A car safe is an important item to consider when trying to mitigate the impact of a vehicle break-in.
As smash and grabs become more and more popular in cities and at trailheads, consider getting a portable security lock box for your laptop, gear, or other valuables.
I’ll also talk about a few other methods I use when items don’t fit into a car safe.
Portable Car Safes vs Bolting Safe to Vehicle
If you regularly have things of value in your vehicle due to your job, hobbies, or any other reason, consider a car safe that bolts directly to your vehicle.
These are much more secure than a portable safe. Some vehicles have many great options and are easier to modify than others. Trucks will likely offer the best options for permanent solutions as some products are custom for them.
However, in most cars and SUVs, permanent security boxes may take up valuable space, be expensive to install, or not be convenient for other reasons.
One of the only lockboxes on the market that easily fits laptops and related gear AND is a legit security box.
For example, I have an SUV (a Subaru Forester). It’s my vehicle for everyday commuting AND for taking week-long trips in the backcountry. Sometimes I’m carpooling with 5 people in it, and sometimes it’s me and my gal using it for car camping.
Because I want to have flexibility in my vehicle usage, a permanent solution wasn’t the best option for me. Even though it would be more secure, it would limit the use of my vehicle more than I wanted.
My experience is limited to cars and SUVs so I will focus on portable security solutions.
Best Portable Vehicle Safe for Laptops, Cameras, and Gear
The best portable car safe is the Tuffy Portable Laptop Safe. It can be attached to your vehicle with a looped security cable.
One of the only lockboxes on the market that easily fits laptops and related gear AND is a legit security box.
In addition, it does come with the hardware to bolt it to your vehicle if you ever want to go down that route.
Even though it markets itself as a laptop safe, it can fit many items. I primarily use it for my laptop, mirrorless camera, and other small electronics.
It comes with 1 inch of foam padding on each side which is nice for more delicate gear. It’s also on the bottom and top, except for where over the locking mechanism.
With the foam padding, there is 15.5 in. long, 2.75 in. wide, and 11.5 in. height.
The foam padding IS removable. If your gear is already protected, you could technically get it to be 17.5 x 4.75 x 13.5. There IS a lip for the locking mechanism that sticks out ~1 inch that you’d have to work around if you were trying fit something exactly that size in.
It’s a heavy-duty vault. Weighing in at just over 17 lbs (based on my bathroom scale), it feels substantial and is much different than those you’ll find on Amazon or Walmart. Tuffy is one of the best-known brands in the vehicle security industry and is trusted by law enforcement and outdoor enthusiasts.
It’s also one of the few products that isn’t marketed as a gun safe or designed for a gun. Because it’s marketed for a laptop, it’s larger than the typical pistol safes, but not as large as the ones that need to be permanently bolted into a trunk or beneath seats.
Portable SUV Safe with Security Cable: Gun Safe Alternative
In my Subaru Forester, it sits behind the driver’s seat in the passenger footwell area. I then use a security cable and wrap it around the driver’s seat. In addition, I do my best to make accessing the cable inconvenent.
Because, in theory, someone can still break into your car, but the cable, and carry the safe out of the vehicle. However, having a working vehicle alarm should help deter the extra work they need to do.
In addition, the thief will also have to have large enough bolt cutters on them AND inconveniently get themselves in your vehicle to start cutting it.
Tuffy Laptop Lockbox: Things to Consider
The Tuffy Laptop lockbox is heavy-duty and high quality. The quality comes at a price.
If you work remotely, consider asking your employer to cover it as security for your work laptop.
While similar products will be in the $100 range, the Tuffy Laptop Safe comes in around $300. However, the difference is noticeable.
It’s like comparing a pair of socks at Wal-mart to Vermont-made Darn Tough socks.
In addition, competing products will have a tether cable that could probably be cut with good scissors vs a bolt cutter. The competing laptop security boxes are marketed so your little brother or sister doesn’t steal it, not real thieves.
So, yes, this solution is expensive, but it’s the best one I’ve found that actually reduces my stress when I’m away from my vehicle with valuables in my car.
DIY Portable Car Safe to Keep Large Items Secure
If you have outdoor gear or similar gear that won’t fit into a lock box, you can make a DIY portable security solution. It’s not perfect, but it’s better than nothing.
Sometimes I have solar panels, a portable power station, or a mountain bike in the back of my SUV.
I’ve used this solution as part of my trailhead security.
Buy a long security cable and loop it through all your gear.
I loop it through the handles on my security panels and power station, through the frame of my bike, etc. Then lock it to your vehicle or lock the two ends of the cable with a steel lock.
This security cable can be purchased in 4ft, 7ft, 15ft, and 30ft.
What About a Bolt Cutter?
That’s where this method may fail and you have to accept that risk. However, the goal of this method is to make it more difficult to steal your gear.
You should still use basic common sense and try and hide the gear in your vehicle with blankets, curtains, etc. Read about my trailhead safety that can also apply to other situations.
If someone smashes your window, hopefully your car alarm starts going off, or it draws attention to the situation. The thief then uncovers the blanket and discovers tries to grab your power station. Shit, it’s attached to a cable with a bunch of other gear.
Now, if they don’t have a bolt cutter, your gear is safe.
If they DO, they have to go back to their car, grab it, and hopefully draw more attention.
A determined criminal will be able to cut through most security cables within a few minutes. However, a common thief that is walking by and smashes a window will not.
It’s important to know the limitations of your security solutions. In my opinion, this is a cheap and effective method in many cases.
Best Small Portable Safe for Car
If you don’t want to use your glove box compartment, the best small portable safe is a Dalmbox Car Safe.
It’s cheap and comes with a cable to wrap around your car seat.
If you’re looking for a more secure one that is to lock a gun or other highly important piece of gear, a LifePod is a great solution. It has a biometric feature that is useful.
These vaults are great because they are slim and easily fit under my car seat.
They are great for passports, wallets, keys, and other small valuables.
Some use it for guns, but it only fits small pistols, so if that’s your use for it, make sure to check the dimensions.
Conclusion
Using a portable car safe can put your mind at ease when you’re away from your vehicle with valuables in it.
None of these solutions are fully criminal-proof, but they are significantly better than doing nothing. These won’t stop dedicated criminals, but they will prevent the common smash-and-grabbers.
Related: Avoid Trailhead Theft and Break-Ins
Related: Tent Locks & Camping Security
