Your car consists of thousands of moving parts and potential trouble spots. A good mechanic routinely inspects these parts, so you only make small repairs over time to keep your car running. You can run the same maintenance out of your own garage if you have the tools for it.
Lubrication
The internals of a car need to be lubricated frequently to keep those moving parts running well over time. A grease gun can be a handy tool to lubricate parts that are hard to reach by hand. You load the gun, then pull the crank to apply the lubrication. WD-40 is another compound that can fill some limited uses, like lubricating small internal parts or cleaning the grime off of something.
Hand Tools
Most car tail lights can be changed by hand if you have a simple socket wrench. Simply fit the ratchet over the bolt, then rotate to loosen. Once the plate is off, you can swap out the old light for a new one and bolt the plate back into place. You can also use a wrench, but the socket wrench is much more efficient. If you plan to do any interior wiring, bolt cutters will be very handy for stripping and cutting those wires.
Other hand tools that come in handy include screwdrivers, which can be used for both screws and for prying. It’s also helpful to keep lighting close at hand, so you can actually see what you’re doing as you work on the car’s internals.
Heavy-Duty Tools
Every car needs more than just surface maintenance, even if those jobs are few and far between. With a heavy-duty car jack, you can easily change tires or fix your own brake pads. You can also change your oil if the car is lifted from the ground. An air compressor is another heavy-duty tool that is handy for your garage. You can use it as a pneumatic socket wrench, or you can blow away debris and grime from your work space at the end of the session. You can also fit a nozzle at the end and use your compressor as a power washer, stripping away the grime from the internals of your engine with powerful blasts of water.
If you plan to spend some time beneath your car, don’t forget to purchase a kneeling pad to keep from damaging your knees.
Final Thoughts
Cars require a lot of work, which can eat into your budget unless you perform the repairs from the comfort of your home. It’s cheaper to invest in reliable tools now than it is to make repeated trips to your mechanic.
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Toolsmith Direct sells utility knives and other automotive repair tools for individual enthusiasts. Conduct repairs out of your garage with tools from Toolsmith Direct.