How Do Car Seats Fit in a 2018 Chrysler Pacifica?

Editor’s note: This Car Seat Check was written in October 2016 about the 2017 Chrysler Pacifica. Little of substance has changed with this year’s model. To see what’s new for 2018, click here, or check out a side-by-side comparison of the two model years.

Chrysler has reinvigorated the minivan class with its all-new 2017 Pacifica. From standard Stow ‘n Go second-row seating that can collapse into the floor to an available vacuum, the Pacifica has lots of amenities to make kids and parents happy. However, caregivers who are installing child-safety seats into the Pacifica may not be as happy because of a few issues we found while conducting our Car Seat Check.

We tested a Pacifica Limited with captain’s chairs in the second row and a three-seat bench in the third row. The Pacifica can be had with a second-row bench, increasing the total seats to eight.

How many car seats fit in the second row? Two

How many car seats fit in the third row? Two

Related: More Car Seat Checks

Solid

• Third-row entry, grade A: Third-row access is excellent; there’s a large walkway between the seats to the third row, and the Chrysler Pacifica’s Stow ‘n Go chairs can be stowed in the floor.
• Booster, grade A: In the second row, our high-back booster fit well. The Chrysler’s captain’s chairs have stable seat belt buckles, making buckling up independently easier for kids in boosters.

So-So

• Latch, grade B: In the minivan’s second row, the lower Latch anchors in the captain’s chairs sit just inside the space between the back and bottom cushions. We had to work to connect to the anchors with both our infant seat and our convertible seat because of Chrysler’s fabric choice that envelopes the anchors. The Pacifica’s second row’s tether anchors are well-marked and easy to use.
• Third-row Latch, grade B: The third row’s two sets of Latch anchors are exposed and easy to connect to, but we gave the system a B for top tether placement. Although the two tether anchors in the third row are marked with icons, they sit at the base of the seatbacks and are hard to see because they’re small and the same color as the plastic backing. Thankfully, there aren’t any cargo hooks right next to the tether anchors, but some parents might be confused and connect the car seat’s tether strap to the Chrysler Pacifica’s cargo hooks that are in the cargo area’s lip.
• Infant seat, grade B: This seat fit well and the front passenger had ample legroom, but installation wasn’t easy because of the placement of the Latch anchors.
• Rear-facing convertible, grade B: The seat fit well in the Stow ‘n Go seat; there was no need to move the front passenger seat forward to accommodate either car seat. We struggled a bit with installation, however.
• Forward-facing convertible, grade B: The seat fit well in the second row, though we struggled to connect to the Latch anchors.
• Third-row forward-facing convertible, grade B: In the minivan’s third row, the seat installed easily, but the top tether setup isn’t ideal.
• Third-row booster, grade B: The booster fit well in the Chrysler, but the third row has floppy buckles, making it tougher for kids to buckle up independently.

Skip It

• None

Grading Scale

Solid indicates an A grade for optimum ease of use and fit. So-So indicates B or C grades for one to two ease-of-use or fit issues. Skip It indicates D or F grades.

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: One room, fit or connection issue. Some problems accessing third row when available.

C: Marginal room plus one fit or connection issue. Difficult to access third row when available.

D: Insufficient room, plus multiple 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. Learn more about how we conduct our Car Seat Checks.

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.

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