Essential Tools for D.I.Y Car Maintenance

So you've decided to throw on the overalls, rolls up the sleeves and crawl through the murky corners of your engine bay in the adventures of the home mechanic. Good on you and welcome to both the feeling of achievement and possibly saving some money in the long run! But before you grab the family claw hammer and discount store roll of electrical tape while hoping for the best, make sure your toolkit includes most of the following to make your car maintenance much easier and hopefully hassle free.

You're really not going to get to far without a few of the following:

♦ Clothes you don't mind getting dirty. Because in a nutshell, you're going to get dirty. And the longer you work on your own car, the filthier you'll become. So wrap yourself in a decent set of overalls or old t-shirts and clothes usually reserved for painting the house. Ones that you won't mind getting soaked in oil, grease and grime that you'll be quite happy to throw away (or burn) at the end of your work.

♦ Gloves. See above about getting dirty. Also helps to prevent burning your fingers if you haven't let your car cool down enough first.

♦ Adjustable wrenches or sockets and ring spanners in various sizes. Sure most size wrenches can usually be tightened to fit just about any bolt/nut but usually the deeper into your engine bay you go, the less room you'll have to move your wrench around. This is when smaller handled wrenches or the right fitting ratchet socket/ring spanner with smaller handle becomes much easier to use. Ratchet sockets and ring spanners are also essential for not stripping away stubborn bolts. Make sure you have as many sizes as possible for all applications.

♦ A screwdriver set of various sizes. Phillips head AND flat head. If they're magnetised it makes things easier retracting the screws from the bowels of your engine bay.

♦ A very bright led torch. It's dark in there and you'll need it when you go hunting for stray bolts, screws and well hidden parts. One that doubles as a lamp you can hang from your hood is a bonus.

♦ A can of WD40. Essential for loosening what's been locked for many years.

♦ A tyre iron with the correct fit for your lug nuts. Along with a jack, this is essential for getting your tyres off.

♦ A quality jack rated for your cars weight if you're planning to change your tyres. Also don't rely on just a jack if you're planning on getting under the car, invest in a quality pair of car stands instead for safety's sake.

♦ A tray to drain fluids into. Don't dump it in the gutters or your garden. Make sure it holds a lot, you'll be surprised how many fluids there are in your car. In a pinch, you can also use an empty container from previous maintenance - don't forget to recycle your old fluids correctly though!

♦ A magnet tool (usually on a flexible shaft.) All going well, you won't need this but boy does it help when things go south. Dropped bolts, sockets, nuts - you'll be surprised what can slip out of your possibly fluid covered fingers at times, so make it easier to retrieve from the deep dark recesses of your engine bay with one of these!

Here's what you might need to add to your toolbox depending on what you're working with.

♦ Brake piston realighnment tool. Usually a specialised socket that pushes back your brake piston. Only used when replacing your brake pads, you can also use a pair of pliers in a pinch.

♦ Pliers in various sizes. Handy when your fingers just won't fit into tough places/ picking up dropped bolts.

♦ Hand pump/drill pump attachment. Useful for getting fluids out that don't have a release hole hand (IE coolant).

♦ Spark plug puller. Depending on your car, some deep sockets will do the same job.

♦ Multimeter. Handy when trying to isolate electrical problems.

♦ Fuse tongs. Depends on how small your fingers are pretty much as some fuse boxes aren't easy to reach.

Here's what you won't need

♦ Sledgehammer. Well I guess if all else fails...