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2018 Lexus LS 500; Cars.com photos by Christian Lantry

Lexus redesigned its flagship LS sedan for 2018, and the new LS 500 is extra in just about every way, from its dominating front grille to its opulent cabin. The excellence continues when it comes to car seats; the LS has oodles of backseat legroom and easy-access Latch anchors.

How many car seats fit in the second row? Two

Related: More Car Seat Checks

Solid

  • Latch, grade A: The two sets of lower anchors sit below a large Velcro flap for easy access and connection.
  • Infant seat, grade A: There was ample room for this seat, and connection was easy.
  • Rear-facing convertible, grade A: Again, this seat fit well, and the Latch anchor setup made installation a breeze.
  • Forward-facing convertible, grade A: The fixed head restraint didn’t interfere with how the car seat fit on the seat. The three tethers on the rear shelf are clearly marked. We routed our double-strap tether strap around the head restraint; if yours is a single-strap setup, route it over.
  • Booster, grade B: Again, the fixed head restraint didn’t interfere with fit. The buckles sink into the cushion, however, complicating access. Part of the buckle mechanism is painted a glowing white color for added visibility — a neat touch.

So-So

Skip It

Grading Scale

Solid indicates an A grade for optimum ease of use and fit. So-So indicates B or C grades for one to two ease-of-use or fit issues. Skip It indicates D or F grades.

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 third row when available.

C: Marginal room plus one fit or connection issue. Difficult to access 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, Jennifer Newman and Matt Schmitz 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 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.

Cars.com’s Editorial department is your source for automotive news and reviews. In line with Cars.com’s long-standing ethics policy, editors and reviewers don’t accept gifts or free trips from automakers. The Editorial department is independent of Cars.com’s advertising, sales and sponsored content departments.