CAR CARE - TIPS AND TRICKS

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Tools and Working Facilities          Next: Part 2

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Introduction

A selection of good tools is a fundamental requirement for anyone contemplating the maintenance and repair of a motor vehicle. For the owner who does not possess any, their purchase will prove a considerable expense, offsetting some of the savings made by doing-it-yourself. However, provided that the tools purchased meet the relevant national safety standards and are of good quality, they will last for many years and prove an extremely worthwhile investment.

To help the average owner to decide which tools are needed to carry out the various tasks detailed in this manual, we have compiled three lists of tools under the following headings: Maintenance and minor repair, Repair and overhaul, and Special. Newcomers to practical mechanics should start off with the Maintenance and minor repair tool kit, and confine themselves to the simpler jobs around the vehicle. Then, as confidence and experience grow, more difficult tasks can be undertaken, with extra tools being purchased as, and when, they are needed. In this way, a Maintenance and minor repair tool kit can be built up into a Repair and overhaul tool kit over a considerable period of time, without any major cash outlays. The experienced do-it yourselfer will have a tool kit good enough for most repair and overhaul procedures, and will add tools from the Special category when it is felt that the expense is justified by the amount of use to which these tools will be put.

Maintenance and minor repair tool kit

The tools given in this list should be considered as a minimum requirement if routine maintenance, servicing and minor repair operations are to be undertaken. We recommend the purchase of combination spanners (ring one end, open-ended the other); although more expensive than open-ended ones, they do give the advantages of both types of spanner.

• Combination spanners: Metric - 8 to 19 mm inclusive
• Adjustable spanner - 35 mm jaw (approx.)
• Spark plug spanner (with rubber insert) - petrol models
• Spark plug gap adjustment tool - petrol models
• Set of feeler gauges
• Brake bleed nipple spanner
• Screwdrivers: Flat blade - 100 mm long x 6 mm dia, Cross blade - 100 mm long x 6 mm dia
• Combination pliers
• Hacksaw (junior)
• Tire pump
• Tire pressure gauge
• Oil can
• Oil filter removal tool
• Fine emery cloth
• Wire brush (small)
• Funnel (medium size)

Repair and overhaul tool kit

These tools are virtually essential for anyone undertaking any major repairs to a motor vehicle, and are additional to those given in the Maintenance and minor repair list. Included in this list is a comprehensive set of sockets. Although these are expensive, they will be found invaluable as they are so versatile - particularly if various drives are included in the set. We recommend the half inch square-drive type, as this can be used with most proprietary torque wrenches.

The tools in this list will sometimes need to be supplemented by tools from the Special list:

• Sockets (or box spanners) to cover range in previous list (including Torx sockets)
• Reversible ratchet drive (for use with sockets)
• Extension piece, 250 mm (for use with sockets)
• Universal joint (for use with sockets)
• Torque wrench (for use with sockets)
• Self-locking grips
• Ball pein hammer
• Soft-faced mallet (plastic/aluminum or rubber)
• Screwdrivers: Flat blade - long & sturdy, short (chubby),
  and narrow (electrician’s) types Cross blade – Long & sturdy, and short (chubby) types
• Pliers: Long-nosed Side cutters (electrician’s) Circlip (internal and external)
• Cold chisel - 25 mm
• Scriber
• Scraper
• Centre-punch
• Pin punch
• Hacksaw
• Brake hose clamp
• Brake/clutch bleeding kit
• Selection of twist drills
• Steel rule/straight-edge
• Allen keys (inc. splined/Torx type)
• Selection of files
• Wire brush
• Axle stands
• Jack (strong trolley or hydraulic type)
• Light with extension lead

Sockets & reversible ratchet drive	Valve spring compressor
Spline bit set	Piston ring compressor
Clutch plate alignment set

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