Trunk Carry - or - What tools and items should you always carry in the car?

This may already be on DMCTalk, but I didn't find it after many searches… so…

On DeLoreanTalk.com, I often ask people what's in the trunk of their DeLorean. So far the answers has shown to be pretty minimal.

As I drive #10515 out and about, I know that at some point, I'm going to break down. And, while I live in Southern California and it's extremely easy to get AAA to pick me up, I think I'd prefer to be able to fix some of the 'simpler' issues without having to be towed. So, I keep thinking about what tools and items I should carry in the car.

Now I'm asking you all - what should people keep in their 12 in. tool bag - IN THE CAR (and why), that MIGHT help save them from the "ride of shame"?

MUST have:

• Fuses (at least 2 of each amperage) - a blown fuse can keep you from starting the car… or having lights.
• Pliers - pulling old fuses, tightening/loosening a nut, etc.
• Medium screwdrivers (flat and phillips) - removing center console, tightening trim pieces, etc.
• Knife - when that piece of floating plastic on the freeway gets wrapped around a wheel, etc.
• ?

NICE to have:

• Set of plastic pry bars - removing center console vents, etc.

And, for those times when you end up giving an impromptu car show and weren't ready:

NON-tool kit items:

• Glass cleaner - glass cleaning.
• Paper or fabric towels - glass cleaning, spills, cleanup.

** Please label as "MUST have", "NICE to have", or "NON-tool kit items" - AND include a short 'why'. Thanks! **

This list is from what I have in my motor cycle saddle bags besides what is listed in Dave's post above.


Must have:

Cell phone charged & a Credit card
Fire extinguisher - In an emergency a can or bottle of soda can also work.. Shake it up first.
LED flashlight
Tire plug repair kit and small 12 volt air compressor
Disposable gloves - Takes up less room than hand cleaner
2 adjustable wrenches
Tie wraps (zip ties) of different sizes.
Some electrical tape and duct tape.
To save room I wrap duct tape and some electrical tape on a screw driver shaft or in the middle of a wrench handle. Usually enough to fix something
and don't have to take up space with a roll of it.
A couple pieces of electrical wire and a few wire nuts.

Spare headlight, turn signal and tail light bulbs.

Non tool kit item
First Aid Kit

Nice to have
Beer :)

We have this one for Fieros as well. I know some owners that actually have First Aid kit boxes with "Fiero" printed above that. Might be a cool thing to do and put in the cubby behind the drivers seat with a few "must haves" in it.

I recommend you carry a printed schematic of the DeLorean wiring diagram. Also carry a few jumpers with the male relay pins crimped on to replace the relays or trouble shooting electrical problems.

Back in 2006, our own Bill Ballard posted an excellent article regarding this on our Texas Club Articles page. To save you one click, here's the direct link:

DeLorean Break-down Kit

I'm not endorsing the part about not carrying a real spare vs. an inflation kit of some type, you have to decide that. Everything else makes good sense.

Thomas

...

Toolbox essentials also discussed here: http://dmctalk.org/showthread.php?12...box-Essentials

The only MUST I would suggest is to carry with you the intimate knowledge of your own car. What it feels and sounds like when working well. What it feels and sounds like when it is not. AND what you can do about it to fix it. If you don't know your car very well and can't diagnose or fix things at home in your garage, then you won't stand much chance of fixing them on the side of the road.

That being said, I don't carry very many spare PARTS with me in the car. Only spare belts really. And a bag of used fuses and relays that could go in if needed.

A keep a set of basic tools in the car like screw drivers and wrenches and a few sockets. Metric sockets that is. I also keep a portable air compressor in the car that works off the cigar lighter power plug in case one of the tires gets low on air. There's also a wire stripping tool kit (small) that has a variety of connectors with it in the trunk.

I think I have more car show stuff in the car than car fixing stuff to be honest. Folding lawn chair, suntan lotion, sunglasses, display stuff like model cars, BTTF magazine props and FAQ sheets. I keep things in the trunk in shoe boxes to help keep it organized. One shoe box for tools/car repair sort of stuff, one box for car show stuff and another for misc things for the car like stereo accessories and a couple towels in case I get caught in the rain and the roof leaks onto the seats. The flux capacitor is sometimes in the frunk taking up a bunch of space too.

I keep one of those emergency hammer things in the glovebox that you can use to smash the glass out or cut your seatbelt. Oh, and Grady's Roadside guide I keep printed in the glovebox too. http://dmctalk.org/showthread.php?99...l=1#post188017

In ten years of owning and driving this car, I have only had two things happen that would have left me stranded. One was a melted connector on the ballast resistor wiring. It was not wired correctly and kept melting until I realized why. The time it failed I was in the A&W parking lot at a cruise night. The wiring stripper and baggie of connectors helped with that until I understood how it was supposed to be wired.

The other time was driving home from Dayton in 2014 and a fuel line let go. Right on the side of I75. Wow, that was a treat. Turned out it was the flexible hose on the pressure side of the pump where it connects to the hardline. I had replaced those hoses proactively that Spring and apparently didn't get it all the way on good enough. It had just started to come off when I lost fuel pressure (and fuel all over the highway from underneath). I fixed it on the side of the Interstate with a screwdriver on the hose clamp after pushing the hose on all the way as it should have been. KOW, that's it.

If you don't know your car well or aren't inclined to fix things yourself, then the only thing you need to carry is a cell phone and a credit card. The plus side of that is how much extra space you'll have in the car for other things!

I bought the toiletry bag from DMC. In it I carry a jumper, spare RPM relay, I have Dave's solid state relay installed so I doubt I will ever need it but nice to have a backup. I keep my blending pad and polish and cloths in it for car show touch up's. In the bonnet area I keep a roadside kit containing a set of basic tools, and a lot of emergency repair items like radiator hose tape, collapsable fuel can and siphon hose, flashlight, flares, tire patch kit, fuses, etc. Also keep a blanket in the trunk.

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What you decide to carry is in large part determined by what your ability level is. No need to carry a bunch of tools if you don't know how to use them and you don't have any spare parts. My philosophy is to make the car as reliable as possible and maintain it as well as you can and you should not need anything. That said I do bring some stuff with me, often to help others. You can never bring everything you could possibly need. A AAA card and a cell phone is your ultimate back-up. I use a check list and modify it depending on where I am going, for how long, and what else I have to take.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by David T

No need to carry a bunch of tools if you don't know how to use them....

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Jeez, how condesending can you be? Does anyone here need a training course to use a socket set? Basic tools can turn a 3 hour tow ordeal and maybe a ruined night into a quick pit stop. Everyone should have them(unless that is you are an idiot when it comes to the mysteries of a Phillips head driver).


Attachment 54928

One tool I never leave the house with no matter what I'm driving:

Attachment 54927

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Michael

Jeez, how condesending can you be? Does anyone here need a training course to use a socket set? Basic tools can turn a 3 hour tow ordeal and maybe a ruined night into a quick pit stop. Everyone should have them(unless that is you are an idiot when it comes to the mysteries of a Phillips head driver).


Attachment 54928

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I was not trying to be condescending. Perhaps I should have worded it better. Knowing how to use tools is not the same as diagnosing a problem and deciding on a repair. To diagnose a problem you must understand the system that is not functioning properly and know what to do to make it work properly. Tools are only a part of the solution. The key is the knowledge. If you don't have that all of the tools in the word are not going to help you. Not every owner possesses the necessary knowledge to do repairs whether in their garage or "on the road".

Well when an alternator belt breaks I will not only have the parts(I keep a spare one of those too) but the tools and the elusive knowledge to change that belt without waiting for a tow and/or the shop to open the next day(provided it's not a weekend or holiday). Same goes if a coolant hose clamp comes loose, or removing the air cleaner to get the car started during a hot start issue once, or if I need to swap out a fuel pump while in Gatlinburg on a Saturday afternoon(did that too).

I'm no DeLorean expert, but those basic tools and that jedi like knowledge that I somehow must posses by sheer accident saved my ass more than once. It doesn't take an expert a lot of times, just a little common sense to make a weekend trip over the mountain into Gatlinburg a little hiccup rather than completely ruining the Harrah's Casino trip and it kept my car out of whatever second rate garage Cherokee NC had to offer.

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This was the list I made when I first bought the car, and I still carry almost everything on it. Minus the spare alternator and fuel pump which I never got around to picking up although probably wouldn't be a bad idea, and the battery charger which I substituted with plain old jumper cables, and the bottle of Coke which I heard from the guy who had it on his list that it was just for use with carbs. Plus chocks and jack stands, an infrared thermometer, a borescope, a set of crimpers and wire terminals and a couple of rolls of wire. Also a thermostat, ignition coil and cold start valve that I'd had replaced but turned out not to actually be bad so I kept the old ones just in case.

After busting a shock last summer I've stopped carrying the service jack and associated accouterments around on a daily basis but I still take it with me on long trips. I've still got the original tire jack so I figure it'll do if I get a flat in town.

I carry nearly all my tools with me. The most important has been the trusty 13mm open end wrench and a spare alternator belt.

I've become superstitious that NOT having my tools in the car at all times will cause parts to start failing.

For me it depends on the trip.

I carry my spare OE fuel pump. I replaced it 17 years ago as a preventative measure. It still works and I’ve bailed out a buddy with it when his non - bosch aftermarket Hervey pump crapped out on him.

A spare alternator belt.

A gallon of 50/50 coolant

Jumper cables

Tools to change the FP

11” X 17” laminated color wire schematic. I also have a scanned copy on my phone.

Spare fuses and a couple jumpers.

12V test light for diagnostics or DVM.

All of this is stored in the Spare tire well. I stopped carrying the spare 10 years ago.

Car cleaning stuff if going to a show event.


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