Tuffy Console Safe Review: Securing My Tacoma!

Today, I’m reviewing the Tuffy console safe and rear lockbox for the Toyota Tacoma. We live in a world where simply locking our doors is only enough to keep the honest people honest. Seasoned criminals have no problem breaking a window or finding another way into your vehicle if they want to get in badly enough.

I don’t like keeping bulky items like my phone or wallet in my pocket when I’m mountain biking, at the gym, or doing some other type of physical activity. That usually means leaving those items in my truck, which is not always a good idea.

The Tuffy console safe was exactly what I needed. It allows me to lock up anything of value so a smash-n-grab situation is no longer possible.

How I tested it:

I installed the Tuffy console safe in my 2006 Toyota Tacoma 3 months ago. I’ve been daily driving my truck ever since and use the safe nearly every time I drive it.

Tuffy console safe and lockbox features

This safe has some pretty impressive features but I want to get one misconception out of the way right off the bat: This is not a steel box that you mount inside your vehicle. Think of it as a framework that adds a locking door to your existing center console.

It’s made of 16 gauge steel and is designed to fit snuggly in your Tacoma’s OEM center console. It has a Pry-Guard locking system with a 10-tumbler double bitted security key to keep things locked down safely.

The textured powder coated finish gives it a sturdy feel and makes it much more difficult to scratch. An integrated accessory tray allows you to put a few small items to the side that you don’t wish to lock up.

Tuffy’s lid support feature allows the lid to stay open as long as you want it to, giving you 1 handed access to your belongings. The console lid and armrest are both fully functional after installation, making it impossible to know there’s a safe inside without opening it yourself.

The rear lockbox shares the same 16 gauge steel construction and high quality lock. As a matter of fact, both my console safe and lockbox came with matching locks so I don’t need to add more than 1 additional key to my ring – the same key locks both of them.

Tuffy console safe and lockbox installation

Both the console safe and lockbox are intended to be installed with basic hand tools in a matter of minutes. This wasn’t quite the case for me, which you can see in the video below:

Tuffy provides detailed instructions both with the products themselves and on their website here.

Overall, I’d rate the installation as “easy, but awkward”. Having small hands will certainly be beneficial when installing the center console safe.

It can be difficult to get some of the bolts to line up with the holes and combining the need to reach down into the console with tiny hardware makes things a bit tricky.

I’ve read some older reviews from other users that claimed the holes didn’t line up at all. As far as I can tell, those issues have been fixed with the console safe, but not with the lockbox.

I ended up having to elongate a few holes in the Tuffy rear lockbox in order to get it mounted. It reuses the holes that mount the factory storage boxes in the bed but a couple of mine weren’t quite in the right place, causing me to get the drill out.

I’m not sure if it has something to do with me mounting mine on the passenger side (Tuffy states you can mount it on either side as long as you don’t have the OEM power outlet). Maybe the alignment issue wouldn’t have been present if I had mounted it on the driver’s side as intended.

The Tuffy lockbox has a weather seal to keep your belongings dry and my favorite part is that it DOUBLES the amount of storage space in that location compared to the factory box!

My experience using Tuffy products

Aside from the hiccups with the installations, both the console safe and lockbox have performed great for me.

As a matter of fact, I trusted the safe enough to leave my wallet in the truck when the door lock wouldn’t function due to freezing rain. I would never leave important belongings in an unlocked vehicle previous to this.

The fit and finish of the console safe is nearly perfect and it continues to function exactly as intended 3 months after installing it. I haven’t had any issues with the lock sticking or anything like that.

Perhaps one improvement for the console safe would be to include a rubber mat for the floor of the safe instead of having to trim the factory carpet if you want to cover up the plastic floor of your console.

The rear lockbox offers lots of room for my ratchet straps and bungee cords. These might not exactly be considered valuable items, but I also don’t want them to go missing.

With no locking tailgate or tonneau cover on my Tacoma, this is the next best thing for keeping items secure in the bed. No signs of rust forming so far either, despite being exposed to the elements 24/7.