2016 Subaru Impreza: Car Seat Check

Editor’s note: This Car Seat Check was written in March 2015 about the 2015 Subaru Impreza. Little of substance has changed with this year’s model. To see what’s new for 2016, click here, or check out a side-by-side comparison of the two model years.

CARS.COM — Subaru’s compact car received some minor updates for 2015, including a much more modern and user-friendly multimedia system. Thankfully, Subaru left the Impreza’s backseat alone. With the Impreza, small outside doesn’t mean small inside. We tested the sedan version and it almost aced our Car Seat Check, as did the last version.

How many car seats fit in the second row? Two

More Car Seat Checks

What We Like

• The two sets of Latch anchors sit under Velcro flaps in the seat. Although they are set fairly deep into the seat bight, we had no problems connecting to the anchors.
• Both the rear-facing infant and convertible seats were easy to install and had plenty of room; there was no need to move the front passenger seat forward to accommodate either seat.
• We had to remove the head restraint to install the convertible in forward-facing mode, but it was an easy install. The three top tether anchors sit far back on the rear shelf, requiring plenty of tether strap slack. The tether anchors were easy to use, however.

What We Don’t

• The booster fit well on the wide, flat seat cushion and we did not need to remove the head restraint to install it, but the buckle stalks are floppy. They will be tough for kids to grasp and use 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. Editor Matt Schmitz is working toward recertification.

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.