My classic vehicle gives me pause for concern when it comes to long trips and somehow, I feel like my AAA card and my cellphone might be the two best things to always have with me.

That said, my 80-something Olds adviser and I started talking about things to keep in the trunk for roadside repair. Here's what I am thinking of keeping in my trunk:

• Spare tire, tire iron, lightweight jack, and jack stand (that's a lot of my trunk). My buddy suggested just building a small box to keep the jack stuff from rolling around. I thought of painting black/aqua. We both came to the realization that the bumper jack (if my car had the original) is more for show.
• spare fuses
• set of ignition points and condenser
• something to work as a spare fan belt
• my relatively small, inexpensive infrared thermometer
• ratchet with just the common sockets, wrenches for stuff that I know how to fix, can fix roadside. That's pretty limited for me.
• slotted and phillips screwdrivers
• a gallon of water
• duct tape, electrical tape
• spare fuel filter, thermostat, radiator cap (pretty small)

Has anyone put together such a roadside kit? Does anyone have a neat toolbox setup or off the shelf recommendation?

 

A good aired up spare tire
small floor jack
4 way tire iron
assorted tools (3/8 drive socket set, screw drivers, pliers channel locks, small ignition wrenches, a crescent wrench, and a full set of combo wrenches.
1 qt of oil
gallon of water
Jumper cables

 

2 -12" subwoofers, an amp, spare plug wire, basic tools, bottle jack and lots of mouse ****

 

A lot of car parts.

 

Just the spare tire (usually flat) and factory jack. I do try to keep a fire extinguisher on the floor of the back seat. For the Jetfire, I like to keep an extra fuel filter in the glove box but I will not even do that after I restore the car. If I were to take it on a long trip before I restored it I would keep an extra water pump in the trunk. The water pump is the most often thing I see go bad on old cars on long drives. Again, After I restore the car I will not even be worried about that.

 

Carry duct tape and Gorilla tape. Duct tape is easier to work with but very thin and not strong, Gorilla tape is very thick with better glue and holds up better in extreme conditions. My dad was a salesman in the 60's and drove all over the place, he always carried extra fan belts because if one broke they were hard to find in the small towns he traveled through.

 

My trunk always has this stuff:

• Spare tire (that actually has air in it)
• compact jack
• 4 way lug wrench
• Vintage collapsible roadside safety reflector
• 12V portable air compressor
• Open end wrench set
• Fire extinguisher
• Jumper cables
• gallon of water
• shop rags

The glove box always has:

• Fuses
• spare GM HEI module
• assortment of QJet rods, jets, hangers
• screw driver assortment
• the wife's hair scarf and sunglasses

For actual road trips (and not just driving to work or around town) I toss some spare fan belts and radiator hoses, along with the canvas tool bag from my Jeep into the trunk. It has a bunch of stuff for repairing a vehicle while out in the wilderness: socket sets, open end wrenches, pipe wrench, crescent wrench, screw drivers, tire plug kit, JB weld, radiator stop leak, bailing wire, duct tape, tow rope, hose clamps, and a whole lot more stuff I can't remember.

 

Jimmy Hoffa

 

Spare tire & jack... Anything else is a phone call away...

 

I'd agree if I still lived in Phoenix or Los Angeles. Unfortunately, the Carolinas can be a geographical oddity. You'd think Charlotte is a big enough metropolitan area but, nope. I often have to wait 3 to 5 business days (sometimes longer in the case of a power steering return line) for parts.

 

Sun screen (the highest number I can find) (don't you have a convertible?)
Spare tire with air
Two jacks, one bottle jack and the other original.
A hot box for jumping car and charging phones and such
A small flat plastic crescent tool box with end wrenches sockets and such, screwdrivers
Tape and wire all kinds.Not much but some
First aid kit
Fire extinguisher
Two lawn chairs and a pop up
Detail bag with more in it than I need for four cars
Usually a firearm (some where in the car), flashlight and a couple pairs of gloves oil, both kinds and Windex, rags.
Probably more but that usually gets me there and back. You can get two Jimmy Hoffa's in my trunk!

 

For tools we have a brief case sized tool kit from Canadian Tire. Has most every socket both SAE and metric, 1/4" 3/8" 1/2" drive plus a couple of combo wrenches both SAE and metric, hex keys etc. On sale for about $60.00. Just about enough to change an engine, tranny or alternator, or something you found at the wreckers.

 

This is it for me...

 

Plus a scissor jack, 1/2 drive socket set, fire extinguisher, moving pad for getting under the car, cleaning supplies and extra water. More if going to a show.

Wayne

 

That's a sharp trunk. I have an ACC brand houndstooth mat on my list but, its also up there with a polished cowl grille and after a little more suspension work. Interior stuff possibly later this year.

This thread has been a fantastic reminder that I bought a nice four-way lug wrench (which is sitting on the wall next to the car) and an awesome set of long jumper cables with bag... which both need to go in the car. I'm not entirely sure why my other cars have Meguiars care kits in them but not the Olds. This will also probably need to be remedied.

 

I am like Tedd Thompson, I have the makings for car show resting with lawn chairs, a pop up, floor jack and never would I use the factory bumper jack, a 4 way, a box of cleaning and waxing products, and a firearm in the car usually also. Being mine is a convertible I have two jackets and a blanket as well.

 

Forgot about my vest and heavy jacket, not that am I always hot and sunburnt but sometimes cold. I'm jealous of all those sharp looking clean trunks, that is what mine looks like just before judging and seldom any other time..... Tedd

 

Set of golf clubs, spare tire, jack, small set of roadside tools & a tubeless (plug) tire repair kit.

 

For a drive, I throw in 3 things: fire extinguisher, pistol, and tool bag.

For a trip, all that, plus hoses, belts, couple quarts oil, quart atf, gallon coolant.

Basically, the answer in one sentence is: All maintenance parts for under the hood, the fluid used under the hood, and tools with which to change them, and a gun.

My toolbag has: 4 phillips, 4 flat, some torx, allens, shallow and deep well metric and standard in both 1/4 and 3/8 along with bars, ratchets and extensions, and most of the channellock catalog. Craftsman on the road, Snap On at home.

 

What good is a gun in the trunk? The glove box is within reach.

 

^^x2^^ mine is on my side, under the seat, center console or glove box

 

Nice thread! I'm new to my 66.
What size bottle Jack do you have? I hadn't considered that but didn't think I'd want to use the bumper jack or it might mess up the chrome
Lol that everyone mentions that their spare has air. I checked mine a few days ago and it was very low..
And why mentions of water but not coolant?

 

Mainly because water is cheap, and if you are in a situation where you sprung a leak and are dumping coolant/overheating, the leak may not be fixable at the time so putting $$ antifreze in the system doesn't make sense. Plus, straight water dissipates heat better than ethylene glycol antifreeze so it's a much better choice to keep for emergencies.

 

My sister in law carries an emergency break window tool in her trunk. Go figure

 

Now that's funny!