Consumer Reports is known for testing car safety, and one of its newest areas of focus is rear seat safety. CR recently evaluated the safety of the rear seats of the 2022 Kia Carnival, and the popular minivan surprisingly did not impress. If you’re considering purchasing a 2022 Kia Carnival as your next family hauler, consider Consumer Reports’ rear seat safety scores first.
About Consumer Reports’ rear seat safety testing
Consumer Reports began testing rear seat safety relatively recently, but has already rated more than 50 vehicles. CR’s tests look at rear seat safety in various areas, taking into account everything from child seats to seat belt reminders. The six categories under consideration are car seat adjustment, booster seat use, passenger alert, rear seat restraints, advanced rear restraints and rear head restraints.
As evidenced by the categories above, rear seat safety testing can be complex, given that people of all shapes and sizes, from infants to adults, sit in the back seat.
Emily A. Thomas, an automotive safety engineer at Consumer Reports, explained it this way: “The back seat must accommodate all types of occupants, from infants and teenagers to adults and carpoolers. all ages. ”
The 2022 Kia Carnival scored shockingly low in Consumer Reports’ rear seat safety tests
Despite being an overall family-friendly vehicle, the 2022 Kia Carnival did not fare well in Consumer Reports’ rear seat safety testing. This minivan ranks at the bottom of the CR models tested.
Carnival received low scores on rear passenger alert and seat belt reminders due to the lack of these potentially life-saving features. (For example, rear passenger alerts alert the driver if they accidentally leave an infant in the car.) The only category where Carnival scored well was headgear.
By comparison, another minivan, the 2022 Toyota Sienna, earned much higher rear-seat safety scores and comes in at the top of the pack. It received high marks for child seat fit, seat belt reminders, advanced restraints and head restraints.
Consumer Reports clarifies that just because a model scores poorly on these tests doesn’t mean it’s dangerous. “The message from our new rear seat safety testing is not that lower-scoring vehicles are unsafe, but that they don’t offer the same comparative margin of protection as higher-scoring vehicles,” says Thomas i CR (via I tweet).
2022 Kia Carnival Overview
Although it could provide better rear seat safety protection, the 2022 Kia Carnival remains an attractive option for families.
A distinctive feature of the Carnival is its flexible interior. Slide-Flex seats allow you to adjust the seating arrangement and cargo space to suit your needs. The second-row seats are removable, and the third-row seats can be folded into the floor to create additional space.
Another unique feature is the second-row “babysitting seat” that can slide forward to bring it within easy reach of the front passenger. Kids in the second row can also be entertained thanks to device mirroring, allowing you to stream kid-friendly entertainment from your device. Nine USB charging ports also make it easy to keep kids’ devices running out of juice on long road trips.
Loading your kids and belongings is also a breeze, even when your hands are full, thanks to the Carnival’s ability to sense your presence and open the doors and hatch automatically.
On top of all that, the 2022 Kia Carnival starts at just around $32,000. If you’re in the market for a van that offers a variety of family-friendly features, the 2022 Carnival is worth a look. However, you’ll want to weigh those advantages against the disadvantages of lower rear seat safety scores.
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