How to mount a tiny dashcam (but not forever)?

November 13, 2023 3:29 PM

I recently got a mini Garmin Dashcam and I'm having a heck of a time finding a way to get it mounted to the, well, dash. It came with a super sticky little mounting clip. I first used it in a rental car and the adhesive was so strong I was afraid I was going to either 1) damage the rental car or 2) the camera itself when I removed it. Ideally, I'd like something that's strong but removable, and the "sticky" stuff I've tried so far hasn't worked. Help!

The removability factor is important here: I live in a part of the world that's seen a massive uptick in crime, especially auto break-ins.

The dashcam is about 1 x 2 inches, so it's nice and small and light. The base it sits on is less than an inch in diameter. So far I have tried that blue tacky gum stuff and the 3M mounting squares. The mounting sqaures held it on the dash for about a full minute. The blue tacky gum didn't even hold it for 0.5 second.

I'd love to have something that will hold it in place for as long as most of my errands around town will last (also for longer road trips to visit family, which I do several times a year). I need to be able to remove it and bring it inside so that it's less tempting for theft. Additionally, the part of the country I live in gets obscenely hot in the summer (110 degrees F plus), and I don't want the camera to get damaged by excessive heat.

All ideas are welcome, no matter how wacky they may be! Thanks in advance, Hive!

posted by chatelaine to Travel & Transportation (8 answers total)

I don't have the Dashcam, but my Garmin GPS system mounts with this Garmin friction mount. I see other types of Garmin friction mounts on Amazon. Maybe one is made for your dashcam.

I see I bought my first one in 2016, and I've never had it fall off the dashboard. It doesn't stick, so you just pick it up to move it. It's weighted - kind of like a heavy beanbag.
posted by FencingGal at 3:34 PM on November 13, 2023

3M command strips are basically perfect for this.
posted by mhoye at 4:26 PM on November 13, 2023 [5 favorites]

It's a little unclear if this is for an owned or rented vehicle.

If you own the car you'll be mounting it in, then a hook-and-loop attachment might fit this use case? The hook and look is firmly glued to the dash and the camera, and you can quickly attach and detach the cam from the dash?
posted by agentofselection at 5:50 PM on November 13, 2023

I just got an Easypass from my state and it comes with Velcro™ mounting strips. It freezes and gets above 100 degrees here, so this is probably a weather tested solution. These are not fabric, but all plastic and it still uses the hook and loop fastening method.
posted by soelo at 6:18 PM on November 13, 2023

Another point is that these items stick to clean glass better than they do to the other textured materials in a car.
posted by soelo at 6:20 PM on November 13, 2023

If it were me, I'd find a small box or tray that would hold it securely enough, attach that to the dashboard, then just rest the Garmin in there when you need to. Bonus: you can add something wider that can hold your phone or whatever too.
posted by amtho at 6:23 PM on November 13, 2023

Response by poster: FencingGal I know exactly what you're talking about! I've used those for the larger Garmin GPS devices (which I also own) and sadly this device is waaayyy too tiny for that (and yeah, I've looked).

agentsofselection So it's technically for both. I would need to put it into my own car as well as a rental as the need arises. I love the idea and I'm definitely going to look into that. Sounds similar to what soleo is recommending as well.
posted by chatelaine at 8:43 PM on November 13, 2023

Best answer: is a suction cup mount not an option? seems like the way to go.
posted by mullacc at 11:29 PM on November 13, 2023 [2 favorites]