The 2025 Maverick earns a failing grade. Cars.com could not tighten the top tether properly and then could not latch the seatback back upright with the strap in place, concluding the position is not safe to sit in with a forward-facing seat. The infant seat and rear-facing convertible both scored a C because the front passenger's knees end up against the glove box. It does not fit three car seats.
Cars.com graded the forward-facing convertible install an F here, and on its scale F means does not fit or is unsafe. The testers connected the tether, but could not get it tight after repeated attempts, and then could not click the seatback back into its upright position because the strap's tightening mechanism is too bulky. Their conclusion, for the seat they tested in that position, was that because the seatback cannot be locked back into position it is not safe to sit there. A different car seat with a less bulky tightener may not hit the same problem, which is exactly why the check below matters. The test is not whether the tether clips on. It is whether the seatback latches fully upright with the tether installed and tight. If it does not, that seating position should not be used for a forward-facing seat. We would rather lose the sale than have you guess at this one.
Compiled by our gear team from Cars.com's Car Seat Check. Published July 18, 2026. Car seat fit findings from Cars.com's Car Seat Check, conducted by certified child passenger safety technicians.
The grades at a glance
| Test | Grade |
|---|---|
| LATCH | A |
| Infant seat | C |
| Rear-facing convertible | C |
| Forward-facing convertible | F |
| Booster | B |
Three car seats across: no. Room for two, not three.
Where the anchors are
Lower anchors. Two sets, partially exposed, easy to find and use. The lower anchors are not the problem here.
Top tethers. Three on the seatback, and Cars.com described them as complicated to access and use. This is what produced the failing grade.
NHTSA recommends always using the top tether with a forward-facing car seat, whether it is installed with the lower anchors or the seat belt, as long as both the car seat manufacturer and the vehicle manufacturer permit it. Check both manuals for your specific combination, and check your car seat's tether weight limit: NHTSA directs you to stop using the tether once your child exceeds it, even while they still fit the seat. Our car seat safety guide covers how to use it.
Infant car seats
Easy to install, but the 5-foot-6-inch front passenger's knees were too close to the glove box to be comfortable, and Cars.com noted taller front passengers will be very uncomfortable.
That matters more than it sounds. In a lot of compact vehicles a rear-facing seat pushes the front passenger forward until the front row is unusable. Browse the infant car seats we carry, and if you are weighing whether a rotating base is worth it, see our comparison of rotating versus standard infant seats.
Convertible car seats
Rear-facing. Easy to install rear-facing, but again the front passenger could use more legroom.
Forward-facing. An F. The tether could be connected but not tightened, and with the strap in place the seatback would not click back upright. Cars.com judged the position unsafe to occupy in that configuration.
Some vehicles need the head restraint removed or raised to seat a car seat flush against the seatback, and some have fixed restraints that cannot be moved at all. Check your vehicle manual before forcing anything, and note that where a fixed restraint holds the seat off the seatback, that is a fit problem rather than something you can work around. See our convertible seats.
Boosters
Fits well once the head restraint is removed, but the floppy buckles are hard for kids to use alone, and the middle seat's buckle strap blocks the driver's-side buckle.
Will your stroller fit?
Cars.com's Car Seat Check does not cover cargo, so the stroller guidance here is ours rather than theirs. The bed is the obvious stroller answer on a pickup, but it is uncovered and unsecured, which means a wet stroller in bad weather unless you add a tonneau cover.
Cubic feet is the wrong number to shop on anyway. What decides whether a stroller fits is its folded footprint against the width between your wheel wells and the height to your cargo cover. A trunk can have generous volume and still refuse a wide fold.
Measure the space you will actually load into, whatever shape it is: how deep it is, its narrowest width (usually between the wheel arches, or between the bed rails on a pickup), and the height of the opening you have to lift over. Then compare against the folded dimensions of whatever you are considering. If the numbers are close, a compact fold like the Cybex Beezy leaves room for everything else; if you have space to spare, a full-size frame like the UPPAbaby Vista V3 earns it back in storage and expandability. Browse all strollers.
Ford Maverick takeaway
A compact truck that can take an infant seat, though Cars.com's 5-foot-6-inch front passenger was uncomfortable in front of it, and then fails at the forward-facing stage: Cars.com could not get the tether very tight after several attempts. If you are buying one vehicle to carry a child from birth through the booster years, this is not it.
Across every vehicle: Which cars fit three car seats · Which cars let kids buckle themselves
More car seat help: Car Seat Safety Guide · All buying guides
Educational information only. This guide is for general education. It is not professional, medical, legal, or safety advice, and it does not create any advisory or professional relationship between you and SugarBabies. You are responsible for the safe selection, installation, and use of any car seat.
How a car seat fits and installs depends on your exact vehicle (its model year, trim, and seating configuration) and your exact car seat model. The instructions that came with your car seat and your vehicle owner’s manual always control. If anything in this article ever conflicts with those instructions, or with current guidance from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), follow the manufacturer instructions, your vehicle manual, and NHTSA, not this article.
Our fit findings are compiled from third-party sources, including independent car seat fit testing performed by Certified Child Passenger Safety Technicians and manufacturer specifications, that we believe to be reliable, and we provide all of it “as is.” Specifications, model years, and vehicle configurations change, and we do not guarantee the accuracy, completeness, or current status of any of it. This article does not replace a hands-on check by a Certified Child Passenger Safety Technician (CPST). If you are near Sumner, Washington, our in-store CPST check is free with every infant seat we sell, and we encourage you to use it or to find a certified technician near you.
To the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, we disclaim all warranties, express or implied, including the implied warranties of merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose, and SugarBabies and its owners, employees, and affiliates are not liable for any direct, indirect, incidental, or consequential injury, loss, or damage arising from the use of or reliance on this article. Nothing in this disclaimer limits any liability that cannot be limited under Washington law. Some products we mention or link to are sold by SugarBabies, and we may earn money when you buy them.