The little nook in your car where you can keep insurance information, your sunglasses, and a tube of sunblock is called the glove compartment. Located facing the front passenger seat, most glove compartments have a lockable door.
A car's glove compartment fits into the dashboard, usually on the right-hand side. It makes sense to keep important documents and manuals in there, although many drivers use the glove compartment for tissues, tiny packets of ketchup, and anything else that will fit. As you may have guessed, glove compartments were originally meant for storing driving gloves. Also known as a glovebox, this compartment was initially located on the floor of the earliest cars.