Going on the road with your family or friends and enjoying the amazing views along the way is a truly beautiful thing. Driving alone is a relaxing activity that can help you take your mind off stressful matters. But, sometimes, it’s all nice and beautiful until something unexpected happens, and you’re in the middle of nowhere with no phone signal.
What do you do? The best thing is to be prepared with tools that can help you out of the situation. Here are eight tools that every driver should make sure they carry in their car.
Tire-Pressure Gauge
The purpose of a tire-pressure gauge is to make sure that your tires have the proper air capacity. The gauge will tell you know how much pressure there is in the tire so you can make an informed decision on what to do next. Do you risk it by getting to the next gas station that hopefully has an air pump or change your tire because it is to flat to go anywhere.
You can find this tool almost everywhere: auto supply stores, gas stations, supercenters, and convenience stores for around $5, so it’s neither hard to find nor expensive.
Lug-Nut Wrench
You should already have a lug-nut wrench that is next to your spare tire. Check to see if one is there and if not, definitely get one. Why? Without it, you can not change your tire if that ever happens.
Costing about $10, a lug-nut wrench can be easily found in any auto supply store or online. Without this tool, you’ll spend much more when you have to hire someone to change your tire instead.
Jumper Cables
Another must-have tool in your trunk, especially when you’re on the road, are jumper cables. Jumper cables will save you or someone else from a dead battery.
Best not to buy the cheapest and shortest ones because you will deeply regret it. Better invest $30 or more in a quality product and know that it will never fail you.
Set of Screwdrivers
Screwdrivers should be a primary tool in everyone’s home toolbox, and you should also at least carry a one-in-all screwdriver for your car. You never know when you will need to remove the battery, change a headlight, or replace any component. But you can’t do any of those things without a screwdriver.
Rope or Chain
If your car refuses to start and you find yourself in the middle of nowhere, your only solution might be to use a rope or chain to have another driver pull you to the next auto shop. It doesn’t matter how many courteous drivers are willing to help you if neither of you has a rope or chain.
Even if you have a phone signal and you can call a tow truck, the bill will burn your pockets and for what? A rope costs around 20 dollars depending on the length you desire. Just be careful and ask the other drive not to drive too fast.
Flashlight
Everyone needs a flashlight in their car because unexpected things happen at night and a flashlight will certainly help by shining a light on the problem. You can also use a flashlight to look at the engine and underneath the car during the day. We recommend that you don’t rely on a smart phone’s flashlight because it might die or the beam might not illuminate the situation strong enough.
Duct Tape
Duct tape might not be the most common thing people would think to put in their car, but it can be extremely useful, at least for short periods of time, to get you home safe and sound.
Good duct tape can fix many things around the car, and if something unexpected happens, duct tape will probably be something to have. Remember, the TV character MacGyver used duct tape for nearly every problem, and so could you perhaps.
Shop Towels
Shop towels are great to have in your car at any time for all kinds of issues such as spills inside the car, cleaning the windshield and checking the oil. Helps keep you clean and can certainly go a long way in a pinch.
There’s no such thing as being too cautious when your life, time, and money are at stake. Stocking up on a few basic tools for your car will help you enjoy driving more, knowing that you are always prepared for most situations on the road without relying on someone else to help you.
Becky Holton is a journalist and a blogger at Brill Assignment. She is interested in education technologies, coursework writing service and is always ready to support informative speaking. Follow her on Twitter.
Photo attribution: Money Metals licensed under the Creative Commons 2.0 Generic (CC BY 2.0) license.
