2023 Equinox Receives Top Honor in Cars.com Car Seat Fit Report Card

All automakers are mandated to have provisions for child car seats in their interiors, so it is easy to assume that working with child seats in all cars is the same. But that isn’t the case. Automakers have freedom in executing the mandate, and the result is that some are much easier on parents than others. 

Cars.com has taken up the task of testing cars on their child seat accommodation, and the Dieffenbach GM Superstore is proud to announce that the family-focused Chevrolet Equinox was one out of just six models that made the child seat honor roll models by earning top A grades in all categories. 

Test Methodology

The testing was done by Cars.com editors Jennifer Geiger and Jenni Newman, both of whom are certified child passenger safety technicians in addition to being moms whose children have gone through every car-seat stage. They tested child seat installation in 56 different 2023 models. They used the same three seats for each model:

• Chicco KeyFit 30 infant car seat
• Graco Contender 65 convertible
• Graco TurboBooster

The three car seats are installed in the vehicle’s second row. The booster seat is positioned behind the driver, while the infant and convertible seats are installed behind the front passenger seat. The front seats are adjusted for a 6-foot driver and a shorter passenger. In 3-row models, they also install the forward-facing convertible and booster seat in the 3rd row and assess the difficulty of access when installing and working with the seat on that 3rd row. For each installation, they rate the car’s LATCH system, including the lower and top tether anchors. LATCH is supposed to make car seat installation more manageable, but can cause frustration on some models. 

Ease of installation is essential, particularly in multi-vehicle households where installation may not be once-and-done but repeated as the seat moves from one vehicle to another. 

Top Grades for Equinox 

Each vehicle received five grades based on the latch system itself and how easy the installation was for infant, rear-facing, forward-facing, and booster seats. 3-row models have four additional grading categories. A and B grades were the most frequent, with a few scattered Cs and even a few Ds. The Equinox is one of just three 2-row models that received A grades for all categories and one of six models overall.

“Chevrolet’s Equinox compact SUV has always offered a big backseat roomy enough for two car seats, and during our test of the 2023 model, we were able to install them with ease. In fact, the Equinox got straight A grades across the board thanks to ample legroom and easy-access Latch anchors.”

If you see child seats in your future, whether from having kids or your kids having kids, you should add ease of car seat installation to your vehicle parameters to save yourself some frustration and a little peace of mind. If it is a two-row SUV you have in mind, you can’t go wrong in looking at the stylish and value-packed Equinx at the Dieffenbach GM Superstore.