Five practical reasons to fit a GPS tracker in your car and how to choose the right type of tracker for your needs.
There are five good reasons to install a GPS tracker in your car: theft protection, trip and mileage history, saving time and fuel, having the car on your phone at all times, and alerts when something happens to it while you're away. What you need is a GPS tracker, not a sat nav: a tracker sends the location to you, while a sat nav only shows the driver the way.
Sat nav or GPS tracker: what's the difference?
A sat nav plans the route and gives turn-by-turn directions. It tells you nothing if someone else takes the car or it gets towed.
A GPS tracker works out the car's position and sends it to a server over the mobile network. You see the car on a map on your phone or computer, check its trip history and get alerts. The rest of this article is about trackers.
Why install a GPS tracker in your car: 5 reasons
1. Safety and theft protection
If the car is stolen, the tracker keeps sending its location, which makes it easier for the police to find. Alerts for movement without ignition or for leaving a set area let you react within minutes rather than the next morning.
Some models also detect an impact or harsh braking and send an alert straight away. For parents whose teenager drives the family car, that is calmer than calling every half hour.
- the car's location after a theft;
- an alert when it moves without you knowing;
- crash alerts (on models that support it).
2. Saving time and fuel
The tracker logs every trip: route, mileage, stops and speed. After a month you can see where the kilometres and fuel really go.
A taxi driver, for example, sees how much he drove empty, and an owner whose relative "borrows" the car sees how many kilometres were added over the weekend. Businesses can add a fuel level sensor to see refuelling and fuel drains.
- trip and mileage history;
- long idling stops;
- a basis for smarter route planning.
3. Convenience: your car on your phone
Forgot where you parked outside a big shopping mall? Open the app and see the pin. If your son or a driver has the car, you can see where they are and when they'll be back.
The Navi.zone and Wialon dashboards work in a browser and on a smartphone. See our GPS tracking software section for what each platform can do.
- car location in one tap;
- in-app alerts;
- access for several family members.
4. A transparent usage history
The tracker builds up a record of mileage and trips. When you sell the car, this can be an extra argument for a buyer who wants to know how it was used.
An autonomous GPS beacon adds a second layer of protection. It runs on its own battery, hides in the cabin or body and helps you find the car even if the main tracker has been found and disabled.
- recorded mileage and trips;
- a second layer of protection with a battery beacon;
- a selling point for a careful buyer.
5. Real-time vehicle monitoring
You see where the car is right now, how fast it is going and whether the engine is running. You can set alerts for leaving the city, driving at night, low battery voltage or the tracker being disconnected.
Important: you may only track your own car, or a car driven by someone who has agreed to it. Covertly tracking another person without their consent is illegal in Ukraine (Article 182 of the Criminal Code).
- live location and speed;
- geofences and night-time alerts;
- battery and tracker power monitoring.
Which GPS tracker to choose for your car
| Tracker type | Installation | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Cigarette-lighter or OBD tracker | None, takes minutes | A first tracker, trip history, car on your phone |
| Hard-wired tracker | Connected to power and ignition | Theft protection, accurate history, alerts |
| Battery GPS beacon | None, hidden in the car | Backup protection alongside the main tracker |
For most owners the best start is a hard-wired unit from our GPS trackers for cars range. Tracking on Navi.zone Base costs from $9.90 per vehicle per year.
FAQ
Is there a subscription fee for a GPS tracker?
Yes. A tracker needs a SIM card with mobile data and a subscription to a tracking platform. Navi.zone Base starts from $9.90 per vehicle per year, and Wialon Hosting, for more advanced reports, costs 195 UAH per month. Trackers use very little data, so mobile costs are usually minimal.
Can I put a tracker on my wife's or adult child's car?
Yes, if they know about it and agree. The best approach is to agree openly and give them access to the app too. Covertly tracking another person without their consent is illegal in Ukraine, even if the car is registered in your name. This article is not a guide to that kind of tracking.
Does the tracker work in an underground car park or without signal?
GPS signals don't reach underground, so the tracker shows the last point before you drove in. Without mobile coverage it stores positions in its memory and sends them as soon as the network returns. That way your trip history isn't lost, even on roads with poor coverage.
Will a car thief find the tracker?
An experienced thief may find a tracker or jam its signal, which is why hidden installation and disconnect alerts matter. It is more reliable to combine a hard-wired tracker with a battery beacon: even if one device is found, the other can still help locate the car.
Read also: Car theft: how to prevent it
GPSka · turnkey fleet tracking
Your car on your phone, with trip history
Tracker, SIM card, setup and dashboard. Navi.zone from $9.90 per vehicle per year, Wialon from 195 UAH per month.