BMW's entry-level coupe, the 2 Series, can pull family duty for families with older kids, but the coupe struggles to fit rear-facing child-safety seats in its small backseat. Our test car, the M235i, increases the fun for the driver with its 320-horsepower, turbocharged 3.0-liter six-cylinder engine, but kids in the back may not be big fans of this four-seater.
How many car seats fit in the second row? Two
What We Like
- The M235i has two sets of lower Latch anchors in the rear seats that sit under flip-up plastic covers. The two tether anchors are on the rear shelf behind the head restraints. They're also under hinged plastic covers and are easy to use.
- The forward-facing convertible was easy to install in the 2 Series after we moved the floppy seat belt buckle to access a Latch anchor.
- The booster seat fits well on the wide, bolstered seat.
What We Don't
- The seat belt buckles are floppy and can block access to the Latch anchors. The floppy buckles also are difficult for young kids in booster seats to grasp on their own.
- To fit the rear-facing infant seat in the backseat, we had to move the front passenger seat significantly forward and adjust the seatback into a more upright position. This left our 5-foot-8 tester's knees kissing the glove box.
- With the rear-facing convertible, we had to move the front passenger seat forward, but not as far as with the infant seat. This left our tester with 2 inches of space between her knees and the glove box.
Grading Scale
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. Some problems accessing third row when available.
C: Marginal room. Two fit or connection issues. Difficult to access third row when available.
D: Insufficient room. Two or more fit or connection issues.
F: Does not fit or is unsafe.
About Cars.com's Car Seat Checks
Editors Jennifer Geiger and Jennifer Newman 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 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 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. To learn more about how we conduct our Car Seat Checks, go here.
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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ReplyDelete2016 BMW 228i convertible car seat install. Took my 228i to the custom shop, go in the trunk and pop the latch on the left side to fold the rear seats out of the way. There is a cover behind each seat thats plastic and is about 9x6 inches with a round peg type thing in the center. This is actually a screw. Unscrew the screw and remove the plastic panel cover and you will see a frame point, yes the very durable car frame, where the screw hole is. This is where the upper latch went and it will not interfere with the safety controls if the car rolls over. The plastic cover must stay off but it is hidden behind the seat. Apex Customs Tempe AZ discovered this easy approach. Cost me money, for you its free.
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