Every car owner who likes to go the DIY route as far as possible to save on mechanic costs needs a basic set of tools in his car tool kit. It doesn't cost much to equip yourself with a car tool kit like this. And the convenience of the savings can be really great.
The first thing any car tool kit needs is set of specialty screwdrivers. Back in the day (and this would be a day from very long ago), everyone had a couple screwdrivers; but if you had a Phillips head screwdriver, you were considered totally DIY. The DIY Enthiusiast title doesn't come cheaply these days. To begin with, every car uses screws with a dozen different kinds of screw heads.
And they tend to be in all kinds of awkward hard-to-reach places. Not only do you need lots of different screw heads, you need lots of different screwdriver lengths as well. A universal magnetic screwdriver set would be great where you just get the one handle and lots of different tips that you attach with magnets. Make sure that you go to a car tools store and stock up.
The next items on your list of absolute must haves are a torque wrench, a ratchet and short U-joint sockets.
A torque wrench of course is something you cannot do without. But you can't just go in and ask for torque wrench. They come in a number of different kinds. Some of them come with dials, some of them come with a clicker and so on. They also manufacture them for torque ranges expressed in different units – metric, foot-pounds and so on. Once you have your mind made up about what variety to get here, you need to think about the socket drive sizes. If you're just starting out, buy a clicker torque wrench with a half inch drive.
When you first begin working on your car, you'll find that there are all these nuts, bolts and screws that are placed in places that apparently no human was ever intended to reach. Well, no human was intended to reach those who wasn't equipped with the right tools. This is where those ratchet and short U joint sockets common. Make sure that you have a set in your car toolkit.
And finally, do get a set of the vice jaw inserts and aluminum A-N wrenches. If your model of car uses any A-N settings, these tools are a must. Those aluminum fittings will completely go if you try to use standard steel tools on them.
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