect our infant seat’s thinner, hooklike connectors to the Latch anchors, the install was difficult due to the stiff leather seat cushions.
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, Jennifer Newman and Matt Schmitz 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 shorter 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.
