Toyota is aiming to pump some life into its once-hip youth-focused brand with two new models, the Scion iM and iA. For this Car Seat Check, we tested the iM, a new-for-2016 subcompact hatchback. With room for five passengers, it might make some parents' family-car shopping lists, but its cramped backseat made it tough to accommodate rear-facing car seats during our check.
How many car seats fit in the second row? Two
What We Like
- The two sets of anchors sit about an inch into the seat bight, but the seat cushions move easily out of the way so access wasn't a problem. The three tether anchors on the seatbacks are also easy to use.
- The forward-facing car seat was an easy install and fit well.
- The booster also fit well; we did not have to remove the head restraint to fit it. The iM's stable seat belt buckles mean kids should have an easier time buckling up independently.
What We Don't
- Although the infant seat was an easy install, it took up too much room. The front passenger seat had to be moved all the way forward; our tester could not sit in it.
- The rear-facing convertible was another easy install, but we had to move the front passenger seat up to accommodate it. Our 5-foot-8-inch front passenger had about an inch of clearance 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-6 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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