Top 7 Spots Where GPS Tracking Devices Are Placed On Cars
Easily Locate Hidden GPS Trackers
Are you concerned there might be a tracker on your car? If so, this article was created by our security experts to help you locate any GPS tracking devices or other GPS technologies that might be transmitting the position of your car or truck in real time to someone remotely. In our experience, hidden GPS devices placed on cars are placed in the following 7 spots nearly 99% of the time so by checking these locations you should be able to quickly find the car tracker and remove it from your vehicle. Now, let’s go over each of the 7 spots where GPS tracking devices are placed on cars!
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1. Diagnostic Port Under The Steering Wheel
When it comes to fleet tracking of company vehicles, most businesses equip real-time GPS devices to the OBDii port which is located under the steering wheel. The reason for this is a GPS tracker for car that is connected to the On-Board Diagnostics (OBD) port can pull power from the vehicle’s battery. The OBDii port is also a nice little hiding spot for a GPS vehicle tracker so if you’re looking for a hidden car GPS tracker that’s likely where you should look first! Among GPS fleet applications, the OBDii port is the most common hiding spot inside a car or truck, but when it comes to a spouse GPS or teen tracking, the locations mentioned below are more frequently used.
Related Article: 5 Steps To Remove GPS Tracker From Vehicle
2. Inside The Wheel Well Of A Car
Tracker devices that are designed to withstand all conditions and that utilize strong magnets can easily be attached outside of a vehicle without the driver ever knowing. This is the reason why GPS tracking systems used by a private investigator or suspicious spouse often hide the GPS trackers inside the wheel well. Wheel wells are a common hiding area for trackers, but the good news is they can also be more easily searched. Keep in mind that any place that is easy for a person to reach to install the GPS tracking device is also going to be easy for you to access.
Related Article: Top 11 Spouse GPS Tracking Devices
3. Carefully Search The Glove Compartment
Hiding trackers inside the glove compartment is something many people do because 1) the glove box is easily accessible, and 2) GPS signals can easily penetrate through fiberglass making the glovebox an ideal location to hide a vehicle tracking system. The best practice is to open the glove compartment and use a flashlight to scan inside and around the space to search for and identify any tracker devices.
4. Underneath The Driver Or Passenger Seat
Sun visors and compartments on the door are not good locations to hide a real time or passive GPS because they are so visible to drivers, but underneath the driver or passenger seats are very good locations, The reality is most people rarely look under their seats, and that means inside the vehicle is one of the best spots to hide GPS trackers, voice recorders, or any surveillance solutions. Especially, from teen drivers or other drivers that will give you constant access to the automobiles they drive.
5. Attached Underneath The Automobile
Other than the wheel well, other exterior hiding locations commonly used include the frame itself. The reality is GPS tracking devices placed under a vehicle can pick up GPS signals that reflect off the ground. This means a GPS car tracker can easily acquire satellite signals under a car, allowing the GPS to provide pinpoint accurate locations. Many hidden trackers are now engineered to be waterproof with magnet mounts while others come with accessories such as a magnetic box that make it easy to place the real time GPS under a car without anyone knowing!
If you believe there is a truck GPS tracker under your car then the first thing you will want to do is perform a visual inspection. If you do not see anything at first glance, you could take your vehicle to an auto mechanic and have them lift the vehicle so you can get a clearer picture of the undercarriage of the automobile.
Keep in mind, that there are portable GPS trackers with long battery life that can record everywhere you go for months without requiring a hard-wire or OBD connection!
6. Under The Hood
Another location where tracker devices are not frequently hidden but should certainly be scanned is under the hood. This is typically the spot where a car dealership might hide tracking solutions in case they need to repo the vehicle. Car dealership GPS devices are designed to provide real time GPS updates maybe once every day so they have a very long battery life and can work for up to 3 years! The hidden GPS trackers are equipped onto vehicles financed by the car dealership in case the company needs to repo the automobile. This location is not ideal for placement due to potential issues with accuracy from poor GPS reception but given the limited scope of the application and the need to be covert, underneath the hood is where you could expect a car dealership to hide a GPS car tracker.
7. Inside The Trunk Of A Car
Another place to consider searching for a vehicle tracker includes the trunk. While more easily seen (depending on how often the trunk is used or how clean it is kept), hiding a GPS data logger in the trunk also means the potential for the tracker to struggle to acquire GPS signals. This is the reason the location is actually the least common spot people put a hidden GPS tracking device.
The truth is, you can hide a GPS tracker nearly anywhere inside or outside the vehicle. The trick is to be aware of where someone might search, how easily or quickly you can get to it if you need to retrieve it to download the data off of your GPS data logger, and other considerations such as battery life and vulnerability to weather and road elements.
Helpful Tips For Finding A GPS On Your Automobile
- Because most hidden GPS car tracking devices are small, it can be easy to overlook small hiding spots. Don’t.
- Consider using a bug detector to find a tracker. While it won’t find a passive tracker, it should find any active trackers that might be transmitting.
- Check the data port first. It’s one of the easiest places to hide a GPS tracking device.
- Don’t be afraid to look for professional help; technicians such as those that specialize in automobile electrical systems, car alarms, or even audio systems know how your vehicle is wired, and are more able to recognize anything out of place.
Where Are GPS Vehicle Trackers Hidden?
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Trackers are hidden overwhelmingly in the 7 locations mentioned above so we would encourage you to start there when looking for any GPS in car or truck you operate. If you are thinking about using a real time GPS to track a vehicle please also know that placing a tracking device on a car you own is legal, but placing an asset tracking device on a car you do not own may be illegal. Therefore, before you hide the device on a vehicle, we would strongly recommend you contact an attorney in your local area to avoid violating any privacy laws.
Secondly, consider that if you’re placing a tracking device on a vehicle driven by your child, it might be better to have an honest conversation with them first. Not that we want to offer parenting advice…but plenty of problems can generally be avoided in any sort of relationship if all parties involved are willing to speak with each other openly and honestly.
Finally, if you are still going to hide a tracking device on a car, consider places where the device will be secure. Some of the most common locations for hiding tracking devices, for instance, include inside wheel wells, inside any data ports, under or inside bumpers, in the liner of the spare tire compartment, under seats, or in the glove box or center console. GPS trackers are devices that are small, and as a result, rather easily hidden.
I Found A GPS A Tracker In My Car
Maybe you just found a strange device in your car, only to realize it was a hidden GPS tracker. Maybe you haven’t yet found a GPS tracking device, but suspect someone may have hidden one somewhere in your vehicle?
But where would someone hide a GPS tracking device? The truth is there is a wide range of places where someone can put a hidden GPS for car tracking, many of them depending on whether or not or not the tracker is active or passive. (Refresher: Passive GPS devices record and store location data for later retrieval, meaning they often have longer battery lives; active GPS trackers transmit location data via a cellular network, meaning they often need more juice and are frequently hooked into the car’s power in some way.)
So if you have an idea as to who might hide a GPS tracking device on your vehicle, that might give you an idea of where to look. If someone wants regular updates, they might pick a place where they can power the tracker with the vehicle. That means the tracker will need to be wired in, which limits hiding locations. Similarly, if the person tracking you is someone who regularly has access to your vehicle, a good hiding place is somewhere where they can get to the hidden GPS tracker for car tracking more easily.
When looking for a GPS tracking device, you’ll generally want a few basic tools such as a flashlight, mirror, and wheeled cart for getting under your vehicle, for instance. A bug sweeper can also sometimes help. In general, you’ll want to do both an exterior inspection and an interior inspection.
Keep those principles in mind, and check out the top 10 places where to hide a GPS tracker:
- Wheel wells. Because the wheel wells are easily accessible, they’re a great place to hide a passive GPS tracking device.
- Inside the plastic liner of the wheel well. If you notice the plastic liner is loose, there’s a decent chance that someone has peeled it back to place a magnetized device against part of the car body frame.
- Under the main body of the vehicle. Because so many GPS devices utilize powerful magnets, the main chassis of the vehicle is a great place for a hidden GPS tracker for car tracking, though it can be more difficult to access than places like the wheel well.
- Behind the bumper. Because bumpers are made of so many pieces, behind or even inside the bumper can make a great hiding place for a GPS tracking device.
- The engine compartment. Note, however, that if someone has access to your engine compartment, they’re just as likely to put the hidden GPS tracker for car tracking inside the vehicle where it’s safer from the elements.
- The trunk. If someone has access to your vehicle, they may be more likely to stash the hidden GPS tracker for car tracking somewhere where you’re less likely to look—like in the corner of your trunk, or even under something in your trunk.
- Under and behind the seats, including inside seat pockets or between the seats. Think of the last time you cleaned your car. Some of the places that accumulate hidden trash most easily are also some of the easiest places to hide something small, like a GPS tracking device.
- Around the dash, including the glove compartment and especially the data connector. The data connector is usually under the dash and provides an easy power source for a hidden GPS tracker for car tracking.
- Sun visors also make a good hiding spot, as do any center consoles that might be present in your vehicle.
- Seats themselves, however, offer one of the best hiding places in the interior of your vehicle, simply because most people never think to check them.
Check out or YouTube video on how to find a GPS vehicle tracker on your automobile!
