12 Items Every Prepper Should Have in Their Car

The things you keep in your car or truck can do more than just clutter up an otherwise clean and tidy ride, they can actually save your life. The idea of keeping a Get Home Bag is one you need to institute for your car or truck now, but what do you need outside of this? The vacation variant of the Get Home Bag is a great way to change things up for a specific reason, but what about when you’re just driving?

After building your Get Home Bag for your vehicle there are still some supplies you should keep handy in case of emergency. We’ve compiled some of the most important items to keep in your car or truck that are outside the norm. So after you have your BOB or your Get Home Bag in the trunk, here’s what you need to stay safe and be prepared in your vehicle.

Paper Map and Compass

Knowing how to navigate with a compass and map is becoming a lost art. When there’s no power and you’re stuck in unfamiliar territory a simple map and compass can save your life. While there are tricks to navigate without a compass, life is a lot easier and safer with one. Keep a local map and a compass with a bearing window on it in your ride, and you’ll always be prepared to get where you need to go.

Flashlights

This one is pretty self-explanatory, but you should always have at least 2 good, working flashlights in your truck. A headlamp is ideal, as it’s the best for tasks like changing tires and working on a broken ride, but a standard light is important, too. While you should have at least one in your BOB or Get Home Bag, you need at least two that are dedicated to your truck.

Phone Charger

While we normally talk about full-out end of the world as we know it scenarios, most emergencies are smaller and while still dangerous, don’t involve power and cell tower grids going down. If you’re broken down on the trail or in the middle of Nowhere, USA having a fully charged phone can be a real lifesaver. The only way to guarantee this is to keep a charger in your ride at all times.

Water

While you can go weeks without food you can only survive a few (painful) days without water. Keeping at least one gallon in your vehicle at all times means you can stretch that survival time much farther. Water is also extremely useful for refilling an overflowing radiator to get you home safely, too.

Food

Keeping some snacks like protein bars or even full-out MREs is a great idea. Not only can these help if you get stuck somewhere, but if you’re in a hurry you can dip into your supply and eat on the run.

First Aid Kit

Every vehicle should have a basic first aid kit in it. This should be separate from any you may have in a survival bag and should be built exclusively for the car. There are quite a few premade first aid kits for cars, so finding one shouldn’t be a hassle. Make sure you keep the supplies in it up to date.

Knife

While you should have a good EDC knife with you at all times, there are times that your EDC has to stay at home. To make sure that nothing gets between you and survival, make sure you keep a good knife in your ride at all times. This should be a fixed blade knife that’s large and sharp. Make sure you’re not breaking any laws about concealed weapons with it, and if so, a simple multi tool will suffice as well.

Blankets

You never know when you’ll break down or when you’ll get stuck away from home, which means it could happen in the dead of winter, or on an especially cold night. Blankets help to keep you warm, but they can also be used to build a basic shelter or even drag an inured friend to safety with. Even if you never use then for these reasons, they make a great way to curl up in the bed of a truck with your significant other.

Tarp

A tarp is a small yet effective tool to keep in your car or truck. Not only can you build a shelter with a tarp, but you can cover the bed of a truck if there’s something there and it starts to rain, you can cover a broken window in an emergency, and you can even use it to lay underneath your ride to fix an issue without getting dirty. Roll up a cheap tarp and keep it in your car or truck, plain and simple.

Tow Straps

While mostly used on trucks, cars can benefit from having a good set of tow straps as well. If you get stuck, a tow strap is how another vehicle can get you out. If you’re a truck this means you can hook them on to you and pull someone to safety, but if you’re in a car, this means you can get a truck to help you regardless of whether or not they have tow straps.

Gloves

A simple pair of leather gloves. Sometimes you need to do something that can hurt your hands, and this is where gloves come into play. Whether it’s handling a winch cable, carrying firewood, or tearing off a broken piece of exhaust pipe, gloves can be mighty handy.

Change of Clothes

This one is less about changing when you spill something on yourself and more about having something to wear for an emergency. If you’re wearing a suit on your way to a wedding and an emergency happens, that suit isn’t going to offer you much in the way of survivability. You should keep a pair of boots, jeans, t-shirt, and a long sleeved shirt with you at all times. Use them in am emergency or just when something fun comes up. Whatever the case, it helps you be prepared in a situation most others aren’t.