Best Ant Traps for Cars

Here’s how to get ants out of your car fast!

You know what’s worse than ants in your yard? Ants in your car. These pesky bugs are quite a nuisance. Not only will they ruin your wiring and make driving difficult, but they can bite you while you’re driving! If you want to get rid of ants in your car for good, then it’s time to try ant traps or baits.

The best ant traps for cars will quickly eliminate ants without causing any damage or harm to your vehicle (and your health!).

How car ant traps work

Ant traps for cars contain a mixture of food and slow-acting poison that attracts worker ants. So, when they find this sweet (but poisonous) treat they’ll carry it back to their colony where it will be shared with the queen and other ants in the colony. This process needs to be repeated if you want to have a chance at getting rid of ants in car once and for all.

• Best ant trap for car (with an adhesive): Terro T334 liquid ant trap
• Most effective gel: Syngenta Advion ant gel trap
• Top strip ant bait for cars: Combat ant killer trap
• Best value: Harris car ant bait

Why use an ant Trap for your car?

There are good reasons why ant baits are the best way to get rid of ants in cars. First, ant baits draw the worker ants out of hiding. This means that even when you can’t pinpoint exactly where the nest is, this method of car ant removal will still work. And even when the nest is inaccessible, ant traps for cars will work because the worker ant takes the poison to the colony.

Secondly, ant traps can effectively wipe out an entire colony whereas most ant sprays or powders act only on the ants that come with them.

Read also: The 3 Best Rodent Repellent for Cars

Types of ant bait traps for cars

There are three types of ant traps that you can use to get rid of ants in a car quickly and easily: liquid, strip, and gel traps.

Liquid ant traps come in bottles and are applied by pouring them into bait stations that are placed around your car. These are effective at attracting ants, but they can be messier than gel or strip ant traps. On the other hand, gel ant traps come either prepackaged in little bait stations or a tube. The tube version allows you to squeeze the bait directly on the ant trail, as well as in crevices or holes where the ants are hiding.

Strip ant traps are strip-shaped (duh!) and contain the ant bait that you need to get rid of the ants in the car. You can place these in areas where you have experienced an infestation. They also have adhesive for easy placement around the car.

Where to put ant traps in car?

That depends on your situation. Don’t put the ant baits inside your car if you have only a few ants or if the infestation hasn’t spread very far yet. Because the baits are designed to attract ants, placing one in your car will initially bring on all the ants from the source – which might actually be outside your car. Instead, find ant baits that attach to your car’s exterior such as the Terro T334. Or you can also get outdoor ant bait stakes and stick them to the area near your car to draw ants away from the vehicle. You can also put car ant baits along already established foraging trails or where there are signs of activity—like piles of dirt or crumbs.

What is the best ant trap for car?

We’ve tested a lot of the different ant traps out there and our stand-out pick is the Terro T334 liquid ant bait. This product self-attaches inside or outside your vehicle and is very effective in long-term ant removal. The active ingredient in this car ant trap is Borax, which is much less harmful to humans and pets than other pesticides out there. And at just $7 for four bait stations, it’s a great deal too.

Here are other top picks.

Best Liquid ant traps for cars

Terro Liquid Ant Traps for Cars

This Amazon bestseller is incredibly effective at getting rid of ants in cars. The ant traps are designed to get rid of individual ants within 2-3 days and keep doing so until no more ants are visiting the trap (up to 14 days). Keep replacing the car ant traps when they’re depleted. You can take them out when no ants visit them for several days in a row.

• Package: 12 ant bait stations
• Active ingredient: Borax
• Type: Liquid ant bait for cars

Maxforce Quantum Liquid Ant Trap Bait for Car

This Bayer car ant removal product has been around for a long time and is still one of the best liquid ant traps on the market today. It works well against a wide variety of ant species including the tough Argentine and Pharaoh ants. Maxforce’s moisture-rich formula ensures that it will continue to deliver results for up to three months. To use, simply squeeze ant bait onto the bait stations and place them in strategic problem areas.

To eliminate carpenter ant infestations, go for Bayer’s Max Force Fleet ant gel, one of the best ant baits for carpenter ants. This one comes with no bait station, simply squeeze it into crevices or holes to attract the ants.

• Active ingredient: 0.03% Imidacloprid.
• Type: Liquid ant killer for car
• Package: 120gm tube + 10 ant bait traps for car

You might also like: Harris ant bait, a liquid ant trap that is quite effective and rated quite highly by users. It’s quite affordable too and will take out most ant types except Argentine and Pharaoh ants. The package includes 10z formula and 9 bait stations.

Best Gel ant baits for cars

Syngenta Advion Ant Gel Trap for Car

This product comes highly recommended as one of the best gel ant traps to knock out your ant problem for good. Indoxacarb, the active ingredient, delivers rapid results and will knock off the pests within days. It’s especially effective at eliminating sweet feeder ants, which make up a very large proportion of the ants in our homes and cars.

The Syngenta Advion ant trap is applied via syringe to problem areas in your car. It will deliver long-lasting, effective ant elimination. It’s a little bit pricey, but it does the job.

• Active ingredient: Indoxacarb.
• Type: Gel ant trap for car
• Package: 30gm x 4 syringes

Combat Gel Ant Traps for Cars

The Combat Max gel ant baits contain a powerful ingredient, Fipronil, which quickly gets rid of ants commonly found in cars. You simply place these car ant traps near problem areas or on ant trails to get rid of ants from your car within 24-36 hours. Plus, they are mess-free; they come prepackaged so they’re easy to use and just as easy to dispose of when they’re done exterminating those pesky little critters.

• Active ingredient:  Fipronil
• Type: Gel ant bait
• Package: 4 ant baits for car

Best Strip ant bait for cars

Combat Ant Killing Bait Strips

Strip ant traps are super easy to use. Just place them around the car and the ants will crawl out of the woodwork to come to get the bait. Then you will fewer and fewer ants as the bait takes them out. We also like that these strip ant baits for car can be stuck on problematic areas (like a car exterior) using the adhesive at the back.

• Active ingredient:  Fipronil
• Type: Strip ant traps
• Package: 5 ant bait strips for car

Are car ant traps safe?

These are technically not toxic to humans and pets and are somewhat safer than pesticides since they pose no inhalation danger. However, they are still a chemical ant removal method, so caution is advised. For instance, keep car ant traps away from children and pets. Do not use it in food preparation areas. Always wash up thoroughly after handling the car ant bait. Finally, be sure to carefully dispose of the used ant baits.

Are there safe ant bombs for cars?

If you’re looking for a way to get rid of ants in your car, you may be tempted to use bug bombs. But are bug bombs safe for cars?

The answer is no. These devices are designed to be used in larger spaces like houses or apartments, and they contain toxic chemicals that are bad for humans and pets. Instead, use any of the ant baits for cars reviewed above.

However, if you do decide to go the route of car ant bomb (which we don’t recommend), remove yourself from the treatment area and stay away for the specified amount of time. Also, thoroughly air out the vehicle after use and run your air conditioner system to clear out vents and vents.

Getting rid of ants in car naturally

Once you discover ants in your car, there are a few things you can do before you even think about ant baits or pesticides. To start with, if you were parked near an anthill, moving your car away from the scene of infestation is a good start. And if having sugary stuff or food in your car was the cause of the infestation, try cleaning your car thoroughly, both inside and out. If the problem persists, then it’s time to bring out the big guns.

You could also try some DIY fresheners that ants find repellant. Examples include lemon grass and peppermint scents.