What auto repair tools do you have???

[eg1]

Originally Posted by shoe

cell phone. wallet. credit card.

hehehe.

That and a CAA membership card

 

[Rambo]

Originally Posted by eg1

That and a AAA membership card

Fixed

 

[Huntsman]

Originally Posted by ms244

Huntsman, you forgot an important component to keep around if you have a British car.

Meh, yeah yeah I know.

 

[eg1]

Originally Posted by Rambo

Fixed

Around here all that would be good for is jimmying doors ...

 

[Arnold_Horseshack]

Originally Posted by ms244

Most of them, and that still doesn't tell me how a 4 barrel carter AFB should be tuned.

Figure set of 12 and 6 point sockets, 1/4 ,3/8 and 1/2 drive
Same for open ended wrenches. Both metric and inch
Allen and torx wrenches.
Assortment of screwdrivers, nut drivers, pliers, etc. Couple of hammers, small is good.

A good torque wrench

A code reader, there are all based on the same chip, you can build one if you like. There is some plans online.

Fluke or similar multimeter

Jack and stands - know where they safely go and never get underneath a car without stands. Wood blocks might work in a pinch if you have them.

A vernier caliper, and a machinist's ruler. Set of feeler gages.

A good shop light.

A case of Kroil. Trust me its worth the $5/can when you can't get that bolt off

A well organized tool box. Can't stress that enough, if you don't believe me you can look at mine

one of those telescoping antenna things with the magnet on the end and another with the little grips. Trust me on this one.

That would be a good start.

I would avoid an impact wrench, I think people don't understand what exactly "impact" means in this context and wind up ripping off all sorts of bolts and stuff with them. They should never be used to tighten wheels on a car, as it might overtighten to the point where changing the wheel on the road with a hand wrench is impossible.

Also, shop air is extremely expensive. Think about that if you are paying for the juice.

Ohh, and mark your tools.

yeah, i put my name on all my tools my cousins used ta steel my uncles tools and pawn em for beer and ****. theyd allways get there asses wooped when he found em at the pawn shop with his name on em. not too smart!!!!

torque wrenches are a trip! i knew one crazy hillbilly who had a buncha snapons and hed always be bustin the torque wrench but he got it replaced because of the warantee.

I mainly got craftsman and protos right now. the protos are the master mechanics set from my daddy. i like workin on old american cars but meybe i should take a course in how to fix bmws and mercedes-benzs and other german cars. theres money in that. defininately.

 

[Arnold_Horseshack]

..

 

[Dmax]

Most important tool auto repair tool in my arsenal - a laptop with VAG-COM software and connector that works with all Audi and VW.

Also usefull, Bentley Publishing Factory repair manual subcription and of course various wrenches, drivers, sockets, screwdrivers etc. Most of it Crafstman brand bought a while ago.

Talking about Craftsman, I had a couple of sockets crack on me in regular use. The quality seemed to go downhill within the past 5 years or so. If I had to buy more handtools I would definitely looks at higher end pro brands like Snap-On, etc.

 

[globetrotter]

I've tried to change two tires in the past 20 years, both in the past 2 years - (when I was in the army, I probrably changed 20 tires, it seems that we had really cheap **** tires on our jeeps). first one it turned out that my car, bought used, had the wrong sized wrench, and I couldn't get the nuts off the wheel, so I needed to call AAA. second time, rental car, and the tool that doubles as wrench and jack handle wasn't in the car, so I had to call for AAA.

next time, I will just call AAA.

 

[Huntsman]

Changed a bloody tire on Friday. I was late. Ticked me off.

 

[ms244]

I wanted to take off the panel behind the wheel to fix my windshield washer pump. Couldn't find the proper wrench, got a socket, adapter, 1/2 breaker bar.

Two broken adapters later (one taiwan, the other proto) I quit and went to drink beer with my buddy.

Pump still leaks.

 

[a tailor]

a screw driver a pliers, a claw hammer, a box of nails, and a cross cut saw.

 

[j]

Originally Posted by ms244

I wanted to take off the panel behind the wheel to fix my windshield washer pump. Couldn't find the proper wrench, got a socket, adapter, 1/2 breaker bar.

Two broken adapters later (one taiwan, the other proto) I quit and went to drink beer with my buddy.

Pump still leaks.

Jeez, trying to take off the steering wheel? It's better to use an impact hammer for the big nut. Or just slam on a big regular wrench with a block of wood or something. You have to break it loose.

On my old Datsuns, the 4-way tire wrench I had fit that so I got pretty quick at pulling the wheel.

 

[Huntsman]

Nah, probably the panel behind the drivers' front wheel.

My choice for lug nuts in odd situations is the aforementioned 1/2" breaker bar, socket, and a short extension (supported by a scissors jack to hold it up against the shear component of the torque). Set the assembly horizontal such that downward force will loosen, support extension with jack, gently step on wrench handle (with a hand on car to steady, and one foot on ground). Wouldn't suggest it with a 3/8" socket adapted to 1/2" though!

~ Huntsman

 

[j]

Oh. Wheel. Right.

 

[ms244]

Yea, regular wheel. I actually have an impact wrench but no compressor.

Here is the BFC.com write up on what I wanted to do.
http://forums.bimmerforums.com/forum...d.php?t=584735

Problem is that getting into my garage doesn't take much effort, my only real source of security it to keep things out of sight and hope that whomever breaks in will make enough of a racket for the renters of the house its at to call the cops.

So all my tools are in one tightly clustered pile in one cabinet. I'm working on fixing the security problem but school keeps getting in the way

So finding tools is a big problem.

Oddly enough the single most expensive thing is sitting in the middle of the floor. An SB lathe, but I don't think (pray hope!) that anyone will bother to take that.

One more thing to add, join whatever forum covers your cars. Chances are most common problems and fixes have been gone over and documented.