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By John Hamilton
Need a family car that can take three or more ISOFIX child seats? Here’s a quick guide to the vehicles that can help.
ISOFIX child seats belatedly became legal in Australia in 2014 – years after the UK and European parents had been appreciating these virtually fool-proof restraints.
While ISOFIX child seats aren’t technically safer than regular child seats, they provide parents with greater assurance that they’ve installed the seats correctly. Before they existed, research indicated that four out of five child seats were incorrectly installed in cars, increasing the risk of injury to the child.
Australia, however, is unique compared to some overseas markets in that ISOFIX child seats must also be restrained by a top tether.
So, there are quite a few vehicles sold in Australia that will be able to accommodate three or more top-tether child restraints. Still, the list of vehicles that also have ISOFIX anchors with matching top-tether points is much smaller.
Most cars in Australia feature two ISOFIX attachments points, in the outer rear seats.
Here’s our list of 10 family vehicles currently on the market with three or more ISOFIX anchors and matching top-tether points.
It’s a tough SUV that can tow your caravan, though the MU-X can also handle three ISOFIX seats with their matching top tethers in all three second-row seats. The Isuzu MU-X range starts from $42,900 before on-road costs.
An absolute bargain if you’re after a dependable people-mover with an industry-leading seven-year warranty, the Kia Carnival is a super-versatile eight-seater. There are three ISOFIX anchors – row two’s outer seats have them, while the 60:40-split third-row features one. The Kia Carnival starts from $42,990 before on-road costs.
For big families fond of big adventures, the seven-seater Discovery has been one of the go-to choices since it debuted in the late 1980s. And the latest, fifth-generation model provides four ISOFIX anchors – two in the outer seats of the second row and two in the third-row seats. Pricing for the Land Rover Discovery starts from $70,884 before on-road costs.
The largest SUV from French car maker Peugeot has three ISOFIX points. While it is a seven-seater, all the anchor points are positioned conveniently along with the middle-row seats. The manufacturer’s recommended list price for the Peugeot 5008 starts at $44,490 before on-road costs.
Toyota’s newly released people-mover is the successor to Australia’s long-time favourite, the Tarago. It’s a more upmarket family-haulier this time, with a five-star ANCAP rating and the option of six or eight seats to provide four ISOFIX points and matching top-tethers – two points in each of rows two and three. Pricing for the Toyota Granvia starts from $62,990 before on-road costs.
VW’s largest people-mover accommodates up to eight passengers (plus driver). This nine-seater features four ISOFIX anchor points with top-tether clips overall, with two on each outboard seat in rows two and three. The Volkswagen Caravelle is priced from $51,990 before on-road costs.
You can’t say this German car maker doesn’t look out for families. The Multivan is another option – a versatile van that also features four ISOFIX seats – with ISOFIX anchors on the second row’s two captain’s chairs and two more in the third row’s outer seats. The Volkswagen Multivan starts from $53,590 before on-road costs.
Audi’s luxurious seven-seater SUV features three ISOFIX anchorage points conveniently placed across the three middle-row seats with matching top-tether points. Pricing for the Audi Q7 currently starts from $97,800 before on-road costs.
BMW’s luxury SUV is also its biggest – and the first to offer more than two ISOFIX points. The X7 has four in total – two in the outer seats of the second row and two in the third row’s seats. This is also BMW’s most expensive SUV, however, starting from $111,660 before on-road costs.
Want your people-mover to carry up to eight people with a bit of Euro class and style? The V-Class range’s flexible interior configurations offer four ISOFIX anchors, two in each outboard seat of row two and two more in row three. The Mercedes-Benz V-Class range starts from $79,627 before on-road costs.
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