How Do Car Seats Fit in a 2019 Jeep Wrangler?
Editor’s note: This Car Seat Check was written in April 2018 about the 2018 Jeep Wrangler. Little of substance has changed with this year’s model. To see what’s new for 2019, click here, or check out a side-by-side comparison of the two model years.
Jeep redesigned its iconic SUV for 2018 and, although the Wrangler can go just about anywhere, caregivers should use extra caution when taking kids in car seats off the beaten path. The Wrangler’s accessible Latch anchors made installing car seats in this vehicle easy, but room issues were a problem for our rear-facing car seats, while seat belt and head restraint issues had us struggling to get our booster safely installed. For this Car Seat Check, we tested a four-door Jeep Wrangler.
How many car seats fit in the second row? Two
Related: More Car Seat Checks
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Shop the 2019 Jeep Wrangler near you
Solid
- Latch, grade A: The two sets of the car’s anchors are exposed and larger than usual, so connection in the Jeep Wrangler is easy. Three tether anchors sit on the seatbacks; they’re clearly marked and easy to access.
So-So
- Infant seat, grade C: Connection was easy, but the Jeep’s 5-foot, 6-inch front passenger was uncomfortable; her knees were bumping up against the dash.
- Rear-facing convertible, grade B: Connection was easy and we could move the front passenger seatback for a little more legroom. Taller passengers will still need more to be comfortable.
- Forward-facing convertible, grade B: Another easy install, but the fixed head restraint pushed the convertible off the Wrangler’s seatback. The car’s head restraint is narrow, but it still prevents the seat from sitting flush against the seatback cushion as it should.
Skip It
- Booster, grade D: The Jeep’s fixed head restraint also pushed the booster’s back off the Wrangler’s seatback cushion. In addition, the buckles are on floppy bases and the outboard ones are oddly tethered via an elastic strap to the center of the seat-bottom cushion. This causes the Jeep Wrangler’s buckle to pull to one side, so it’s hard to situate the booster without it riding over the top of the buckle. It’s also tough to buckle since it wants to pull to one side of the vehicle.
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.
Cars.com’s Editorial department is your source for automotive news and reviews. In line with Cars.com’s long-standing ethics policy, editors and reviewers don’t accept gifts or free trips from automakers. The Editorial department is independent of Cars.com’s advertising, sales and sponsored content departments.
