How Do Car Seats Fit in a 2018 Volkswagen Passat?
After a big refresh for 2016, Volkswagen’s largest sedan carries over with few changes for both 2017 and 2018. We tested the 2018 Passat and found it easy to install two car seats thanks to its accessible Latch anchors and roomy backseat.
How many car seats fit in the second row? Two
Related: More Car Seat Checks
Solid
- Latch, grade A: The two sets of lower anchors are exposed for easy access and connection. Three top tether anchors sit on the rear shelf; they’re also easy to find and use.
- Infant seat, grade A: The seat was easy to install and the 5-foot-6-inch front passenger had plenty of legroom.
- Rear-facing convertible, grade A: Similarly, this seat went in with ease and left ample room.
- Forward-facing convertible, grade A: This seat was easy to install and fit well after we raised the head restraint. We also had no issues connecting to the top tether anchor.
- Booster, grade A: After raising the head restraint, the booster fit well on the wide, lightly bolstered backseat. The buckles are on stable stalks, which should make them easier for kids to use independently.
So-So
- None
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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