How Do Car Seats Fit in a 2023 BMW iX?

The verdict: BMW’s new all-electric iX is an SUV with seats for five and a very spacious backseat. We tested the M60 trim, which is good for a maximum EPA-estimated 288 miles of range. Ample legroom and easy-access Latch anchors helped make car seat installation easy, but the SUV’s fixed head restraints caused some fit issues.   

Does it fit three car seats? No.

Take a look at how the Latch system and each car seat scored below in our Car Seat Check of the 2023 BMW iX.

Related: Search Car Seat Checks

A Grade

• Latch: The two sets of lower anchors sit under flaps that pull up via a loop. It’s an interesting setup and one we haven’t seen before. Three top tether anchors sit on the seatback; they’re clearly marked and easy to use.
• Infant: This seat was easy to install, and our 5-foot-6-inch front passenger had loads of legroom in front of it.
• Rear-facing convertible: As with the infant seat, we had no trouble installing the rear-facing convertible, and our front passenger had ample legroom ahead of it.

B Grade

• Forward-facing convertible: In forward mode, the convertible went in easily; we had no trouble connecting to the top tether anchor or the lower anchors. The iX’s fixed head restraint prevented the car seat from sitting flush against the seatback, however.

C Grade

• Booster: The iX’s backseat is very flat, which helped situate the booster on the seat-bottom cushion. However, the outboard head restraints are fixed and pushed the booster’s back off the seatback; it should fit flush against it. Also, the buckles are on very short stalks that slip into the seat-bottom cushion, which will likely make them tough for kids to grasp and use independently.

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: One room, fit or connection issue. Some problems accessing the third row when available.

C: Marginal room plus one fit or connection issue. Difficult to access the third row when available.

D: Insufficient room, plus multiple 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 Chicco KeyFit 30 infant-safety seat, a Graco Contender 65 convertible seat and Graco TurboBooster seat. The front seats are adjusted for a 6-foot driver and a shorter 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. Learn more about how we conduct our Car Seat Checks.

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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