Chevrolet Bolt Earns An 'A' In Car Seat Check

According to Cars.com the Chevrolet Bolt earns an 'A' in the car seat check.

Apparently it's not only six-foot tall passengers that benefit from the Chevrolet Bolt's interesting shape and spacious rear seats. You can fit two cars seats back there with little issue. Unfortunately, it doesn't fit three, which is a notable challenge for some families. Though, few compact cars can accommodate three car seats, but in the case of two, the Bolt does everything right.

The Bolt received an 'A' for four out of five seat types; Latch, Infant, Rear-facing Convertible, and Forward-facing convertible. For those with bigger kids, know that it earned a 'B' for the Booster seat. According to Cars, grading criteria reads as follows:

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: Plenty of room. One fit or connection issue. 

Cars.com is a good source to seek information regarding car seats, because three of its automotive editors are certified child safety seat installation technicians. Standard equipment for their tests includes:

• Graco SnugRide Classic Connect 30 infant-safety seat
• Britax Marathon convertible seat
• Graco TurboBooster seat

The test found that the Chevrolet Bolt had more room for car seats than some compact SUVs such as the 2017 Mazda CX-5 and the 2017 Jeep Compass. This is because - due to creative packaging - the Bolt has the footprint of a compact car, and the interior space of a mid-size. GM's Fred Ligouri explained:

 "A flat pack battery design, mounted underneath the occupant cabin, helps free up space for passengers. And the thin seat design, a first for Chevrolet, offers a unique suspension within the seatback that allows for reduced foam use without compromising back support or comfort. The space savings result in an additional inch of legroom for rear-seat occupants."

Additionally, the testers had more front-seat leg room after installing the car seats, than they had in comparable compact SUVs.  (But no, they did not do any testing of front seat comfort, which has been an oft-reported issue with the Bolt EV).

There is one loss in this equation, however. The Bolt takes away cargo space to add legroom. So, while competing compact SUVs have less room in the back for taller passengers, and car seats don't fit as well, you can put more "stuff" behind the rear seats.

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If you have three kids that need car seats or boosters, or you plan to pack in passengers plus cargo, you may have to look elsewhere.

Source: Cars.com

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