UPDATE: While we were huge proponents of Lock'er Down, we're saddened to share that they have closed due to family medical issues and tough economic times. To help you find the best solution for securing your gun safe in your vehicle, we put together our top alternatives.
Car gun safes provide a secure in-car storage solution for concealing valuables and firearms. Most commonly, they are installed in the center console of large SUVs and trucks, these are also often called console safes or console vaults.
In addition to providing relatively quick access to your firearm, these safes help keep it from unwanted individuals (like small children). Furthermore, a vehicle console vault eliminates the chance of a loose firearm discharging during a crash.
Some manufacturers also make vehicle safes large enough to fit a rifle or shotgun that can be installed under the back seat or in the rear of the vehicle. This post is specifically covering hidden car gun safes that can be installed in a center console. If you have questions about securing larger guns in your vehicle, we can help you find a solution.
What to Look for in a Truck Gun Safe?
One of the primary reasons to install a truck gun safe is to keep your personal defense weapon from prying eyes. If no one knows your gun is in your car, they are substantially less likely to try and steal it.
What is a Center Console Gun Safe?
In its most basic form, a center console gun safe transforms your center console into a gun safe by installing a locking metal door over the opening to your console. But generally speaking, these console vaults are a little more sophisticated.
The metal door of the safe rests just beneath the console’s lid, keeping it secured. Additionally, the safes typically feature a fully sealed box that slips within your console, making it harder for a thief to simply cut or pry through the side of a traditional console and reach inside.
Which Truck Gun Safe or Vehicle Safe Fits?
Console vehicle gun safes are not interchangeable. They are built to fit specific makes, models, and years of a truck or car. Why? Because manufacturers make changes to their vehicles and for a console vault to be securely installed, it needs to fit the console precisely.
The first step when you’re shopping for a vehicle security safe is to find out which safes fit your car. We stock a wide variety of console vaults. If your vehicle requires a safe we do not carry, we can help you identify the appropriate safe and work directly with the manufacturer to get your safe delivered as quickly as possible.
4 Things to Consider When Choosing the Best Car Gun Safes for Discretely Storing Your Valuables
As with any safe, not all hidden car safes are built equally. They are constructed with various locking mechanisms, types of welding, and gauges of steel thickness. When you’re considering which safe is best to store your gun, make sure to consider the following factors.
1. Heavy 10 Gauge Plate Steel Door
The heavier the steel, the harder it is to cut through. How do you know which steel is thickest? The lower the number, the thicker the steel.
Many manufacturers will use the same gauge steel on the door as they do on the body. However, additional security can be added by using a thicker steel plate door — like found in EXxtreme console safes which feature a 10 gauge plate steel door.
2. Heavy 12 Gauge Steel Body
The thickest console safes generally have 12 gauge steel bodies, like the EXxtreme console safes we carry. If the manufacturer has not listed the steel, it’s safe to assume a thinner construction, which is easier to break into.
3. Covered Door Gaps for Increased Pry Resistance
One of the most common ways thieves break into a vehicle safe is by prying it open. This is possible because many of the designs have a door gap that’s perfectly sized to fit a pry tool. The 10-gauge plate door on EXxtreme console safes covers the body gap, which virtually eliminates pry attempts.
4. CounterBalance Gun Safe Door with a Spring Assisted Hinge
A counterbalance door with a spring assisted hinge allows the safe door to open easily and stay open. This convenience factor is extremely nice, as you don’t want to be removing something from your console vault while fighting with the door.
Hidden Car Gun Safe Locks
The quality of your lock plays a substantial role in your peace of mind. Not only do you want to be able to easily unlock your safe as needed, but you want to have reasonable faith that someone can’t crack your lock open.
Not all vehicle safes can be equipped with all locks. Before you start looking at locks, we recommend identifying which safes fit within your vehicle. That being said, most high-quality console vaults can be equipped with the following lock options:
- 4 Digit Manual Tumbler Combination Lock
- 7-Sided Tubular Key
- Abloy Lock (with 2 or 3 Keys)
- Metal Encased Electronic Lock
Can you get a hidden car gun safe with a key fob lock or a biometric lock? Generally speaking, most console safes are not equipped with these high-tech locks — as these locks are typically unreliable and have a short lifespan.
That being said, Vaultek makes extremely reliable biometric locks and digital keypads, some of which could be mounted within a console. Options like Vaultek’s NSL20i utilize this technology in a small handgun safe that quickly ejects your handgun into the ready position.
How to Install a Console Vault
Installing a console vault is a relatively straightforward and easy process. There is no drilling or cutting involved. While there are some installation procedures that can vary, the following are the common steps required.
- Unpack your console vault and remove any excess packaging.
- Clean out your console completely.
- Identify the screws at the base of your console and remove them. There will typically be two screws, which will correspond with the pre-drilled holes in your console vault.
WARNING: Each console vault is built to fit the make, model, and year of a specific vehicle (or vehicles). If the holes in your console vault do not align with your console, you have the wrong safe.
- Depending on your console, you may need to remove additional storage accessories that are screwed into the walls of your console.
- Once all accessories are removed, slip your console vault into your console. Replace the screws, screwing the console vault into place.
- Congrats, you’ve installed your console vault.
Yes, We Do Install Console Vaults
Need help installing your console vault. We’re happy to help. Call to schedule an appointment with one of our service technicians. We’ll take care of the installation and answer any questions you may have.
Alternative Vehicle Safes
While manufacturers like Lockerdown make a console vault to fit a large selection of vehicles, they don’t make ones for every single car. In some cases, cars and trucks don’t have consoles.
Luckily, there are a variety of alternative solutions to securely storing your firearm and valuables in a locked box. Many of these can be bolted to the floor of the vehicle beneath a seat or secured to a seat using a steel security cable. The following are our top picks: