Maintaining your car regularly will save you from spending a hefty amount at once. By performing DIY maintenance with the right tools, you can save money and time, as well as increase the average life of the vehicle. You don’t have to be a professional to perform simple DIY tasks. New cars are expensive, so it isn’t easy to buy a new car. Regular maintenance and scheduled service have become very expensive. DIY routine maintenance and repair are more critical than ever for vehicle owners holding onto their used vehicles. Learning to work on your automobile may be a significant money saver, saving you hundreds of dollars yearly.
Many owners have adopted the DIY (Do it yourself) path regarding the maintenance of their automobiles. It requires basic knowledge about the vehicle and tools to perform these tasks. Hand tools are one of the most critical aspects when it comes to automotive maintenance and auto mechanics. It is crucial to use the right tool for a given application and of course, it doesn’t hurt to have a toolbox at your garage. For instance, you need a wrench to screw and unscrew a nut. Fear not! This article provides a rare insight into the must-have essential tools for your garage and workshop.
- Safety Equipments
- Work Light
- Socket Wrench Set And Pliers
- Vehicle Jack
- Wheel Chocks Or Stoppers
- Tire Iron And Breaker Bars
- Tire Pressure Gauge
- Torque Wrench
- Fluid Drain Pan
- Oil Filter Wrench
- Circuit Tester
- Spark Plug Socket
- Battery Jump Starter
- OBD Code Reader
- IR Thermometer
1 List Of Important Tools:
Safety Equipments
Regardless of the project, human safety must be a top priority. Personal protective equipment should include safety glasses, hearing protection, a face mask or complete face shield, long pants, a long-sleeved shirt, closed-toe shoes, and mechanics gloves. This is one of the basic tools that help keep your hands and fingers safe while working.
Work Light
A work light is one of the most useful tools. Using a work light to see what you’re doing in a dark garage or while lying beneath a car is a vital benefit that ensures you’re doing repairs and maintenance activities correctly. An essential work light that can stand alone is an excellent addition to any tool bag.
Socket Wrench Set And Pliers
Because they can efficiently grasp nuts and bolts for quick removal and replacement, sockets and ratcheting socket wrenches are utilized for many automobile repairs and maintenance chores. Because most car parts are attached with nuts and bolts, possessing a high-quality socket set is critical to the success of any DIY automotive operation.
Auto activities may not necessitate pliers as frequently as a socket wrench. Still, several situations are best managed with a set of these tools. A good set of pliers can often reach narrow spots that other instruments cannot. This is especially true with needle-nose pliers, although angled pliers are also helpful for past maneuvering impediments inside the engine. Therefore having a ratchet set and pliers in your toolbox can go a long way.
Vehicle Jack
Power tools are vital for any vehicle. Car jacks are essential for conducting DIY automotive chores. It is challenging to access various crucial components of the car without this tool, including the oil filter, transmission fluid pan, and brakes. A vehicle jack gently elevates a car or truck off the ground by sliding beneath the frame. The tool allows the tires to be removed without injuring the rotors, axle, or driveshaft and raises the vehicle sufficiently to provide relatively easy access to the underneath of the car.
Wheel Chocks Or Stoppers
A vehicle is susceptible to shifting and rolling even with the parking brake. Wheel chocks are designed to keep automobile DIYers safe while doing repairs and maintenance. Put them beneath the vehicle’s back wheels to keep it from rolling. A wheel stopper is a simple gadget that will simplify your life while protecting you.
Tire Iron And Breaker Bars
Tire irons and breaker bars help remove more giant nuts and bolts from vehicles. A tire iron is typically used to remove and reconnect the lug nuts that keep the wheel on the car while changing a tire. At the same time, a breaker bar gives additional power to assist break apart and freeing any corroded or stuck connections. Consider purchasing a Tire Iron, which is intended to accommodate the majority of standard SAE (Society of Automotive Engineers) and metric lug nut sizes.
Tire Pressure Gauge
One must adequately inflate a tire to the proper pressure. Each automobile requires tires with different pressure. For instance, a heavy-weight Land Rover’s tire must have high pressure, whereas a motorbike doesn’t need as much. A tire pressure gauge can easily cost $30, $40, $50, or more. There are different kinds of tire gauges, including round dial-face units, digital readout gauges, dual-head chuck designs, and so on. It is vital to choose the correct gauge for you.
Torque Wrench
Home mechanics sometimes assume that “tight is tight,” that is, rotating the bolt, nut, or screw until it stops spinning is “good enough.” There are multiple issues with this. Thus, what seems right to you may not be tight enough for someone else. Then there’s the matter of bolt or fastener head size: more giant bolts need greater tightening torque, while little bolts require lesser torque. And, of course, there is the issue of safety. Under-tightened fasteners on crucial objects (such as wheel bolts) can spell disaster if one or more come away while driving. The solution to this is a specific tool, which few DIY technicians appear to have: a torque wrench. A suitable initial torque wrench would have a 3/8″ drive and a range and weight of 15 lb. ft. 75 lb. It is also vital to be of the “click kind” so that the auditory signal alerts the user when the proper torque is achieved.
Fluid Drain Pan
That oil you emptied by unscrewing the oil drain plug must go somewhere. Suppose you’ve been using an open pan. In that case, you know how difficult it may be to pour the oil into a more appropriate container for proper disposal. An oil or fluid drain pan fits beneath your car. It has a considerable capacity and features a built-in funnel to collect all the brake fluid. When it’s complete, carry it to the recycling facility without worrying about spillage.
Oil Filter Wrench
An Oil Filter Wrench is used to remove and install the oil filter. Oil changes can be tricky as the filter can be a little too tight. Apart from that, the potential of some oil leakage can make it difficult to loosen the filter. A handle on an oil filter wrench fits over the canister by providing grip and power.
Circuit Tester
Digital multimeters (DMMs) are popular due to their capacity to measure AC voltages, DC volts, amps, ohms, continuity, and, in some cases, temperature. The complexity of a DMM puts can seem daunting to those who are just beginning in automobile maintenance. A 12V test lamp may perform the same function as a DMM due to its simplicity. The test lamp can be a more useful electrical instrument for the DIYer. A test lamp can check voltage and ground and is essential for diagnosing and repairing lights, fuses, switches, motors, terminals, shorted wires, and other electrical components.
Spark Plug Socket
While thinking about gear to aid with the spark plug replacement, don’t forget about a spark plug socket. These inexpensive gadgets evaluate the spacing on the new spark plug and, if necessary, modify them to the proper distance. The gap between the center and side electrodes may not satisfy the manufacturer’s criteria if a spark plug gap tool is not used. It might decrease the efficiency and cause wear and tear on the spark plugs. A spark plug has a ceramic body that, while strong, can break if handled aggressively.
The rubber or foam in the plug socket protects the ceramic and grips the spark plug, so it remains seated within the socket. A word of caution is that it is crucial to know your vehicle’s right spark plug socket size before purchasing it. The spark plug socket is available in different sizes, such as a 14mm spark plug socket and a 9/16 spark plug socket. They are also easy to work with.
Battery Jump Starter
Owning a new car can be pretty expensive. Thus, we advise keeping a set of solid jumper wires in your trunk. If your battery isn’t failing, someone else’s is! The 12 Volt battery jump starter is a product of modern technology.
Modern technology has advanced so much that a battery jump starter can jump-start a dead 12V battery, charge your phone, and inflate your tires thanks to its built-in air compressor. It does everything but fills your petrol tank. A quick rechargeable jump starter that fits into the trunk is a must-have!
OBD Code Reader
The vexing “Check Engine Light” (CEL) has a bothersome habit of flashing itself at the most inconvenient times, especially when you’re running low on cash and can’t afford to take the car in for a diagnostic check. What could it possibly be? You don’t need a master’s degree to use a code reader and figure out what’s wrong. The OBD Code reader helps decode that. It can not only read the codes for you, but it can also erase them and turn off your CEL. You can refer to the instruction manual and start using it; it’s as simple as that.
IR Thermometer
One last tool every automobile owner must have is an IR Thermometer. Temperature control is critical in modern automobiles. Knowing the running temperature of various solid, liquid, and gaseous substances becomes a crucial diagnostic measurement. For much of the 20th century, technicians relied on mercury-type thermometers for such findings, and those thermometers required physical contact with the substance being measured. One issue is that some operating temperatures are so hot that one can be seriously burned if accidental contact is made. That problem is essentially solved by the invention of the IR (infrared) contactless thermometer.
We at PartsAvatar genuinely hope this list is helpful for your automobile travels and car repairs. Perhaps you already have one or two of these must-have tools on this list; in that case, all you need to do is purchase the others. Using the correct tool for the job makes your next DIY repair more accessible, faster, and safer. This equipment will also empower you to work on your automobile and save money!
