What is a good place to hide a SmartTag/AirTag tracker in the car.

Criteria:
-The higher it can be mounted, the better the reception is.

-Access the tracker every few months to replace the battery.

-Assuming the thief is able to locate the general location of the tracker signal in the car but, will still have a hard time removing it (ie. special tool needed).

PS. There are many pitfalls of trackers, let's just keep this thread to hiding spots only.

If some bad guy wants the tracker I would consider hiding it where they will not shred the car retrieving it. If the headrests have zippers on the bottom, I would place it inside one of them.

I'd probably try sticking it inside the air intake box.

I am curious - Why would a higher mounting point be better? I thought these trackers connected to iPhones through bluetooth/uwb and I wouldn’t think height would matter in this case.

Somewhere outside the car would be best. It needs to connect to passing iPhones to relay the signal, with a max range of 5-10m. Inside the car will cut the signal strength considerably; my toll tag sometimes struggles through the windscreen in this car.

turbobeagle wrote

I am curious - Why would a higher mounting point be better? I thought these trackers connected to iPhones through bluetooth/uwb and I wouldn’t think height would matter in this case.

I agree

GDEvans wrote

Somewhere outside the car would be best. It needs to connect to passing iPhones to relay the signal, with a max range of 5-10m. Inside the car will cut the signal strength considerably; my toll tag sometimes struggles through the windscreen in this car.

Also some thieves are smart enough to not carry their phones on them while committing crimes. Well… okay so the Kia Boys film themselves. So you may be best relying on passerby’s phones to get a ping. How about behind a wheel well?

PANO ROOF

turbobeagle wrote

I am curious - Why would a higher mounting point be better? I thought these trackers connected to iPhones through bluetooth/uwb and I wouldn’t think height would matter in this case.

I've tested this, mounting at mirror height vs roof makes a big difference.

In a parking lot the signal doesn't have to go through other cars. It can go further through open air, above other cars.

I thought the OP has interest on hiding spots only.

There's not much option in choosing the higher side, so i would place it:
- somewhere in the pano roof area
- drop one side of the headliner (possibly in the front) and tuck it in
- inside overhead console (and wire a radar detector in there while you're at it)

ContactPatch wrote

If some bad guy wants the tracker I would consider hiding it where they will not shred the car retrieving it. If the headrests have zippers on the bottom, I would place it inside one of them.

I like this location, it’s higher then most cars and has easy glass access (as opposed to being surrounded my metal) for outside signal strength. Plus it’s fairly easy to replace should the thief tear it up, though my assumption is they’ll tear up much of the car before they get to that spot. Begs the question though, can’t you see the cars location via idrive and the app?

Raphael X4 wrote

turbobeagle wrote

I am curious - Why would a higher mounting point be better? I thought these trackers connected to iPhones through bluetooth/uwb and I wouldn’t think height would matter in this case.

I've tested this, mounting at mirror height vs roof makes a big difference.

In a parking lot the signal doesn't have to go through other cars. It can go further through open air, above other cars.

I’ll assume you were testing UWB since it isn’t really possible to test the general ping. I would imagine that the range of the general ping via Bluetooth is significantly greater fwiw. You’d very likely still get decent coordinates even if the UWB doesn’t kick in.

For something like a car, UWB doesn’t strike me as something worth optimizing for. By the time you’re close enough to use it, you’ll be able to just see the car. It’s more useful for small things like keys. And the FOB can already make the lights flash or engage the horn once you’re in the general vicninity.

I place it next to the AMP, with one of those:

https://www.amazon.com/TagVault-Surface-Ultra-Durable-Stick-Screw/dp/B09V4CHJH9/ref=sr_1_5?crid=363MHX4U8F999&keywords=airtag%2Blab&qid=1690556763&sprefix=airtag%2Blab%2Caps%2C111&sr=8-5&th=1

How about inside the plastic grill at the front?

Not sure what you'd really gain from having one in the car. If thieves are removing a £65k car, they are pretty serious about it. They certainly aren't going to park it anywhere near passers by, so likely to be out of range of any AirTag. And it is likely to be stripped for parts. Would I really want the car back after the thieves start stripping? No - I'll let the insurance company sort it out.

I've used double-sided tape to stick mine inside the door pocket. Can't see it if you look in there, because of its positioning. Have had it there since the Airtags were first released in 2021. Had to change the battery once - a few months back.

Works for me - I can *always* see where my car is when I look in the FindMy app - including when the car is away from me for servicing. So not sure how beneficial having it high up in the car is. YMMV, though. When I was on holiday recently, I checked regularly to make sure it was still in the airport carpark. Not sure what I'd have done if it moved and I was thousands of miles away, though! lol.

Do you guys hiding these air tags not have connected drive or just not want to renew it?

Here's a great video on how to remove the speaker inside the Air Tag so it doesn't make any sound. I did this to the tags in my car and bike so thieves won't hear anything.

COM40 wrote

Do you guys hiding these air tags not have connected drive or just not want to renew it?

I do have Connected Drive. For me, I bought a few Airtags when they were released as I wanted to put them on my keys and wallet, and my other half wanted a couple for her stuff. I just thought I'd put one in the X3 as well, as I had a couple spare.

It's nice to track all of my important stuff in the FindMy app. And I guess it's a form of redundancy if the car does get stolen and Connected Drive is deactivated somehow? Don't know how easy it is to do that, though

Essentially, it's just a cheap £30 tracker. I don't expect the world from it, but it works well with my phone/Apple stuff.