Concealed Weapons – Concealing a Firearm in Your Vehicle

If you currently hold a concealed weapons permit, are about to get one or live in a state that allows you to carry a concealed weapon, here are a few ways you can conceal a weapon in your vehicle.

The Obvious Places to Conceal a Weapon

There are some obvious places and not so obvious places to conceal a firearm in your vehicle. Some of the obvious spots are:

• The glove box
• The console
• Under the seat
• Between the seat and the console
• In the drivers side or passenger side door compartments

Most of these places are obvious spots to conceal a weapon because they’re the easiest places. It doesn’t take much effort to toss a pistol and a few magazines into the glove box before a road trip. Nor does it take much effort to place a weapon under the seat. Easy equals obvious.

Now, I’m not implying that it’s a bad thing to conceal a weapon in any of these places. Having a weapon in the car is better than not having a weapon in the car. However, you have to think about keeping that firearm out of the wrong hands should your car fall victim to vandalism. Burglars are looking for things of value to quickly snag as they walk past your vehicle. A pistol would make a mighty nice prize and turn an average car thief into a more dangerous threat.

Here recently, our neighborhood was frequently hit by a burglar. His primary targets were vehicles. When he was finally caught, he had a knife in his coat pocket, a pistol in his back pocket and a backpack containing four other pistols and enough ammunition to start a small war. It all came from his streak of vandalism.

He was caught by a man leaving on an archery hunt at 4am. When approached, the burglar went for his pocket but before he could draw his weapon, the hunter whacked him on the head with his revolver. Just awesome!

If you’re going to secure a pistol in an obvious place in your car, just make sure it’s out of site. If you can help it, make sure someone can’t steal it. For example, you can use a vehicle console vault shown in the picture. You can order them with a key lock or combination lock.

Less Obvious Places to Conceal a Weapon

Depending on the vehicle you drive, there are several places to mount a pistol while keeping it out of site and in a less obvious spot. The dilemma I always face in choosing to carry a weapon in my vehicle is ease of use versus security. On one hand, I want to make sure my pistol is hidden well enough so that it doesn’t get stolen. On the other hand, in case of an emergency, I want to be able to access my weapon very quickly.

With a holster such as the picture below, a pistol can be mounted just about anywhere in your vehicle.

Under the Dashboard

Mounting a pistol under the drivers side dashboard is possibly your best option. Depending on the positioning, your weapon will be completely out of site when peering in through the window while being completely accessible in case of an emergency.

In the Headrest

I’ve also heard of those who have successful concealed a small pistol in the headrest of their seats. The compartment would have to be custom work and sealed with Velcro to appear normal. But hey, if a TV monitor can be mounted in a headrest, so can a small pistol.

In the Ceiling

Another place to conceal a pistol would be in the ceiling matting. I’ve seen pistols mounted behind ceiling lights, TV monitors and in random locations on the ceilings of vehicles with thicker padding.

On the Ceiling

Just mount your weapon on the ceiling of your vehicle. There are a ton of mounting systems and gun racks on the market that can be easily attached to the ceiling of your car. They come with or without locking systems. This probably isn’t the best option when trying to hide your weapon from a burglar, but you’d be surprised by how many people never look up when robbing a car.

In the Trunk

In the trunk is a great place to conceal your weapons. The only downfall is the accessibility. Most trunks can be accessed from inside the vehicles within a few seconds, but sometimes a few seconds is all you have. Plus, most burglars won’t look in the trunk of a car and are more interested in the eye candy. If they can see it through the window, the more likely they’ll break in to get it.

Behind the Back Seat Console

Many vehicles are now equipped with a console for the back seat. It flips up and down to hold drinks and miscellaneous items. When up, it looks like the rest of the seat. It’s very easy to access from anywhere in the car and most burglars won’t check it, or even notice it.

Behind a Fake Stereo Faceplate

Anyone who has ever installed a new stereo knows that many of them come with detachable face plates. I’ve seen pictures of a compartment behind that faceplate, just big enough for a pistol. The only problem with this….many burglars try to steal stereos. Last time I checked, guns are worth more than stereos!

On the Side of the Console

Depending on the vehicle, a great place for easy access would be to mount the pistol to the side of the front console. Again, depending on the vehicle, it may be extremely visible to anyone passing by or it may be fairly concealed. In the case of this picture, it would probably be hidden fairly well.

Inserted in Drivers Side Seat

Another great spot would be inside the front side of the drivers side seat. Depending on the design of the seat, there should be enough room to carve out a little compartment into the front of the seat for safe concealment of a weapon.

Conclusion

In case of an emergency, carrying a pistol in your vehicle can get you out of jam. Creativity is the key and you’re life or those of who you love are the prize. Make sure that you are in accordance with your local and state laws when you conceal any weapon in your vehicle. In my humble opinion, when it comes to my safety, it’s better to ask for forgiveness than permission.

I’m curious to know where you have placed your weapon in your vehicles. What has worked for you? Please leave a comment below.