You never know when your car may break down or you'll get into an accident. Even worse, you might get stuck for days in a major traffic jam. Just in case one of these happens to you, it's best to keep an emergency road kit stocked in your vehicle.
The 33 Items You Need in Your Emergency Roadside Kit
It's tough to imagine that you need 33 different items in your vehicle in case of an emergency, but it's true. You'll use some items in numerous situations, while others are for very specific ones. It's important that you know how to use each and every one of these in case an emergency arises.
Tools for Dealing With a Flat Tire
1. A set of tire-changing tools designed for your vehicle — Tire-changing tools should already be in your vehicle, but you need to confirm this. You should have both a jack and a lug wrench. To make things, easier keep a cheater bar for those hard-to-loosen nuts.
2. Spare tire — This should already be in your vehicle, but confirm that it's there and properly inflated.
3. Tire pressure gauge — Use it to make sure your tires are properly inflated if they were low. It needs to read at least 60 PSI, which is the standard pressure level for a spare tire.
4. 12-volt air compressor — Use it to inflate tires to operating pressures. Get 12-volt power from a car cigarette lighter or portable jumper battery.
5. Old beach towel — You can use a towel to pad your knees or to stay clean while lying on the ground to position a vehicle jack. You can also use it to keep warm if you're stuck in the winter.
6. Cheap tarp — For use with, or in lieu of, beach towel when the ground is wet.
7. A piece of treated plywood board — It should be 8” X 8” X ½” thick. When on soft/uneven ground or sand, you'll place this under the vehicle jack to distribute the vehicle’s weight, stabilize the jack, and prevent it from sinking or sliding.
8. Set of two-wheel chocks — Place them under the wheel diagonally opposite the one with the flat tire to prevent the vehicle from rolling while you jack it up.
9. Can of “PB Penetrating Catalyst” — Spray it on stubborn/rusted nuts to facilitate removal.
Tools for Dealing With Emergency Repairs
10. Your vehicle's operator manual — It will provide step-by-step instructions on how to change a tire and cope with minor emergencies. Drivers should read this manual before getting behind the wheel.
11. Pair of heavy leather work gloves — You can use this to protect your hands from exposed steel wires in blown-out tires.
13. A Light-reflecting vest — It should be bright orange or yellow, with white reflecting strips. Helps keep you safe while changing a tire.
14. Pliers (or vise-grips) — Used to gain sufficient leverage to loosen nuts and bolts on your vehicle. Used in a lot of different vehicle maintenance situations.
15. A set of three reflecting warning triangles — This will help alert other drivers to you and your vehicle on the roadside. Roadside flares are a great alternative.
16. A roll of duct tape — Needed for temporary repairs to a vehicle hose leaking coolant. You can even use it to secure loose trim as a result of a minor accident.
17. Gallon of water or coolant — This can be used if the engine cooling system has run low or if your vehicle’s engine has shown any inclination to overheat. Let the vehicle cool down before adding fluid.
18. Extra quart of engine oil — You can use this if the engine overheats and turns out to be low on oil.
19. A funnel — Prevents waste and spills when pouring fuel, oil, water, or coolant.
20. Kitty litter — If you're stuck on the side of the road in icy or snowy conditions, kitty litter can give you enough traction to get back on the road.
Tools for Staying Overnight in Your Car
21. Cell phone charger— While you won't keep the phone itself in your emergency kit, keep a car charger in there in case your battery dies and you need help.
22. Flashlight and batteries — Save your cell phone battery by having a flashlight for nighttime situations.
23. Road atlas — A road atlas will help you find your location if your GPS is not working. It can also give you good support if you need to call for help. Make sure you know how to read a map.
24. An emergency blanket — It can't hurt to keep both a reflective blanket and a heavier one to keep you warm in emergency situations. Never leave your vehicle if you get stuck during a blizzard.
25. First-aid kit — You never know if you'll get hurt in a car wreck or injure yourself trying to fix your broken-down car. Always keep a fully stocked kit on hand.
26. Headlamp — In addition to a flashlight, wear a headlamp if you need additional light while using both of your hands.
27. Snacks — If you are stuck somewhere due to the weather or a major accident, snacks can keep you from running out of energy. Keep things like granola or protein bars that are shelf stable for a long time.
28. A Change of clothes — If you get wet while working on your broken down car, a set of dry clothes can be a lifesaver, especially if it's cold out.
29. Hat and gloves — If it's cold out and you break down, you'll be thankful you have these in your emergency kit.
30. Magnetic key box — Hide a spare key in one of these somewhere underneath your vehicle. It'll save you lots of frustration if you lose your keys while you're out.
Tools for Jump-starting a Dead Battery
12. Flat, thin “combination” wrench — A ¼-inch drive socket wrench for battery clamps will also work. The range of nut sizes on battery clamps is 8 mm-13 mm. The most common size is 10 mm. Note: Adjustable monkey wrenches do not work since their heads are too thick and bulky.
31. Battery terminal brush — This includes both male and female components to clean both posts and clamps so your battery can make a solid connection.
32. Jumper cables — An emergency roadside kit is incomplete without jumper cables. You'll want thick, heavy-duty (2- or 4-gauge), 20-foot-long cables to permit jump-starts and remote battery charges, without having to put vehicles front-to-front or even side-by-side for a boost.
33. A portable jumper battery — This is perfect to jump-start an engine with a weak battery when there are no other cars around. Typically, portable jumper batteries feature a lamp to illuminate nighttime tire changes and jumps. Portable jumper batteries require charging after each use as well as monthly charges. Total loss of charge kills these batteries.
Do Your Best to Avoid Using Your Emergency Kit
While you can't prevent yourself from getting into every type of situation, you need to know how to handle one if you do. A great way to learn how to keep yourself safe on the road and out of accidents is by taking a driver's ed course at Aceable.com. Our bite-sized lessons are lots of fun, and you can complete them at your own speed, entirely online.
Updated 8/9/2024