One of the many things I love about my truck is the well thought out center console. One of the first things I wanted to do was install a lock box in the cavernous but unused area under the arm rest in the console. There seem to be a few manufacturers that make fairly similar designs.
I originally looked at the Lock’er Down offering but wasn’t thrilled that it looked like I would have to break those tabs in the console and cut the rubber mat to still use it. From what I saw with the Mopar branded box, it was only available with a key lock which didn’t interest me. Leaving the key in the truck defeats the purpose and not having the key on me when I needed it wasn’t worth the chance to me.
The Console Vault model caught my eye because it had notches to fit around those tabs and didn’t need anything cut or removed from the console to fit. The available combination lock and spring-loaded lid fit exactly what I was looking for. I didn’t see a lot about this particular brand around the forum (which I don’t know if that is good or bad) so I thought I’d share my experience for anyone in a similar position trying to make a decision.
I ordered the Console Vault with the 3 digit lock directly from their website. It shipped quickly (I’m spoiled by one-day shipping from Amazon and almost dread ordering other places...which I feel like is exactly what Amazon wants me to think) and got to me in just a few days.
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It was packaged nice and secure and had a fair heft to it. Console Vault doesn’t list a specific metal thickness but it is definitely stout enough that it would require tools and a fair bit of force to deform. The eagle-eyed among you will notice I was shipped the 4 digit lock (a $35 option when ordering) instead of the 3 digit lock. I don’t know if there’s a physical difference in lock strength between the two but the site does say the 4 digit is “higher security” and “all metal construction“...whether that makes the other lock low security and not all metal I can’t say.
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Installation was literally drop-in. Like I said, no modification or tab breaking was needed. There’s two decent sized self-tapping screws on each side that secure the vault in place. The flip-up divider in the console doesn’t need to be removed. You just put it in the raised position and the front side of vault fits tightly behind it.
The sliding tray in the console works without issue. It is noted on the site that Longhorn and Limited trucks won’t be so lucky.
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Here you can see a Glock 19 for scale. It’s plenty spacious enough to toss in a couple more full size handguns or anything else you might want to lock up. It still has the factory mat underneath. The spring loaded hinge lifts and holds the lid out of the way.
Also visible are two of the four screws. I was pleasantly surprised that there weren’t just screw holes but actual threaded inserts welded to the inside vault walls. This made installing the screws incredibly easy and kept them exactly perpendicular to the wall. Additionally, this virtually eliminates any chance of being able to lift the whole vault out of the console without removing the screws. There’s no way for the screws to pivot and pull out of the plastic of the console. The screws would either need to shear off outside the vault or cut four paths through the console all the of the way out. In my opinion it’s just a small detail that could have easily been omitted but instead speaks to the build quality.
On the subject of build quality, the lid is well-designed and fits tight enough to the frame that a pry tool can’t be inserted. I’m sure a tool could be hammered in but the shape of the lid would result in more lateral pry force than the vertical direction needed to pry the lid up. On the front side of the vault where the lid closes and latches, there’s a lip that would limit the depth a tool could be inserted and would also resist the edge of the lid being folded in to create an area a pry tool could hook onto and lift from.
In my uneducated opinion, the most likely point of attack and the weakest part of the vault is the lock. I have seen a video someone made of a defeated Console Vault and the lock was indeed the failure point. On that particular model of truck the vault appeared to sit higher and closer to the armrest lid which allowed more angles to try and get leverage for prying than the deep consoles in our trucks would. The vault was pretty beat up but the thief was eventually able to access it by punching the lock through the lid and down into the vault.
The pivoting lock bar was connected to the shaft of the lock with a clearly MIM part that broke. A solid steel connection would have bent and not failed in the same way. That said, I doubt that alone would have changed the outcome. Once the lock was punched through the lid the lock bar could be pulled out if it hadn’t broken off. I don’t know if that was the “new and improved” lock touted on the website, but regardless I still feel the lock is the biggest vulnerability.
Any locked container can be defeated by the right combination of tools, time, and talent. I am confident this vault would survive a smash-and-grab or any other thief short of one who came prepared with the right tools and didn’t care about making a lot of noise.
For $270 I got a nicely built lock box made from sufficiently thick steel and a well-thought out design that fits perfectly in the truck while being smartly shaped to dissuade virtually every possible angle of attack.
I hope this information was helpful and let me know if I can answer any questions or if more pictures arewanted.
www.lockerdown.com
