A hardwired GPS tracker connects to two points: the vehicle's battery and, once powered, a network. The wiring itself is genuinely simple — two cables, no splicing into the existing harness — but "simple" still means "do it in the right order." Here's the walkthrough.

What you need

The GPS device (arrives pre-configured — see below)
No special tools: the included wiring is designed for a direct battery connection
10–15 minutes

Step 1: Locate the battery

Most passenger vehicles have the battery under the hood; some have it in the trunk or under a rear seat — check your owner's manual if it isn't where you expect. You're looking for the positive (+) and negative (−) terminals, clearly marked on the battery itself.

Step 2: Connect positive, then negative

Connect the device's positive (red) cable to the battery's positive terminal first, then the negative (black) cable to the negative terminal. Doing positive first and negative last — and disconnecting in the reverse order if you ever need to remove the device — is standard practice for working around a vehicle battery: it reduces the chance of a short if a tool or cable brushes metal while you're still connecting things.

Step 3: Secure the device in a protected location

Once wired in, tuck the device somewhere it won't get wet, won't get crushed by anything that shifts in the engine bay or trunk, and isn't resting directly on anything hot. It doesn't need to be hidden for the tracking itself to work — that's a judgment call based on your own situation, not a technical requirement.

Step 4: Confirm it's reporting

The device ships pre-configured with its network and server settings already set — that configuration happens before it reaches you, which is why installation is just the physical wiring. Once it's connected to power, it should start reporting its position within a few minutes. Log in to the platform and check that the vehicle shows up on the map with a recent timestamp; if it doesn't appear after 10–15 minutes, double-check both terminal connections are solid before assuming anything else is wrong — a loose connection is by far the most common reason a freshly-installed device doesn't show up.

Common mistakes

Reversed polarity — connecting red to negative or black to positive. Double-check before connecting, not after.
Mounting near heat or moving parts — close to the exhaust manifold or anywhere a belt or fan could reach it.
Assuming a device that isn't reporting yet is broken — give it a few minutes after the first connection before troubleshooting further.

After installation

With the device wired in and reporting, the rest happens in the app: register the vehicle (make, model, year — a VIN lookup can fill most of this in automatically), link the device's ID to that vehicle record, and you're tracking. See how GPS fleet tracking works for what happens to the data from here — how raw position reports become trips, and trips become mileage reports.

GPS Tracker Installation Guide: Wiring a Hardwired Device to Your Vehicle