2012 Scion iQ: Car Seat Check


The 2012 Scion iQ doesn’t look like a family car, but it can be if your family includes just one child. The iQ is a three- or four-seater, depending on the driver’s height.
For our Car Seat Checks, the driver’s seat is positioned for a 6-foot driver; in the iQ that left no legroom for a second-row passenger behind the driver. The front passenger sits farther forward, creating more legroom for the person sitting behind the front seat. We installed our child-safety seats behind the front passenger seat.
For the Car Seat Check, we use a Graco SnugRide 30 rear-facing infant-safety seat, a Britax Roundabout convertible child-safety seat and Graco high-back TurboBooster seat.
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The front seats are adjusted to a comfortable position for a 6-foot driver and a 5-foot-8 passenger. The three child seats are installed in the second row. The booster seat sits behind the driver’s seat, and the infant seat and convertible seats are installed behind the passenger seat. We also install the convertible seat 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. If there’s a third row, we install the booster seat and a forward-facing convertible.
Here’s how the 2012 iQ did in Cars.com’s Car Seat Check:

Latch system: The iQ’s two-seat second row has two sets of lower Latch anchors, and they are easy to use. Two tether anchors are found in the lip of the trunk.


Booster seat: We had to wedge our high-back booster into the backseat because the seating area is narrow. Once in, the booster fit fine. The seat belt buckles rest in a well in the bottom seat cushion. To use the buckle, you have to pull it up. It stays in place once it’s up.

Convertible seat: The forward-facing convertible fit well in the iQ after we removed the head restraint; there was enough room for a child’s legs. The rear-facing convertible fit in the backseat, but the front passenger seat had to be moved all the way forward. The front passenger fit in the front seat but wasn’t comfortable.

Infant-safety seat: This rear-facing infant seat didn’t fit in the iQ because the front passenger couldn’t sit in a tolerable position with the car seat installed behind it.

How many car seats fit in the second row? One
Editor’s note: For three car seats — infant-safety seat, convertible and booster seats mdash; to fit in a car, our criterion is that a child sitting in the booster seat must be able to reach the seat belt buckle. Parents should also remember that they can use the Latch system or a seat belt to install a car seat.
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Editor-in-Chief Jennifer Newman is a journalist with more than 25 years of experience, including 15 years as an automotive journalist at Cars.com. Jennifer leads the Editorial team in its mission of helping car shoppers find the vehicle that best fits their life. A mom of two, she’s graduated from kids in car seats to teens behind the steering wheel. She’s also a certified car-seat technician with more than 12 years of experience, as well as member of the World Car Jury, Automotive Press Association and Midwest Automotive Media Association. LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jennilnewman/ Instagram: @jennilnewman
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