Essential Car Tools and Value for Money Car Tools in your garage

[Zak33]

Lo good car people

This thread has two purposes:

A) list what you love in your garage and tool box... where to buy it and the Value for Money it represents for you.

and

B) to drive forward people having the right tool for the job... because.... when you do, the crap job turns dead easy.

[Zak33]

I start with the £3.49 LED inspection lamp

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Powered by 2 AAA batteries (buy 'em cheap in Ikea) this little puppy is amazing.

The clip on the head of it is magnetic and stiucks under the bonnet of my car easily. It rotate to either side of the torch's body too, so it can aim anywhere and flood the area with light.

[Zak33]

then there's the magnetic telescopic pick up.. for wehen you drop that blummi'n screw or bolt down onto the gearbox, under the selector linkage.

Or when you drop a screwdriver or spanner down the sie of the battery tray!

£2.77

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

[Zak33]

then there is the Anti Freeze strength tester

unscrew the cold radiator cap/expansion tank cap.. and suck up the coolant.. see what amount of discs float in the clear tube body.. and read the temperature thart your engine is protected too.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

£4.19

[GoNz0]

draper vortex socket set, you will thank me for buying this along with a 3/8ths ratchet to compliment it.


£64.91

shallow depth and will fit over any length bolt!

when I got it I thought it was a little light weight, then I tackled the rear wheel bearings on my 16 yeaer old BMW 3 series, it's a 9/10 job and the socket set did a very good job.

Zak edit.. photo and price added for consistency in the thread..not that I TOLD Anyone.. I forgot....ummmm

[kalniel]

then there's the magnetic telescopic pick up.. for wehen you drop that blummi'n screw or bolt down onto the gearbox, under the selector linkage.

Or when you drop a screwdriver or spanner down the sie of the battery tray!

£2.77

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

This is also good for spotting ferrous build up in radiator pipes

*Zak edit..... You know too much you do *

[Zak33]

car battery trickle charger... genuinely did bring a dead old battery back from the.. err.. dead.. and it was useable properly again!

Slow... not a fast charger... but it works.

Odd lighting system on it, and it does light up nearly as soon as the battery is connected if it has some juice left.. but ignore that... let it charge.. it gets brighter! As per numerour reviews on Amazon... it's as tricky one to gauge.. but if the battery was toast... what's to lose? Nothing.. and after a long night charging... it was fine again. And that battery is STILl fine.. would have binned it too.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

£10.45
good crocodile clips... easy to clamp on.

[GoNz0]

inch lb Torque wrench


ideal for little jobs so you dont strip/snap a small nut/bolt £14 + £4 p&p

also have a large one http://www.amazon.co.uk/Silverline-6...=torque+wrench

£18



and a ball joint splitter, these things are worth having handy. about £7.19



http://www.amazon.co.uk/Toolzone-Bal...joint+splitter

[Zak33]

Torx set

not the finest quality, but worth adding to the Amazon basket if you spend £20 on other stuf.. cos then this costs....

£1.89 !!

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B...?ie=UTF8&psc=1



and you KNOW you've needed the occassional torx to take off a dash board instrument panel... or the hinge for the glovebox, ... haven't you?

[Zak33]

then there's the filler spout...

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B...A3P5ROKL5A1OLE

£1.52 when you add it to another order....




might be worth having two.. one for oil.. one for coolant?

[phil4]

http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/s...egoryId_255215


Halfords Advanced Professional 150 Piece Socket & Ratchet Spanner Set


Practically every socket and driver you'll ever need, metric and imperial, some lovely ratchet spammers as well. Useful around the home as well as in the garage. Lifetime warranty to boot.

[Zak33]

and a magnetic tray... cos it's easy when the tray sticks to the car (or ramp if you're lucky enough) and the bolts/nuts/socket/spanner sticks to the tray.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B...A2WPIEMM3KXQX3
£5.40

[Agent]

Breaker bar: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Sealey-600mm...2715220&sr=8-1

I get the 1/2 inch as they are a tenner and easy to work with.

Oil Syringe: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Suction-Vacu...2715287&sr=1-7

Because you'll need one at some point

Site light: http://www.screwfix.com/p/portable-s...40v-400w/46377

Inspection lights like above are very useful, but sometimes you just need to flood an area with light.

Powerful portable torch: http://www.screwfix.com/p/jml2933-re...-1-x-4ah/83703

They don't last long when on, but my word, if you're out and about and break down - lifesaver for checking things. You can charge them in the car too.

Head torch: http://www.screwfix.com/p/ring-autom...headlamp/38595

Five quid to look like a plonker, but not have to mess about with getting someone to hold a torch. You can get better ones, but for a fiver, that's decent.

Tyre weld: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Holts-HT3YA-...ords=tyre+weld

Save yourself a massive amount of time in an emergency situation.

edit - http://www.amazon.co.uk/Draper-43853...rds=funnel+set

Funnel set - the large one above is great for the main oil, but a size selection makes your job a lot easier.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Oil-Drain-Pa...collector+tray

Oil collector, although you might want to consider this if you have easy access: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Large-Litre-...+collector+pan

You can empty it / transport it easily.

Oil filter pliers: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Am-Tech-12-i...+Filter+Pliers

Because messing about with the chain based ones are a nightmare.

[Zak33]

agent... that is a very very good list... I need some of those. good man

breaker bar.... excellent. funnels... awesome.

[Zak33]

but the site light is the best.... you're right.... sometimes to flood the area with light is best.

and warmer too in winter.

excellent .... and screwfix in most towns. win!

[Agent]

At the risk of getting into basic maintenance now, but I still can't be without....

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Copper-Greas...pr_product_top

Any area that is going to be exposed should use some of this. It'll stop things seizing up or vastly reduce it.
Use it on your battery terminals too. It helps reduce and stop the oxidation you get on them.

http://www.screwfix.com/p/laser-ht-l...ack-of-4/61411

An easy way to check for HT issues. Sure, there are other ways (such as using the frame / engine), but open, plug, start. No messing and easy.

A multimeter. It'll allow you to check the alternator charging voltage and the voltage when idle. You can check continuity of circuits for breaks and a ton of other things.

If you're working with droplinks / wishbones / wheels: http://www.screwfix.com/p/laser-fork...tor-19mm/19907

I've seen some tragic results from people not buying a few quid BS separator.

And hardly a cheap item...but an impact driver. Believe the hype, I couldn't be without mine. You just don't realise how much easier these things make jobs in DIY and stuck on bolts / screws. Stripping the heads off things are now gone. A solid investment, but make sure you get a decent one. The 220nm one I have seems to be fine for all jobs I've given it so far.

If you want even a bit more power, consider an impact wrench. Even just over 30 quid will get you something that's not too bad: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Liftmaster-I...2722243&sr=1-1
It's only a 12v one, but don't let that put you off. That will still take your tyre bolts off in seconds.

If you're looking for a decent screwdriver set at the moment: http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B004F0JYPS/ref=nosim
On the right under 'More buying choices' you can get these for a tenner. Delivered. With a stand to sit on the side. Proper bargain.

Finally, always have some clear tubing on hand to go along with the funnels above. Being able to put a bit of pipe in the hole, take it away from ant paintwork or tight areas, into a funnel will allow you much better control.

I'll have a gander in the shed tomorrow, but that's most of the really useful stuff I think.