What do you carry with you?

[sebdangerfield]

Hi folks, after going out for a great drive on Christmas Day and then trying again on Boxing Day but failing because of starter issues I started to think more seriously about what to carry with me on trips, especially as I start looking forward to longer drives in the spring. 
 

I’ve watched a few videos with some folk taking enough for a rebuild and others taking a wallet and RAC card. I’ll probably be somewhere between the two but with a bit of focus on some known weaker points. I drive a 2.0 zetec on omex throttle bodies and ECU with a type 9 box. I’ve no idea if there are any obvious weak points? 
 

i thought I’d ask the forum, what do you carry with you? 

[SteveB21]

 

[RickRack]

I think it’s not possible to have a “mean” and all depends on how risk averse the driver is. If going with others, split the overall kit to save on space & weight. I also wouldn’t drive mine without recovery as the risk of not fixing due to no part/tool ensure both the car & me are safe. But in general, I have two small sets - 1 x mech + 1 x elec & keep in boot box with Jack & coolant plus rags to stop them rattling. I also changed my wheels recently and contemplated 4 instead of 5 wheels/tyres but my measure of risk made me buy a 5th wheel. 

[sebdangerfield]

Thanks guys. 
 

@RickRack I don’t even have a spare so some tyre gunk and some plugs might be useful for me. 
 

That thread mentions throttle and clutch cables. They’d be a decent idea to carry but how do you know which ones fit and where do you get them? 

[Stuart]

@sebdangerfield on many cars something can be cobbled up from this.  My throttle cable is a decent quality bike brake cable with one of the nipples from this kit at the engine end.  It has broken twice in 33,000 miles, each time at the pedal nipple, so I regularly check there for any signs of wear.  Some people change the inner cable annually to avoid the problem which isn't a bad idea given that they cost very little.  Can't help you with the clutch - mine's hydraulic

[sebdangerfield]

That kits neat. I didn’t know they existed, thankyou @Stuart

 

incidentally, where’s best to buy things like throttle cables? I always imagined they’d be too specific to make for each variation of bell housing and pedal assembly but it seems not. 

[Stuart]

@sebdangerfield if you can't find one to fit you can get bespoke cables made. This is one supplier I think there are others

[Mole]

The other key thing is maintenance..the more you do yourself the more you will understand your car and be able to prevent issues happening..

Throttle and clutch cable are easy to maintain..but also light and easy to carry and possible to change on the roadside..

[Mark (smokey mow)]

I only ever carried enough to do basic quick fix roadside repairs, I didn’t have any larger tools in the car on the basis that if the job was that big, I’d either not have the parts with me to fix it, not have a trolley jack or would be calling breakdown recovery as it would take too long.

 

My basic tool kit for most of my vehicles consists of a small tool roll with each of the following:

• 10mm spanner
• 13mm spanner
• Side cutters
• Small adjustable vice grip pliers 
• Snap off Stanley knife
• 4.8mm/150mm Cable ties
• A few short lengths of electrical cable
• PZ2 screwdriver
• Slotted screwdriver
• Throttle cable
• 1L fuel friend (emergency fuel can) 

 

In 10years of Westfield ownership I only ever needed to reach for the tool kit twice. The first time was when the fan switch failed and in needed to electrically bypass it to keep the fan running. The second time was when one of the vernier cam pulleys slackened off and needed tightening.

 

 

[Andrzej]

As for throttle and clutch cables apart from good routine to own some spare just on case, most importat seems to me properly set pedals adjustments / pedals stops so cables are not stretched when pedals clutch and throttle pressed full hard. If not stressed how come such strong  steel wires came apart? 

[maurici]

1 hour ago, Andrzej said:

As for throttle and clutch cables apart from good routine to own some spare just on case, most importat seems to me properly set pedals adjustments / pedals stops so cables are not stretched when pedals clutch and throttle pressed full hard. If not stressed how come such strong  steel wires came apart? 

This.

There is no obvious "weak points" that you will be able to fix on the roadside.

There is lack of build quality... And that is everybody's own and each car.

How come a well maintained nova will still run oem cables 30 years down the line, and an under driven toy car needs to carry spares?

 

Tyre plugs, a few cable ties and graffa tape... (To sort possible bodyworks mishaps) And means to inflate a tyre... And not much more should be needed.

 

The car is made based on oem stuff... Do you carry an starter motor, a set of coolant hoses and spare fluids in your daily when commuting?

 

My advice... Do an accelerated wear test (drive it like stolen on track a few times) fix the issues that arise (they will). Repeat.

After this... Nothing trivial should break.

 

 

 

[Flying Carrot Steve]

45 minutes ago, maurici said:

This.

There is no obvious "weak points" that you will be able to fix on the roadside.

There is lack of build quality... And that is everybody's own and each car.

How come a well maintained nova will still run oem cables 30 years down the line, and an under driven toy car needs to carry spares?

 

Tyre plugs, a few cable ties and graffa tape... (To sort possible bodyworks mishaps) And means to inflate a tyre... And not much more should be needed.

 

The car is made based on oem stuff... Do you carry an starter motor, a set of coolant hoses and spare fluids in your daily when commuting?

 

My advice... Do an accelerated wear test (drive it like stolen on track a few times) fix the issues that arise (they will). Repeat.

After this... Nothing trivial should break.

 

 

 

 

Intend to agree. In 10 years and 4 kits I've only ever had a throttle cable break (on my Tiger) and a coolant hose come off on the Westie. Both fixed by walking to the nearest shop, Halfords for a bike brake cable for the Tiger throttle and Sainsbury for some water to top up the radiator after the cooland leak. Had few basic tools with me, ie an adjustable wrench and a couple of screwdrivers, pliers, electrical tape, fuses, cable ties, small hammer. Best bit of kit is an RAC or AA card as far as I'm concerned. Never had to use it once in 10 years. 

[Stuart]

I think there was a weak point in my throttle set up. It broke twice at the pedal cable nipple, I think because the cable was badly bent, nipped and eventually cut by one pointed head grub screw. It now sits in a straight line between 2 flat head grub screws. 

[Tim-s]

20 hours ago, Stuart said:

@sebdangerfield on many cars something can be cobbled up from this.  My throttle cable is a decent quality bike brake cable with one of the nipples from this kit at the engine end.  It has broken twice in 33,000 miles, each time at the pedal nipple, so I regularly check there for any signs of wear.  Some people change the inner cable annually to avoid the problem which isn't a bad idea given that they cost very little.  Can't help you with the clutch - mine's hydraulic

Throttle cable is a good shout 👍